I am excited to welcome as a guest blogger, Alecia Lawyer. She is the founder, Executive Director and Principal Oboe of the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra in Houston and in my view a true pioneer, someone who’s mission is the Audience Connection. I wrote about ROCO in March and after doing so Alecia and I talked on the phone. Now she is here and has written a truly wonderful post…enjoy!
Ron Spigelman
On the Go with Frank Almond!
Friend, former colleague and now fellow inside the arts contributor, Frank Almond is someone who’s always been “plugged in”. A little known fact is that his brother Cliff is a phenomenal drummer with an international career. Frank’s On the Go list I would describe as an eclectic and high energy mix!…….
The Audience Connection – TAFTO 2008
I have been bumped up a day and my contribution for TAFTO 2008 on Adaptistration is up right now. It’s all about mystery shopping at the Symphony! My 4 students from last semester all reviewed a Symphony performance here in Springfield, but this is a review with a twist…literally! Read it here: TAFTO 2008
Revolution for an Evolution part 2 – Breaking Hands
Pianists from past centuries, particularly those who were composers would use the printed notes as a guide or a jumping off point to improvise, as well as engage in “Breaking Hands”, meaning their hands would not rhythmically synchronize with one another. In contemporary musical forms such as Jazz and Pop, these practices are the norm and continue to help keep them current. It brought back a memory of when a great Jazz musician did this in a Classical piece right in front of me, and where schools could take this to help make Classical music current by reaching way back into the past…..
Columbus: Chicken Soup for the Symphony (and it’s not a gimmick!)
Something is simmering in Columbus, but it’s not the usual recipe! I wrote here and here about the initial reactions to what essentially amounts to a gutting of an orchestra. Sure there is anger, but there is also bravery and dignity. The audience from the beginning were empowered and now they are speaking out officially with a web-site that doesn’t sit on the fence…..it is the fence!
Update: Orchestra Health
In my post What Defines a Healthy Orchestra I wrote that Orchestras should consider exploring the possibility of recruiting a “team doctor” to donate some time to help musicians in need, especially the ones who travel to play with them. I have some news!!!…
A Revolution for an Evolution! – Part 1
This series is going to be a long term project that I hope starts a discourse.
I have written in the past that the Orchestra business needs an intervention but college music education needs a revolution. Shadowing the angst felt by Orchestras to maintain both relevance and control of their destiny is the fact that the next generation of musicians and administrators are essentially being trained for a world that no longer exists……
At The Royal Opera: It’s over when the PHAT lady sings!
Here we go again, another ridiculous attempt to deceive “the young” into buying tickets with gimmicks and tricks to make sure that they will never come back after attending only once!….