Because you all know how much we symphony folk like to rock, right? This video is quite fun (in my opinion) as it rapidly flips through a day at the symphony in Cincinnati.
the Queen City Project :: Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra from the Queen City Project on Vimeo.
the Queen City project is a collaboration between Bluestone Creative & Alias Imaging.
Music: “Dance Yrself Clean” by LCD Soundsystem
QueenCityProject.com
… of course giving this blog entry that title now has planted an ear worm in this old noggin’. Anyone else have that happen? Maybe it’s just me, since it’s not a tune that’s heard any more. Hmm. Maybe I should share a YouTube video of it just to help plant a worm in your ear?!
When one works in a symphony, it really does feel like a family. Very much so. There is the good and the bad, of course — we sometimes can drive each other nuts! But when you make music together you feel a connection you might not have in other sorts of jobs.
And then there are the literal families on stage. At one point Dan worked for San Jose Symphony (RIP) as stage manager, and was sometimes hired to play trombone as well, so I know how it is to have a spouse there on stage with me. (When I was librarian and he was stage manager it was rather frustrating at times; we both had to explain to people that they had to go to the appropriate spouse with problems regarding the music or the stage issues rather than telling the other one.) I’m guessing audience members aren’t aware of some of the couples, as most of the women didn’t change their names when they married. (I did — I was young and very traditional when I married. I did reinsert the “Emerson” a few years later, though. Now I wish I’d legally done “Patricia Emerson Mitchell”, but I’m too darn lazy to go through the legal process of changing it.) Let’s see … I’m thinking we currently have four married couples who are members of the orchestra. I might be miscounting — I’m sure a reader or two could correct that if I’m wrong!
This week in Symphony Silicon Valley our principal violist, who is soloing in Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, and guest conductor Mitchell Sardou Klein, are doing the “family affair” thing, and are the focus of attention in this Mercury New article.
It begins:
When violist Patricia Whaley and guest conductor Mitchell Sardou Klein walk onstage this weekend at the California Theatre, the sweetness of the moment won’t be evident to everyone in the crowded concert hall: “From the audience’s perspective, some might know we’re a couple, and some might not,” says Klein. “And our concert manners have to be the usual concert manners — we don’t walk out holding hands!”
Married since 1983, Klein and Whaley have been steady forces on the Bay Area’s classical music scene through the decades. Yet almost never do they get to perform together as they will this weekend, co-starring in two performances with Symphony Silicon Valley.
It’s great fun to be doing the Mozart Sinfonia Concertante with Patti (and Robin Mayforth on violin). It’s a wonderful Mozart work, and Patti & Robin sound super. You should come hear it!
Okay … listen to this at your own risk! It’s certainly not Mozart but, believe me, it can worm it’s way into your ear and drive you nuts! (I’m guessing my walk today is going to be “blessed” by this one.)
Photo by Carl Cilker
Andrew Bales walked right into a surprise Wednesday, as the Rotary Club of San Jose presented him with its 24th Don Goldeen Award, presented annually to individuals who have made a significant impact on downtown San Jose.
Bales, the president of Symphony Silicon Valley, thought he was attending Wednesday’s meeting to support a friend, whom he was told was getting the award.
“I am truly speechless because I was here to give it to a more deserving soul, but now I’m mad at him,” joked Bales, who’s certainly deserving himself.
Bales was president of the Cleveland Ballet and helped forge the partnership that paved the way for today’s Ballet San Jose. He also stepped in to revive the city’s orchestra after the San Jose Symphony collapsed more than a decade a go.
The award is named for the late Don Goldeen, who was a longtime furniture store owner downtown. Previous recipients include Steve Wozniak, Tom McEnery, Irene Dalis and Mayor Chuck Reed, who was similarly surprised by the award in December 2010.
Seen here.
Congratulations, Andrew!
You know how you have “if only I had …” things?
No?
Well, I sure do!
My “if only” for today is: If only I had learned to double tongue when my brain was able to learn things like that.
Okay, maybe I can still learn, but so far it’s not clicking in, and I have to warn those of you who, like me, were blessed with a fast tongue that, along with all the other ways in which our bodies slow down as we age, our tongues slow down too!. Pardon me for yelling there, but I’m one frustrated oboist at the moment. And dear Zoltán Kodály was sure a mean old guy to give us those crazy fast passages. Really now.
Listen to 2:07 in to this (below) … the oboes are supposed to tongue that. I’m so thankful that at least one flute is playing there as well. Whew! AND it’s only 2 seconds of fear. Still, I want to play the darn thing. So the metronome and I are incredibly well acquainted, as you might imagine!
For something different, get a load of this group … playing by memory, no less. (But no oboes!)
I really do!
Rite of Spring isn’t a work I’m all that fond of playing. It’s not that it’s a rhythmic challenge: these days those rhythms aren’t all that difficult. But I have never been comfortable on the solo English horn part. I do love me some Petrushka, though! I especially enjoyed Saturday night’s concert, since I managed to keep my keys from getting water in them. Sunday wasn’t quite so fun — I got water in a key early on and that threw me out of my comfort zone and there were just a few things that I wasn’t entirely happy with (with my playing, not with anyone else’s … it IS all about me … um … right?). But even Sunday was enjoyable. I feel as if I have my English horn “sea legs” right now. Fun times.
