Meeting Some Musical Greats in Chicago

One of the very  special opportunities we have had on this tour was arranged by James Kallembach.  Eighth Blackbird is in residence at the University of Chicgao where James teaches, and James was able to arrange a coaching/meeting with cellist Nick Phontios.  Heather, Nick, and I started our meeting a small Italian cafe near the Eighth Blackbird rehearsal space.  We got to pick his brain about how Eighth Blackbird became the important new music group that it is today, and ask him questions about what he thought was important for aspiring young groups.  

Once James arrived, we went to the Eighth Blackbird rehearsal space and played the first two movements of James’ piece for Nick and James.  They both had a lot of great comments that we’ve since incorporated into our performance.  When we were finished we chatted with Nick more about our next steps.  He really encouraged us to take every opportunity we could to play together as much as possible.  

After the coaching/meeting, Heather and I went to a nearby coffee shop to talk about all of Nick and James’ advice.  It’s always important to do a little recap after sessions like this that cover so much important information.

Next, we met with James and his wife for dinner at a great pizza place.  It was great to just hang out with James over some good food and talk about life.  In addition to being a great composer, he’s such a fantastic person!  

Full of pizza and good will, we went to the residence halls at the University of Chicago and played the rest of James’ piece for him.  It was a really late night, but definitely worth the time and effort.  Suffice it to say, we slept really well after such a long day of satisfying work.

~ Jen