Tuning & Time

15. April 2008 · 5 comments · Categories: Ramble, San Francisco Symphony

I’ve wondered how we know that 415 was a Baroque A. And now I’ve read this:

Haydn’s tuning fork does indeed exist. So does Handel’s.

Ah. Well there you go! Haydn’s fork is 422.5.

You can read more than you ever needed to know about tuning. Or maybe it is exactly what you needed to know.

I’ve been told that San Francisco Symphony tunes to A-441. I tune Opera San José to 440. Anyone else care to share what they tune to? (Notice I say we tune to a certain pitch. I’m not going to claim it stays there, although I do my best.)

Now I want to know if Beethoven’s metronome was really accurate. I did see this 1987 article but it doesn’t question the accuracy of the metronome so I guess that’s not an issue.

Home Again

05. March 2008 · 2 comments · Categories: MTT, Ramble, San Francisco Symphony

We are just home from the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra concert. I can’t blog; I’m simply far too tired. But I’m not sure how much I’d say anyway, as I don’t review these things. So just a couple of notes:

  • We had fantastic seats, although I couldn’t see the principal oboist.
  • I could see Russ deLuna. He appeared to be playing kind of slanted to the left. Might have been where I was sitting, though.
  • They seated latecomers between the two movements of the Schuman. I found it disruptive. (So was the coughing between every movement of the Beethoven.)
  • This orchestra moves very little. Very, very little. The most movement (still minimal) was by the always fabulous Stephen Paulson.
  • For the life of me I didn’t remember the solo string parts in the last movement of the Beethoven. That was a surprise.
  • MTT must do ballet on the side.
  • It was thoroughly enjoyable … and especially the Schuman! Something new. Something I’ll be downloading from emusic.

    Thanks, SFSO, for a very lovely night on the town!

    (I missed Project Runway just for you. ;-)

    • Maybe Not Us …

    28. January 2008 · Comments Off · Categories: Announcements, San Francisco Symphony

    Since we splurged and went for the entire San Francisco Opera 2008-2009 season, I’m thinking we’ll skip out on the offer by San Francisco Symphony, but it IS a great deal, so I’m going to recommend it to readers! :-)

    $25 or $55 at ticket? Great prices!

    Constantine!

    17. December 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Ramble, San Francisco Symphony

    Constantine Kitsopoulos, a conductor I absolutely love working with, is conducting The Wizard of Oz concert with San Francisco Symphony. Too darn cool! But too darn bad for me, too; I have Nuts that conflict directly with the SFS run. Rats and double rats.

    Gee, might I feel a flu bug coming on? Heh. No. I have never done that and I’m not going to start now. It’s a very bad idea. Some musicians have been caught in that lie. Needless to say it’s grounds for firing. I’m (slightly) smarter than that! Besides, lying is a bad idea. Right? I would have loved to have seen Constantine, though. Sigh.

    Wish I Could Go

    07. December 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Concert Announcements, Links, Ramble, San Francisco Symphony

    San Francisco Symphony is performing Berlioz’ Symphonie Fantastique as well as a work I am not familiar with at all by the same composer, Lélio. They have already had two performances (both of which were recorded for the Keeping Score series) and they have performances tonight and tomorrow night. Alas, I have SSV, so I can’t attend. I’d really love to go and hear the new English horn player, Russ deLuna. Heck, I’d love to go and sneak in to steal borrow a couple of his EH reeds. Anyone want to do the job for me? ;-)

    Hah!

    06. December 2007 · 3 comments · Categories: Fun, Links, San Francisco Symphony

    Spies sent several separate reports from Johnny Mathis’ Friday night concert with the San Francisco Symphony. According to Jack Farrell, Mathis was singing “Look at me” in the song “Misty” while “all eyes, except his, were on the oboe section and its downstage neighbors.” One of the giant contact-lens-looking sound reflectors hanging from the ceiling was coming down, “gently and insistently … onto their heads and instruments.” Mathis sang on, unaware. According to Carol Parlette, the musicians attempted to hold it above their heads, then gave up, it went down to the floor and someone shouted, “You brought down the house.”

    The tech crew struggled while Johnny sang “Stranger in Paradise,” said Farrell, who I’m taking it is either a great reporter or a poet (maybe both). He says that as the thing ascended back to its proper place, Mathis was singing the lyric “Somewhere in space I hang suspended.”

