It would be a sadly familiar scenario if 2 major orchestras are looking to their new maestros to seemingly solve all of their problems or even save their orchestras….please our egos are already big enough! We as Music Directors may be the leaders but we lead a team, and to suggest that a conductor can be the fix for major organizational problems would be akin to suggesting that an executive director can fix any major artistic problems……
MD Search Process
And Now for Something Completely Different….
So two weeks ago was the 40th anniversary of Monty Python’s Flying Circus first broadcast hence the title, but I have also been thinking about the way orchestras typically go about searching for a Music Director and if this process needs to be done in a very different and more forward thinking way. I believe it does, but it will involve the challenge of getting current MD’s to buy in (me included) whilst setting our egos aside. Charleston who is about to go through this is a perfect example …….
The Three Am”egos”…..
The common wisdom is to always look forward, live in the present, never in the past, whats done is done and so on. However at the Springfield Symphony’s season opening concert last Saturday, we brought the past to life in celebration of the our 75th anniversary season. We didn’t bring out archives to display in the lobby, we didn’t project pictures of the orchestra in embarrassing 70’s clothing above the stage. None of that. Instead we brought the past two Music Directors back for a joint concert, including a piece we conducted all at the same time! It was quite a week!….
What I meant to say was…..
It makes my head scratch when an orchestra that is about to begin a search for their next music director on the one hand indicates that they need someone who’s willing to spend more time in their city than their departing music director, but on the other hand indicates in writing that they are not necessarily expecting them to….time to address the dreaded residency question, off to Tuscaloosa we go……..
Another Drumroll Please……
Just a quick note today to say that I am totally thrilled to announce that I have been appointed the Music Director of the Lake Placid Sinfonietta!!!!!! I recently wrote about my time up there and I am excited that I (with my family!) will be getting to spend 6 weeks in the summers collaborating with a terrific Orchestra in one of the most glorious places on earth! Later this week I will post a book review (my first ever) of The Savvy Musician by David Cutler
Jumping in the Lake!
So we are on our way back to Springfield, MO, after a glorious month dividing our time between Syracuse and Lake Placid, NY, doing concerts in both places. Pictured left is Mirror Lake at Lake Placid (taken with our cheap digital camera no less!) breathtaking does not begin to describe the Adirondack region. There was serious business afoot though as I was there as a candidate to be the next Music Director of the Lake Placid Sinfonietta…..there are also some fascinating connections to great musical icons of the past.
Happy Hello and Happy Trails!….
I’m thrilled to have been named Principal Pops Conductor of the Syracuse Symphony! I will get to do all kinds of programs: pops, regional, family, and some classical ones too! I have been a regular guest since 2002 and love working with them. My most memorable experience so far occurred traveling to a Holiday Pops in Rome, the worst travel day of my life but with a great ending! The most hilarious: “Ron do y0u have any pants?” I look forward to more great pants…I mean great experiences! With sadness though I’m … Continue Reading
2009 – The Year of the Audience….let’s hope!
Could this be the year with seemingly inevitable economic woes painting a bleak picture for individual, corporate and foundation support and most importantly ticket sales, that while strategizing we collectively all ask the question……well what does the audience want? It’s not so much that we need to hit the reset button, but we do need to realize that it’s the audience that has the power to unlock our growth in these times…..