If you talk to most professional classical musicians and ask them where they gained the bulk of their performing experience before attending college you’ll likely have them telling you what it was like growing up in their respective youth orchestras.Over the past several years, youth orchestras have exhibited reverse trends to their professional counterparts. Whereas many professional orchestras are forced into scaled back artistic offerings and shorter seasons, youth orchestras are bursting at the seams. Many suburban areas are even forming their own youth orchestras separate from the traditional groups associated with ... Continue Reading

When it comes to live entertainment, getting there is rarely half the fun. More often than not, once you finally arrive the actual venue is often lacking. Concert halls are typical victims of uncomfortable seats, too few bathrooms, poor lobby facilities, expensive refreshments, inconvenient (and usually expensive) parking, and the décor usually makes you feel terribly underdressed or overdressed (rarely “just right”). The average mega-screen Cineplex is no different. Tacky faux décor usually try to make the inside of the building look like a swanky knock off of the Art Deco theatres ... Continue Reading

Throughout the middle ages, the Catholic Church controlled the development of music throughout Europe, much of what became the great works of classical music’s standard repertoire were directly influenced by the church’s persuasion. It wielded the sort of control that only a handful of powerful organizations have exercised over recorded time; it controlled what people thought. Over time, that power waned but the church remains steeped in tradition. As such, you wouldn’t expect that one of the church’s enduring leaders, Pope John Paul II, would have a passion for contemporary classical music, ... Continue Reading