I DO wish I had seen this video (below) before I went into rehearsals. Not that I understand a word of what Dochnanyi is saying (well, okay, maybe I understand a word here and there!), but because it’s great to sit in on a rehearsal like that!
Oh … and a review is in. She liked it. (And kudos to some of my pals for the well-deserved mentions!)
Added Note:
I neglected to include in this post how much I enjoyed working again with Giampaolo Bisanti. Oops! I surely should have included that. I think he has excellent things to say, and I find working with him a joy. This is the second time he has worked with the symphony and I do hope he returns.
For some reason I had a very silly mental block against one of the solos in Petrouchka (Petrushka? You choose!) yesterday. This is going to sound very silly, but it has to do with the way it was notated. It may be crazy, but there you go.
Here’s the excerpt:
For some reason I simply couldn’t manage to play the first four notes evenly. I wanted more weight, due to the accent and the way it looks(!) on the third note, which was causing me to stretch it out. Go figure. IF it had been written as four sixteenth notes, with the fourth one tied to an eighth, I think I actually would have been fine. Maybe.
But now I’ve figured it out, I think.
How?
Well, sometimes I add lyrics to things. And this time I had the perfect ones:
“Patty’s stupid! She cannot count!”
Yep. That works.
Yesterday I went to Cinearts at Santana Row to see and hear the LA Phil play Mendelssohn, thanks to Fathom Events, who contacted me and offered me a media pass. Or at least that’s what the email said. I arrived at the theater and the house manager said she knew nothing about a media pass for anyone. This happened to me the last time I went to a Fathom Events broadcast. Hmmm. What’s up with that? Fortunately the house manager let me in anyway, for which I’m quite grateful.
Prior to the start of the event we heard about the value of orchestras in cities, and the short clip encouraged everyone to “support your local orchestra.” That same message was relayed during intermission as well. I approve! We also heard an orchestra warming up, but I’m not sure that was live, as they were playing excerpts from other works, including Beethoven 7th. It was fun to hear the oboes practicing some things together in any case.
When things started up we heard first from Maestro Dudamel. He is one charismatic man! He’s also quite witty. Everyone in the theater (the number was quite small, however) was cracking up at times. We were shown clips from a rehearsal, which was great fun to see and hear … sometimes I’m more interested in those than the actual concert (bad me?).
On the all Mendelssohn program was The Hebrides Overture, Violin Concert in E minor with Janine Jansen, and Symphony No. 3 in A minor “Scottish”.
I don’t do reviews, as you all know, but there are things I noted in this concert.
I loved Dudamel’s comment to Janine Jansen before they went out, “Maybe we try something crazy today. I play and you conduct!”
Oh … and for you oboists, Marion Arthur Kuszyk played principal on the first half while Ariana Ghez played principal for the Symphony, and Anne Marie Gabriele played second for the entire concert (if I was seeing correctly).
Is going to a movie theater the same as going to a live concert? Not at all. I enjoy it, but it’s not the same. You are “told” what to see. You are even told what to hear, really, both by the camera and by the way it is miked (mic’d?). I used to say the camera should just be in the audience and remain stagnant, but I no longer feel that way; a broadcast in the movie theater is just a different beast than a live concert.
And no, I didn’t take any photos, text or tweet during the performance. I did pull the camera out for bows, though!
And now I can ‘fess up: I really did enjoy playing the bass oboe! Honestly, it was fun, even while it was somewhat awkward and uncomfortable. If I were to do it more frequently I think I’d want to do something other than sit on two seat cushions to be high enough for the beast.
But here is a bit of an insight into my sad little mind. What do you think I said to Dan after? Do you think I’d say something like “I nailed it!”? Or even, “I played well!”? Um … well … okay … here’s what I said …
“I didn’t embarrass myself!”
Yep. That’s my little brain at work. Ah well. Dan wasn’t surprised. He knows me too well!
Of course what I had was so small it wasn’t worth talking about, but I take even the smalles of solos seriously. I’d bet many in the audience weren’t even aware of the little bits I had, but I get nervous no matter what. Go figure!
We already have our first review (Mercury News).
Oh … I will also now ‘fess up about the Holst:
I’ve never been a fan. It’s just not my cuppa. Or so I thought. But I truly enjoyed it this past week. I’m glad I was able to play, and that I opted for the bass oboe part. I’ll probably go through withdrawal now. But not for long. Now it’s on to San Jose Dance Company and San Jose Chamber Orchestra doing Tango Barroco!
Oh, and I learned something new about Holst. He turned the Jupiter part of The Planets into a hymn. News to me. British composers seem to love to write hymns, whether or not they are believers. Does that happen here, too? Or are there even any good hymn writers in the states? Do tell! (Most of what I hear that’s new are goofy little “worship songs” that drive me bonkers.)
