So when we at the Springfield Symphony (Missouri’s 3rd largest Orchestra) read the news last week regarding the ruling against the Kansas City Symphony’s lawsuit to restore funds into the cultural trust that were not put in during a certain period as the legislature felt the money at that time was needed elsewhere, our reaction was : Oh that’s right they filed a lawsuit! We had forgotten about it. Arts funding in Missouri has risen the last two years….under a Republican governor! I have a little insight into what happened and some personal experience with the whole thing including some interaction with the governor….
Collective Pride…and Two Soldiers Tales
From the road this week: I’ve seen many a promotional video at airports whilst waiting for a connection, with all of them letting me know that by continuing on to my destination instead of stopping over, I will miss out big time on the excitement of the city that lies beyond the airport walls. Now mostly they are pretty frenetic because they try to pack as much in as possible and I have seen several that include the orchestra of the city albeit for a few seconds. The one I saw this week was different and had a twist, plus I was inadvertently placed in two related poignant moments in two different cities …..
The Scourge
I’m here in beautiful Berkeley, Ca. I’ve been having a good time hanging out with the various riff-raff, assorted hippies, left-wing nuts, college students (remember those days?), the record stores (remember those days?), the head shops (remem…… ok, never mind), and of course the Berkeley Symphony. But one thing has raised its ugly head and I must denounce it. The Scourge has returned……
The Brady Effect!……
I saw Wayne Brady’s (of Who’s Line is it Anyway fame) show in Vegas this past May. He is one of the most talented people on the planet! What was most impactful to me was the pre-show, a video of Wayne explaining the audience rules for the show. It was hilarious, involving tranquilizer darts and karate moves, very creative and completely disarming. I challenged my class to look for examples online of organization’s audience etiquette policies…discussion below:
Drum Roll please………
Just a quick post to announce that the full podcast of my class Audience Connection is up and you can link to it here, or via the Audience Connection tab on the lower left. It is a left click listen or right click download at this point and 13 classes are up there right now. I will keep posting highlights in future posts and will note whenever a new class goes up (No. 14 later today). The first two classes are a little low in volume, it improves from class 3, and … Continue Reading
Go West, Young Man
I spend much of my time up North, or Central, or sometimes East. Suddenly, though, I will be going West for two gigs which I am very much looking forward to. The cynic in me would like to point out to myself that both of these gigs are really near wine country. I guess there are advantages to being a conductor.
Columbus sails again…watch out for the headwinds!
It’s hard to be anything but pleased to hear of the Columbus Symphony returning after a prolonged and bitter battle. Sticking to their principals the orchestra was not downsized in personnel but there were many concessions that the musicians had to make, and one decision I hope is reversed, and what about Junichi?…..
Vox Humani
Since the beginning of this season I have had the rare experience of enjoying two of the world’s most iconic voices. The first one was enjoyed from the podium in a spectacular Gala concert at the ESO in early September. The second one re-entered my life just last night at a concert in the lovely renovated State Theater in Downtown Minneapolis, with myself residing in beautiful seats in row 7, dead center. My, it’s going to be hard to choose a winner.