    Found here

    Ya gotta love it. Right?

    Interesting Read

    24. October 2007 · 2 comments · Categories: Links, Ramble, San Francisco Symphony

    I landed here, and got a kick out of a lot of what I read. I’m not really totally clued into what yelp is about, but I guess anyone can write about whatever there and get reviews, advice, and whatnot in one’s own city…? I landed on the first link above because of my San Francisco Symphony news feed. You’ll find some fun comments, some interesting ones, some puzzling, and a ton of typos. Here are just a few:

    It is not a requirement that you dress up attending the symphony (it says so on it’s website), business causual is fine if you are getting off work.

    my first symphony last week was the ADDream.

    I have no idea what I just saw and heard. I think it was Lizst and Beethoven and Prokofiev… But gosh, was it good. And the people who performed it were amazing. It’s safe to say I was blown away.

    Playing Paul McCartney’s “Classical” music would be unforgivable if they did not do so many great performances of of so much music.
    For a major orchestra they do tons of new music.
    Personally, I like hearing the classics just as much and while I love new music, a city orchestra’s job is still to play classical music, which they do extremely well.

    So … you might want to just check it out. The comments are definitely entertaining. I think it’s great for us old and jaded folks to read it to see what those who are new to they symphony scene think, what they see and hear, and how they react.

    We Really Can Smile

    24. October 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Ramble, San Francisco Symphony

    I was just looking at San Francisco Symphony’s website because I wanted to see what’s up with the Queen performing there on November 25. (Didn’t find anything, and yet I have a press release.) And I noticed that two of the three artists on the home page look so darn serious. And then there’s Gustavo Dudamel. He looks happy. And relaxed. I think I like him.

    It’s a funny thing, the publicity photo. And it’s not just the “classical” folk. For some reason an “artiste” doesn’t smile. Oh no. We are serious about what we do. Or we just look terribly terribly sad. Or sometimes like we are more about getting someone into bed than the concert hall. Same with models, of course. Have you ever looked at a model for a good long time? Would you want to be that morose? I dunno … I’m not sure I’d want some of these people to be my friends. They all look as if they need therapy. Of course then there’s yours truly; I just smile and wield sharp knives! :-)

    pattytheknife400.jpg

    But really … I love doing what I do (yes, including the whining) and I see no reason to look so darn serious or forlorn. Don’t we want people to think that this is an enjoyable thing? Sure, we like our miserable moments in music … who doesn’t want to fall to the floor weeping on occasion because of the wonder of the music? … but still.

    I’m just sayin’ ….

    Just a bit more on the opera …

    05. October 2007 · Comments Off · Categories: Ramble, San Francisco Symphony

    So no more reviewing or commenting on the San Francisco Opera performance itself. This is a review of the audience and hall. ;-)

  • Someone(s) brought a baby. Really. Cried. In. Third. Act. (Who are these people!?)
  • The two women next to us brought in their bottle of beer and glass of wine for the second act. No garlic fries, though.
  • They had also had their cigarettes during the intermission. I hate cigarette smell, but I tried to behave myself and not go “Ick!” I’m nice that way. ;-)
  • The same women asked me, after Act 2, “Is it over now?” I answered in the negative, but they left anyway.
  • There was some sort of noise that bugged me at times. Was it outside? It sounded “rumbly”. (I guess I’m overly sensitive. When I went to San Francisco Symphony there was an awful inside noise. It was either fans or lights. Drove me bonkers.)
  • People don’t seem to think opening candy (or whatever) wrappers is annoying. Except when they do. Then they open them as sloooowly and noisily as possible.
  • An usher, as we were leaving, was just too cute. He repeated, non-stop, “Thank you for coming, I hope you enjoyed the opera.” Or at least something like that. Thing is, it was repeated so that you heard it three times or so as you walked out. He made me smile. Part of me wanted to reassure him that, yes, I really did enjoy it.

    So there you go. That’s the thing about a live audience, yes? I don’t get to hand pick them. I’m not sure why, though. Perhaps I’ll talk to the Mr. Gockley about it. Surely he’d like me to do that. And I won’t charge a penny.

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