The concert was held at the Jacoby Symphony Hall in the Times Union Center, and started at 7:30. My nursing shift technically ends at 7, but by the time I give a report to the oncoming shift, I usually end up leaving the hospital at 7:30, so I knew I would likely be a little late to the concert.
As it turned out, I was able to get finished with report, changed and out of the hospital in record time, and Shands is conveniently located right downtown, so the drive only took about 10 minutes. Parking, however, took a few minutes more. Parking downtown can be difficult, even on a good night, but I didn't mind parking and walking a few blocks to the Times Union Center. It was a warm, breezy night, and the wind blew in just the right direction so that the warm, sweet smell of the Maxwell House plant lingered in the air. The sun was setting over the Jacksonville skyline, and during my walk through the downtown streets, I offered up a prayer of thanks for this fantastic city.
I was in a great mood.
I'd just finished a 12 hour nursing shift, and sometimes complete exhaustion and can put me in a calm, happy-tired mood. You might be surprised at how fast paced and exhausting work really is on a nursing ward. Hope you don't mind if I take a brief pause in my story of the evening to clear up some possible misconceptions about my profession and to rant a little.
In the past decade or so, mostly thanks to "ER" and similar shows, the general public has gotten a much more realistic portrayal of what life and work is really like for doctors and nurses. Still, most people are led to believe that nursing is only really fast paced in the ER. I am routinely tempted to hurl the remote at the TV when I see shows like the recent "HawthoRNe" starring Jada Pinkett Smith, or "Mercy" and their portrayal of nurses. Yes, they portray nurses as heroes of sorts, but they depict life on the ward as relatively slow and carefree. On one particular episode of Mercy, I watched a nurse sitting down in a patient's room watching a movie and munching popcorn! Did I mention that in a typical 12 hour shift I never sit down, barely take 15 minutes to eat, rarely stand still, and usually leave sweating and sore like I've just run a marathon? Once I wore a pedometer during a shift and discovered at the end that I'd walked over 5 miles! In fact, I often forget even to drink water until my throat becomes so dry that it is sticking to itself. I mention this because often I will tell someone how stressful and exhausting a typical work day is for me and they will say with concern "Oh, you work in the ER?" Most people can't imagine how tough nursing on the ward is.
Let me give you a real life scenario from a typical Monday morning on the ward: I receive report and start prioritizing in my head: I have six patients, each of them needing me to obtain, organize and bring at least 20 different medications at different times throughout the day. They will all have to be assessed and charted on, and the charting for each patient is many pages long. In addition, several of them are coming and going throughout the day for different procedures and/or need me to change dressings, place lines (like IVs and catheters) draw blood and the like. Today our medical system is so advanced that many people can be treated and cared for outside the hospital, which means that those that are actually in the hospital are very sick and need lots of care, tests and procedures.
So, on a typical morning, as I am trying to organize my day I note that several of my patients are on insulin, so I resolve to see them first. I will need to draw up differing amounts of insulin to give each of those patients based on their particular blood sugar before breakfast. As I start heading to see these patients, the clerk calls out that I have a phone call from the OR asking about one of my patients going to surgery. The pager on my hip starts beeping loudly, several of my patients are calling for pain medication. On the way to the phone, one of the Nursing Assistants grabs me to inform me that one of my patients has a very high blood pressure and the doctor will need to be paged. While I am taking the phone call (and re-prioritizing in my head -- the blood pressure will probably have to be dealt with first), another nurse calls out that one of my patients is confused, trying to get out of bed and has ripped out her IV. I speak to the OR quickly and after I get off the phone and head for the confused patient's room, a doctor grabs my arm and asks me some questions about one of my patients. He informs me that the patient spiked a fever overnight and now needs an x-ray, and some blood and a urine sample (taken via catheter) stat. Standing behind him is the family member of one of my patients who would like me to fill a pitcher of ice and bring some cups and straws.
This pace continues for 12 straight hours, rarely letting up.
I love my work, though. I don't think someone could stay a nurse for very long if they didn't love it. I don't mean to sound as if I am complaining. I say all this to let you know that nurses work really, really hard. If you or someone you know is ever in the hospital, take the time to say "thanks" and don't be upset if it takes your nurse a few minutes to get to you when you call. If you have a nurse in your family and/or group of friends (most of us do), be sure to tell them how much you appreciate them.
Okay, off my soap box now. I arrived to the Times Union Center, grabbed my tickets from the Will Call window, and met up with my friend Effie in the lobby. We were only about 20 minutes late for the concert, and we quietly walked into the gorgeous Jacoby Symphony Hall and had a seat. There was open seating that night, and the theater was a little less than half full.
