Back to my bike! (and music)

Happy St. Paddy's Day! (yes, it's Paddy's, not Patty's).

It's been a gruesome winter in NYC and the cold just broke. Well, actually it broke a week ago, but then we had a horrendous rain storm, so today, March 17, 2010, is - for me - the beginning of a beautiful spring. I rode my bike to work today for the first time in a very long time (since January?). My bike commute is wonderful. I leave my apartment and in only a couple minutes I'm on the triborough bridge (now called the RFK Bridge). The pedestrian walkway has been recently renovated so it's wider, safer, and has fewer stairs on it. Great! When I get to Ward's Island, I have a delightful 5 minute ride on a bike trail where I typically see a few squirrels, ducks, and geese before I reach the Harlem Footbridge (AKA Ward's Island Bridge). This bridge is closed November-March, so the commute is not as nice in the winter, but today it was open! I coast onto the Island of Manhattan at 103rd Street and have a short 6-block ride to Central Park. In Central Park I traverse the north end of East Drive to 7th Avenue at the top of the park. Ah, it's so wonderful. Then I have a short ride through south Harlem to my gym where I catch a breather, clean up, and get ready for work.

I love this commute. And my wife Taylor will tell that I'm a bit glum on days when I can't ride my bike due to weather or some strange engagement that requires me to carry too much stuff to take on my bike.

OK, back to music...now that the NYC Kirk Trevor Conductor Workshop is behind us, the Astoria Symphony concert is over (it was a huge success), and my performance of the new opera Paul's Case was a big hit, I can start looking forward to upcoming projects. They are:

1. This Saturday, March 20, at 4 pm: repeat performance of Greg Spear's new opera Paul's Case in Brooklyn as part of BAM's opera festival. Details here.

2. April 10, 8 pm: AMS's chamber music concert featuring the Forte String Quartet. Details here.

3. April 28 & 30, and May 2: Manhattan School of Music's production of The Marriage of Figaro. Details here.

4. April 29 & May 1, 8 pm: Lost Dog New Music Ensemble's From the Mountains to the Sea - Elemental America Concert. Details here.

5. May 8, 8 pm: The Astoria Symphony Season Finale. Details here.

6. May 16-22: Round Rock Symphony's conductor workshop. Details here.

7. May 22: Round Rock Symphony's season finale (From Ancient Rome to the New World). Details here.