“Keeping The Cows Happy”
by:
Holly Mulcahy
This isn’t the article I had prepared to publish this month but a recent event has compelled me to post this article now, before the summer season is over. Performing as a violinist in the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra for the past seven years has allowed me to encounter the most interesting listener. He drives 85 miles, one-way, along with his enormous black lab from Pinedale, WY purely to experience our live symphony concerts. Dressed in denim and plaid shirts this seemingly ageless man, a real-life cowboy, follows a well worn ... Continue Reading
Are Orchestra Musicians Just Zoo Animals?
by:
Holly Mulcahy
If anyone would have told me that 15 years into a career as a professional orchestra musician might make me feel like a zoo animal I would have laughed in their face. Nevertheless, 15 years into my career and that’s exactly how I feel, or at least that’s how it seems for some of the time. A number of factors contribute to this. First, as a single member of up to 100 performers, you come across as a nameless, faceless member of a collective. Add to that being a member of the ... Continue Reading
How Competition Could Revive Classical Music
by:
Holly Mulcahy
As a professional orchestra violinist you can count on a few steady dressing room conversations between colleagues. As of late, the alarming drop in ticket sales and concert attendance is a popular topic. Someone will say something like “There are more people on stage than in the audience, what is up with marketing?!” Frankly, as a performer, it is hard not to take low attendance rates personally. All of the effort and commitment required for 75+ colleagues to produce a successful performance should be rewarded by a large audience. Orchestras across the ... Continue Reading
Starting Next Month, Neo Classical Will Have A New Voice
by:
Drew McManus
For more than three years it has been my pleasure to write Neo Classical here at The Partial Observer. Nevertheless, the time has come for a break and I’ll be taking a sabbatical for the next several months. Fortunately, that doesn’t mean Neo Classical is going anywhere. In fact, during the time I’m away there will be another voice stepping in to fill the void. I think it will be refreshing for everyone to have an opportunity to hear about the future of classical music from a new perspective and throughout the ... Continue Reading
April Is Take A Friend To Orchestra Month – 2007
by:
Drew McManus
Take A Friend To Orchestra is back for its third year and is bigger than ever. If you’re not familiar with what Take A Friend To Orchestra (dubbed TAFTO) is all about, it is an opportunity for the people who care the most about classical music to participate in a proactive way. Throughout the month of April, TAFTO will feature music critics, bloggers, musicians, conductors, classical music enthusiasts, and administrators as they write about how average patrons throughout the country can invite friends who don’t regularly participate in live music events to ... Continue Reading
