Contrary motion scales

can be put to good use in the rehabilitation of poorly shoulders.

Feel sorry for next door, but not too sorry, cos the piano has a practice pedal, unlike the horn....

I've just played C major about 15 times and can do the full two octaves, putting my hands a cool four octaves apart. Impressive eh? 3 days ago I could only go down a twelfth with the left hand and found putting the keys down an effort and couldn't have done it 15 times in a row. Even turned the pages with my left hand whilst conducting this morning.

I also played the horn for about 10 minutes today. The school production merely requires five tootles through two hours of music on successive days in a month's time, but I can build up to it. It is, as they say, 'a serious smack in the gob.' In fact, flicking through the part it's like wind band music, no rests and no tacet numbers.

Back to wafting a broom handle around, all part of my physio programme from the hospital. I want to progress onto the seemingly impossible exercises next week and, after an unfortunate incident on Wed involving a tired Leutgeb and a full watering can, leading to painkillers and a swollen arm on Thurs, I have ground to make up.