Brian and I are exhausted, but the recording is finally done!

The last bit of editing at the studio was long, but went smoothly. The finished product is amazing! Especially the O Holy Night, which turned out phenomenal!

All that is left now is for me to complete the artwork for the packaging of the album and get that printed, should be finished soon!

A few months ago I started learning a new instrument!

It's a wind instrument similar to a recorder called an Ocarina. The ocarina is a curious little instrument. It's a very old type of instrument, dating back thousands of years. An ocarina can be in many different shapes and sizes, but the most popular is called "Transverse" or more casually "Sweet Potato". "Pendant" style ocarinas you can wear around your neck are also popular. Mine is made of ceramic, but they can be made out of wood, plastic, metal and other materials too.

I wanted to learn the ocarina for three reasons. One being that the history and aesthetic of the instrument appealed to me, second I wanted an instrument that was portable and the last reason is because the instrument is played in the classic video game Zelda: The Ocarina of Time for the Nintendo 64 which happens to be one of my favorite video games of all time!

I already own three Ocarinas, two transverse and one pendant. Here is a link to me playing the ocarina

If you would like to learn more about this wonderful instrument, or would like to buy your own, check out Songbird Ocarinas.

Since I started the work on the recording back in November 2009, I have only practiced those seven pieces. I have now finally finished my recording, so Brian and I can start learning some new songs!

It is always exciting to start learning new music! I am very eager to start something new. While I love all the pieces I chose for my album, I am a little tired of them now. Also, being a singer means constantly growing and changing. If you just sing the same pieces over and over again you never challenge yourself!

Brian picked out some solos from Handel's Messiah as well as some pieces from Vivaldi's Gloria. All the pieces are quite difficult, but I'm up for it!