Our Santa Rosa Symphony orchestra has a Discovery Series of concerts where you can sit in on a real rehearsal of an upcoming program. The seats are affordable and you can sit up close if you get there early enough. So if it looks like these sketches are done from close up, you’re right. Second row orchestra seats at the Green Center.
pen and watercolor in soft cover Stillman + Birn Beta sketchbook, 5.5X8.5″
That meant that mostly I saw the front row of violinists (younger and older) and the back of the conductor.
Wanting to be as discreet as possible I sketched with a pen, then added a bit of paint at home afterwards.
When they moved the piano on stage for the Ravel Concerto and placed it, yes, that close, well. . .and then Stewart Goodyear came out cool as a cucumber and those fingers rained notes, not like individual ones, but a curtain of music, and so easeful. And well I guess you can see I got a bit wrapped up in the shape of his beautiful shiny head. . .but the fingers – ahh – and conductor Andrew Grams hands – ahh. And Ravel’s romantic music – ahh.
That was some concert! and ending with Clair de Lune!
Later in the week Bob and I spent a day in Berkeley and Emeryville, our old haunting grounds before we moved to Sonoma County. We stopped for some lunch and window shopping on Fourth Street in Berkeley.
And while sipping a Pumpkin Latte outdoors at Peet’s I had a few minutes to sketch. The East Bay Urban Sketchers sketched in this location for their meet-up this week. Rather than the bright sunlight, they captured the bright lights of decorations at night. Check out their wonderful sketches from the night scene here!
And for more sketches on Fourth St. in Berkeley go to this one from two years ago when we made the same trip! https://susancornelis.wordpress.com/2016/01/06/in-the-sketchbook/
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