Issue: October 2015
"I never thought I’d have to wear earplugs because of noise from the audience...” said San Diego Symphony violinist John Stubbs. But plug our ears we did for the surprise pop-up Star Wars Fan Appreciation Concert that took place last July. Every summer, thousands of self-proclaimed nerds descend on “America’s Finest City” for the world’s largest Comic-Con, a four day event celebrating everything … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2015
Although I’ve heard the term countless times, it took many years of playing professionally before I understood what “Giving the Gift of Music” truly means. As a member of the Dallas Symphony for over 15 years, I have never been as proud of my orchestra as I was on Sunday, June 14. That afternoon my wonderful colleagues, led by maestro Gerhardt Zimmerman, gave an inspiring concert to benefit Dallas … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2015
The Boston Symphony Orchestra returned September 6th from its 18-day tour of European summer music festivals, the first tour with its new Music Director, Andris Nelsons. The Barber/Strauss/and...Tour (say it fast), included the cities of London, Salzburg, Vienna, Lucerne, Milan, Paris, Cologne, and Berlin. Repertoire included Barber’s 2nd Essay, two Strauss tone poems (Don Quixote and Ein … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2015
Each season, ICSOM maintains a list of positive news articles and studies that demonstrate the resiliency of our orchestras, and the sustainability of artistic organizations. This information can be used to demonstrate that success is occurring for many orchestras, and that success is achievable for organizations that are portrayed as being in a troubled position. The latest Giving USA study, … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2015
I may not remember the jokes, but I do remember their key element: an ethnic slur about Polish Americans. The jokes themselves aren’t very interesting, but in 1970s Wisconsin they were what passed for humor in the pre-teen set. The slur was easily bandied about to denigrate a minority community (although at the time I didn’t know what the word actually meant). But I’m fairly certain that at least … [Read more...]
Issue: July 2015
Only a few weeks after President Obama announced that relations between Cuba and the USA would be normalized, the Minnesota Orchestra began working on the prospect of a tour. With the help of many parties—and in particular the Orchestra’s artistic staff, along with the experience of the Orchestra’s touring company, Classical Movements, in traveling to Cuba—the tour became a reality just five … [Read more...]
Issue: July 2015
Preparing a generation of civic-minded, socially conscious musicians to be leaders both on and off the stage There is no combination of words that aptly describes my love of music. I love music so much, in fact, that I earnestly believe all children should have access to music in their lives–not just because of its beauty, but because of its ability to transform lives, to save lives. As a … [Read more...]
Issue: July 2015
ICSOM has both a Chairperson and a President. Our bylaws identify the Chair as “chief executive officer” and state that “the President shall be responsible for the supervision of the operation of the organization.” Even with those distinctions, there is occasional confusion in the field over just what the titles mean. But in practice there has been no confusion at all—at least since I became Chair … [Read more...]
Issue: July 2015
Recently I heard retired New York Times correspondent John Burns speak about his Pulitzer award-winning profile, written more than 20 years ago, of cellist Vedran Smailović during the Bosnian war. Dressed in formal evening attire, Smailović sat in the same spot every afternoon in the middle of the same Sarajevo street—which was more bomb crater than street—and played Albinoni’s Adagio in honor of … [Read more...]
Issue: July 2015
Serving as ICSOM president has been one of the most meaningful and rewarding experiences of my life. I often remark that I wish every ICSOM musician could have the opportunity to be president. Over the past thirteen years, I have enjoyed meeting with delegates, committee chairs, and many musicians from every ICSOM orchestra as well as ROPA and OCSOM orchestras. I have been fortunate to work with … [Read more...]