Four musicians were seated onstage: three men and one woman. One of the men played a cello, and the rest of the musicians played violins. Huge aqua and gold toned paintings set up on easels lit up the stage behind the musicians. The woman playing onstage was wearing a matching shiny aqua top. The piece they were playing was "The Appointed Time for String Quartet" by James Lee. According to the program, Mr. Lee is a contemporary musician/composer. Now only 35 years old, Mr. Lee wrote the piece in 1999. The piece was soulful and upbeat, and the musicians were animated, really into what they were playing.
The term "chamber music" is used to describe a type of classical music written for a small group of musicians... small enough to play in a palace chamber (read: small room). So by its very nature, chamber music is meant to be intimate, and that's how the performance felt. As I immersed myself in the music and let my mind wander, I was able to read the faces of each musician, and carefully watch each of them play.
The music was so pretty... the players so talented. I can't believe how fast their hands moved, and how skillfully! They never missed a beat or a note. With no conductor, I was amazed at how each musician knew when to come in and out, when to pause, and when to start again. In many ways, the players' movements looked choreographed like a dance. The bows the musicians ran along the strings often moved in unison, while the faces of the players brimmed with emotion (much like the music they played).
The piece: "The Appointed Time for String Quartet" was had four movements (segments) and was very interesting. I read in the program that the composer meant for the piece to be "a musical commentary on Jesus Christ's temptations by the devil in the wilderness", so the music ranged from fast paced and thrilling in some places, and slow and meditative in others. It was a great experience. At the end of the piece, we all clapped wildly and a man jogged up onstage from his position in the audience and shook hands with each of the musicians. I assumed this must be the composer, Mr. James Lee himself.
Next, a Mr. Terrance Patterson strode onto the stage, clarinet in hand and sat down to play along with the string quartet. Mr. Patterson founded the Ritz Chamber Players in 2002, deriving the name of the group from the Ritz LaVilla Theatre and Museum.
LaVilla is the name of a Northeast Florida Plantation. In the mid 1800s, many formerly enslaved people began a life of freedom near this plantation, and for more than 100 years, the LaVilla area served as a "vibrant center for African-American commerce, entertainment, education and religion" and was once called "the Harlem of the South". In the late 1990s, the neighborhood was revitalized with funds from the city of Jacksonville's River City Renaissance Initiative" and the 1929 Ritz Movie House became the Ritz LaVilla Theatre and Museum. (http://www.ritzlavila.org/)
Today the museum houses an exhibit featuring the history of African Americans in Northeast Florida, and the theater hosts various shows and fun events like "Amateur Night" (where local performers compete for a cash prize) and "Art of the Spoken Word (where artists, poets and musicians perform). Similar to the museum, the Ritz Chamber Players seek to feature African American musicians and composers and according to the group's mission statement emphasizes building audiences and arts that reflect our diverse society. The group has so far been very successful. The Ritz Chamber Players have played throughout the country, including Carnegie Hall in New York, and has played via radio broadcast to over 40 countries. The group was even featured on television at the 37th Annual NAACP Image Awards, and plays often at local music festivals.
The next piece played onstage that night was Mozart's "Quintet for Clarinet, Two Violins and Cello in A Major". Immediately, Effie started quietly clapping with excitement. She leaned over and whispered, "I used to play clarinet in high school! I used to practice this piece all the time!"
I was stunned -- I too played the clarinet. It seems the longer I hang out with Effie the more I realize we have in common. I was never as good as Effie on the clarinet, though. I only played for a year, and only in 6th and 7th grade. I gasped as the music began and Mr. Patterson played cascades of notes, his fingers flying up and down the keys, while the beautiful flowing sounds of the clarinet trilled effortlessly up and down the register. "You played THIS song? In high school?!" I whispered. "I think I was able to barely eke out the main theme to Superman!"
Effie laughed.
This piece was also very enjoyable to listen to. Both Effie and I were riveted by the remainder of the performances. By the time we left the Times Union Center that evening, we were talking about coming back to see more Ritz Chamber Players concerts. They have various concerts and performances throughout the year and a growing Ritz Chamber Music Society. Check it all out on their website http://www.ritzchamberplayers.org/
After the performance, we walked a block over to the Jacksonville Landing and had dinner at The American Cafe. The food was excellent, and we sat outside on the balcony overlooking the St. Johns River and the glowing Jacksonville skyline. It was a GORGEOUS night.
A fascinating performance followed by a great dinner shared with a close friend. Doesn't get much better than that.
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