Reck Violin Shop

I received this email from Barb Reck, who gave me permission to post it on my blog.

We want to let people know that, while our shop is under 5 feet of water, Jim did get all the important stuff out last week and is working out of our home. He is able to do repairs and has instruments, bows, cases and accessories for sale. Within 4 - 5 hours of now, our shop phone calls will be routed here to our home. (We were out of town last weekend for our daughter's wedding in Ann Arbor, Michigan.) Jim has finally decided a website might be a good idea, so we will try to get that set up soon. If you need to get in touch with us, our phone numbers are listed below as well as our address. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this time, and please pass the word on to your students and colleagues that we are still in business in a new temporary location.

Barb & Jim Reck
30 Hunters Glen (off Rohret Rd. in southwest Iowa City, near West High School)
home phone: 319 354-6906
business phone: 319 351-8374
cell phone: 319 621-6125

OctOBOEfest!

I had a fun time this weekend. It was sort of like a mini IDRS convention, except with the majority of participants being college and high school students. I think that's fantastic though! My first experience with the big wide world of oboe playing didn't come until my second year of university. I didn't know ANY famous names at the time, so when I met a nice oboist named Marc Fink, I just thought he was a nice oboist. We had lunch. Lo and behold, he was the current president of the IDRS, a fact I discovered at that evening's concert. It's wonderful for young oboists to be exposed to as many fellow players as possible!

I wrote some notes on the masterclasses by Gordon Hunt, Peter Cooper and Bert Lucarelli, so I'll post some of the tidbits on my blog eventually!

Unfortunately I didn't have any luck selling my English horn or Robin's oboe. I don't know how many people were even in the market for used instruments at this event. One used gouger was sold, but none of the oboes moved. Apparently they were tried out, so maybe some people took the flyers I'd printed up. Fingers crossed.

A highlight for me was the opportunity to catch up with Peter Cooper. We went out for lunch after Gordon Hunt's masterclass on Saturday, and we had a great time. It had been a while since we'd sat and talked, and I felt like I finally had my mentor back. He really came into my life at the right time (or at least I was in Colorado at the right time), and he's been extremely inspirational on a professional and personal level. We chatted about oboe, life, parenthood, jobs, Iowa, Colorado and more. I left him at his hotel (for some much needed reed time...he is one of the pickiest reed makers I know) and saw him again at his masterclass that afternoon. Good old Peter. Some very familiar analogies and stories, and some new ones. He makes some up on the spot (like "telling a story" with the oboe--he used the three little pigs), and they don't always make the greatest examples. He sticks with them though! That must be where I get it from! With my students, I will follow through with an analogy if it kills me! More on the masterclass later. Here's a picture of Peter and me. As he put it, it's his first photo with Junior. (I think I look pretty bad in this photo, but we'll blame it on the rain and it being the end of a long day!)

I'm off!

I'm heading to Iowa City for the weekend. I'm going to tonight's concert of OctOBOEfest and tomorrow's masterclasses and presentations. Yeah, I'm going to see Peter Cooper! I'm hoping to whisk him away for dinner tomorrow night after his masterclass.

I'll be bringing my Bulgheroni English horn and Robin's Cabart oboe, both for sale! Let's hope we find them a couple of nice new homes!

See you on Sunday. Have a great weekend!

Prairie Table Tea

I now have a new must-visit whenever I go to Iowa City. I already go to Java House and Prairie Lights bookstore, and of course Eble Music. Now on the list: The Prairie Table, a kitchenware, gourmet food & wine store. I bought two of their loose teas, Irish Morning ("Black Tea: coconut shreds, wild strawberry leaves, safflower petals") and Vanilla Flavored Black Tea ("China-Ceylon tea blend, Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla pieces"). I had Irish Morning this morning, and it's a new favourite! Yummm.