It’s been a horrible year for the Arts in this hemisphere, so it is such a relief to be able to celebrate great news from one of our sister organizations. But there’s one little problem- there’s a missing piece…
Outreach
Quick Takes: Gesturing….
My teacher Jorge Mester the first time I met him asked me this simple question “What is conducting?” I was stumped and after several feeble attempts to describe what conducting is (which is what I wanted to do with my life!) he helped me work it out. That lesson was the most profound he ever gave me and it is something I apply to this day allowing me to never lose sight of what it is I actually do and how I can apply it elsewhere……..
Quick Takes: What’s My Job?
Every once in a while I want to post about things that I believe in, that drive me, ideas that pop up. Not necessarily related to anything that is going on specifically, but just to get the voices in my head on paper! For the first quick take:
What’s my Job?…….
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 …….
Two Takes – Entrepreneurship and Michelle Obama’s Speech
My class brings current blog posts and/or articles to debate, 3 on Tuesday and 3 on Thursday. In the clips below first Mackenna and I discuss the perception of what an entrepreneur is from an article by David Cutler, author of the soon to be released Savvy Musician. Then 3 of them on Tuesday brought in an article about Michelle Obama’s speech given in Pittsburgh about the arts. We kind of disagreed on what the impact will be, or if there will be any at all….
Book Review – The Savvy Musician by Dr David Cutler
So you want to be a musician? and Are There Too Many Musicians? These are two questions asked in the introduction by Dr David Cutler author of the soon to be released book The Savvy Musician. With doom and gloom seemingly around every corner for the arts, this book is a like a GPS for musicians to find an alternative route, one that wont just bring a check whilst biding ones time waiting for a “regular job” to appear. No, David goes so far as to suggest that alternatives can help the art form itself become relevant! My neck is sore from all the nodding I was doing whilst reading this, and so I decided to write my first ever book review……..
Having our Cross-over to Bear: Concert Snapshot – Chris O’Riley
A funny thing happened on the way to the Dakota: a new magazine came across my path. It’s called “Listen – Life With Classical Music.” Actually I don’t know if it’s new but it’s definitely new to me. What caught my eye was an article on Erich Korngold and his travails for having the …… audacity? …… idiocy? ……… intelligence? ……… to write music for Hollywood, and the negative effect this had on his career. Boy does that sound familiar……
Putting the Unity in CommUnity! – Part 1: Arts in Action!
In August last year the Community Foundation of the Ozarks formed a committee of arts leaders (including yours truly) and gave us a challenge with funding attached:
Come up with a program that sustains the arts in Springfield. Part one went into effect on March 14….and it’s big!…