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There are many initiatives in the classical music industry to promote living, woman, and minority composers. You will see numerous festivals and special concert series devoted to supporting and promoting these composers. That is exactly what should be done. Upon talking with many colleagues about their upcoming auditions, there is a noticeable trend that needs to stop. The music required for the orchestras’ upcoming auditions was written by composers who were long gone: long gone white male composers. While these audition repertoire requirements have been considered “standard” for the last 25+ years, … Continue Reading

One of the neatest things to watch while at an orchestra concert is the synchronized bows of the string section. It’s almost like a well-choreographed ballet in some cases. While this is something I take for granted anymore, most people don’t know how or why the bows end up going in the same direction. I get asked occasionally about this and I’m always surprised how many people are interested in learning about it, so I’ve decided to share what goes on behind the scenes to make the whole section bow in the … Continue Reading

After publishing the articles What to Wear to the Symphony and When to Clap at the Symphony, there were a flood of comments questioning why these topics were even relevant. For When to Clap, there were comments saying, “Whatever! Everyone already knows this!” And for What to Wear, “Wear what you want. End of discussion.” But it’s not the end of the discussion and not everyone knows this! Of the many reasons I wrote those two articles, one of them was the enormous volume of search terms that kept coming up when … Continue Reading

One of the most popular debates about orchestra concerts is when to clap. There are two types of clapping experts; one that assures you that clapping between movements is ok and that there are really no rules and the expert that says only to clap when the piece is completely finished. Ironically, both types of experts have historical and/or traditional elements and facts that can justify their beliefs. But instead of arguing what is best and why, I wanted to share some general guidelines I’ve observed both from the stage and as … Continue Reading

Nobody wants to feel out of place when they go to a symphony concert, yet so many patrons wonder if what they are wearing will be acceptable. As helpful and welcoming the orchestras try to be by inviting patrons to wear what they want and emphasizing to come in what is comfortable, many people still want to feel like they are fitting in. If you show up to a concert and sincerely don’t care what you wear, that’s just fine! You are doing what many orchestras invite you to do. But if … Continue Reading