May 8, 2011 9:45 p.m.

We are back from our first state competition.  It is the FFMC convention, affectionately (or not) referred to by students and teachers in our state as “Federation”.

So, let me tell you about the Federation experience, our annual pilgrimage to the city of “ Jax” for our “day of atonement”, our musical self-flagellation, our competitive penance.  You are beginning to get the idea, perhaps?

Federation, for this violin mom, is like a pregnancy all compressed into three nights and two days away from home, with hours of heart-pounding labor and frequent adrenaline rushes, all to culminate in giving birth to … a ribbon.

A ribbon did you say?

To begin with, here is today’s photo of Chips’ dresser.

Do you see that red white and blue ribbon on the wall?  That is the newborn of the family.

Other special features of Federation include….. sleepless nights in a hotel with beds that are too soft, tossing and turning and reliving  dozens of moments of the day, only to repeat the tossing and turning on each successive night.  Didn’t I call it “emotional sandpaper” a year ago?  I still feel the same way.

No, Chips didn’t get any award for his solo this year, or for his concerto, but we are very happy that his duet got an award.  It was fabulous, it really was.

And poor Sweet Girl, she was robbed.  Her Minuet One was flawless, her bow control was right where it ought to be, she perfectly set the bow all four times, her tone was lovely, her bow distribution was correct as taught, she remembered the dynamics, her intonation was spot on.  She got robbed, I say.  We are still scratching our heads over that one.  And we were so certain that she was the tops; we led her on to believe that she would get something, so she was disappointed to tears when it didn’t materialize.  Another lesson learned.

But we all survived, and we are all stronger in character because of it.  And now, let me tell you the good things about Federation…...

• something about Federation bonds our family together like nothing else.  There is no other time all year long in which the four of us connect like at Federation.  We ride the emotional rollercoaster as a family unit, coaching our kids and keeping their spirits up, engaging in soul searching, and reminding ourselves why this is what we do and why competition is a good thing.

• we remind our kids that music is God-given and to glorify the Lord in their performing.  And I am taking more joy in the successes of all the other kids we have known over the years, even when our own kids don’t come away with what they hoped to.

• something about Federation makes our kids pull out all the stops and do the performances of their lives!  WOW WOW WOW!!  I have never heard Sweet Girl play Minuet One so beautifully.  Our teacher actually said she played it “perfectly”.  She said that Chips and his partner played their duet perfectly, too.  I still can’t get over the fact that she used that P word twice in the same weekend.  It might be five years before we hear her say it again.

• something about Federation makes us do all the things that we don’t do all year that often, like go out for ice cream, order special sodas at Cr*cker Barrel, stop by for M*cDonald’s french fries, and any other simple pleasure we can dream up that brings a smile to our kids’ faces.  Can you say “comfort eating”, boys and girls?

• Federation holds a free exhibition of two exceptional senior student musicians each night, and it is such an inspiration to experience such superb performances.  This year, we got to see three pianists and one violinist.  Wonderful.

• oh my goodness, did I say how awesome the boys’ duet was?  It was stunning.  They played Tartini Sonata in D major, allegro assai.  It was truly, truly supercharged.  They played it with such intensity and passion, at quick tempo, with seamless communication between themselves, and plenty of testosterone, like a musical political argument, if you can imagine such a thing.  I so wish we could have been allowed to videotape their duet.  It was unforgettable.

Here are the duet partners with their Honorable Mention ribbons.

Lord willing, they will probably be duet partners next year, too.  And don’t let the diminutive size of that boy on the right fool you.  That kid is heading for Carn*gie Hall.  You’ll see.

Another Federation down.  Now to focus on J.S. Bach for our next competitive experience, coming soon to a blog post near you.

and p.s.  Yes, I spent Mother’s Day and my birthday totally exhausted and wanting to nap all day.