… so the bass oboe behaved, and I think I played fine. I suspect that I could learn to love the beast, but after tomorrow I send it back to Forrests and odds are I’ll never play it again. This is only the second time it’s been used in anything I’ve been involved in (last time someone else played it) since I began with San Jose Symphony back in 1975. Seems unlikely that it’ll pop back up before I retire, yes?
The encore tonight made me cry it was so beautiful. I don’t play in that work, so I sit on stage and enjoy. I do believe I have the best seat in the house!
And now off to bed with me. I’m entirely beat. I think I need a week of recovery time, really, but there’s no possibility of that until sometime later. Maybe the week after Christmas, actually. This musician’s life … it’s feast or famine when it comes to work. So I’m attempting to enjoy this feast!
I just looked at my calendar. I’ve not had a day completely off since September 9. That day was free, but it was opening night of San Francisco Opera, so I still wasn’t entirely empty and it was a late night. I’m tired.
At the same time, I’m employed. So how dare I complain, right? I’m trying very hard to be grateful and not whiny. So far I’m not doing very well with that. Ah well. I was glad to talk to a violinist who had also done the run of Idomeneo (and she took a few nights off!) and she said she was still recovering as well. So maybe it’s not just my age. Maybe it’s just that all those late nights just hit some of us rather hard, despite the fact that we loved playing such a wonderful work.
Then again, maybe it is my age. Hmm?
Symphony opens its season tomorrow night. Here are a few photos from today’s final dress rehearsal. I don’t play the first work, so I was able to get up into the balcony for a short time.
I remember my mother-in-law telling me she wanted to play trumpet when she was young, but she was told girls didn’t do that. Go figure.
For 131 years, the Boston Symphony Orchestra has never had a female member in its brass section. Until now.
Rachel Childers, who lives conveniently close to Symphony Hall, will be playing second French horn when the BSO season kicks off on Sept. 30.
She comes to the BSO from the Colorado Symphony Orchestra*, and said it’s an amazing honor to be the first ever woman in the brass section.
I read it here.
Probably good thing she’s left Colorado: I’m reading scary stuff about the group.
*Warning: click on the CSO link and you hear music whether you want to or not. I hate orchestra sites like that!
And so while Opera San José has ended, Symphony Silicon Valley begins. Tomorrow is our first rehearsal for this weekend’s concerts. Included in the program is David Amram’s Triple Concerto and The Planets. So here’s a snippet of the Amram (the third movement with David Amram and the Chicago Symphony) and an album cover for The Planets. I don’t think I’ll be wearing what she’s wearing.
But hey … here’s Saturn and you can see and hear the bass oboe:
Does Ormandy look like he’s not thrilled with something at 2:48? Maybe I’m just imagining that look?
Despite a rich musical heritage, India did not have its own professional symphony orchestra until five years ago when the Symphony Orchestra of India [SOI] was set up to broaden the appeal of Western classical music in the country.
Be it Bollywood music blaring from a Mumbai taxi, or the sultry sounds of the shehnai at a wedding, or the vibrato-laden vocals of a south Indian Carnatic singer – India has been a melting pot of music genres for centuries.
“It’s shocking that we never had an orchestra like this before,” says Khushroo Suntook, who founded the SOI in 2006.
Much of the time I run across articles where people are complaining about “classical music” dying and realize they are talking about the classical music of India, so I was interested to read this article on western classical music in India, which is, in a way, experiencing a birth there — or so it is hoped by some.
Remember when I wrote about my issues with my eyes? Well, I am writing this publicly so the next time I have issues focusing someone who reads this will remind me of what the issue is really about:
It’s “eargraine” time!
Sigh.
Yeah, a few days of out of focus eyes means that eventually I’ll get an ear migraine. It arrived in its special wonderfully strong way this morning. Included in this little issue of mine is a painful outer ear (to the point where I can barely touch it) and incredibly loud night pitch screeching. I have to wait it out and while it hurts I know it’ll eventually go away. I just hope that it goes away before the next opera performance. It’s difficult to teach, but performing is even more difficult.
Meanwhile, I’m coping and I’m learning a new instrument!
Yep. I get to play a new instrument at our first Symphony Silicon Valley concert.
What is it, you ask? (You DID ask, didn’t you?)
Bass oboe!
Holst’s The Planets uses three oboes and English horn, and the third oboe part also includes bass oboe. What a section! Symphony rented it from Forrests, and I picked it up from the office yesterday. The fingerings are the same as oboe, and it sounds an octave lower. Thankful it’s written in treble clef so I don’t have to relearn bass clef. (I can play bass clef if I’m sitting at the piano, but otherwise my brain doesn’t really like to read it. At all.)
I’ll see if I can get someone to record me at some point so you can see and hear it. Meanwhile, here’s a photo for comparison:
Doesn’t the oboe look tiny?
The 84 musicians who make up the Wichita Symphony Orchestra voted recently to accept a 20 percent wage cut for the coming season, a move necessary to keep the orchestra viable in tough economic times, those involved with the decision say.
Reading the whole thing it gets even drearier; they took a 10 percent pay reduction two years ago and a 4 percent one last year. This has really got to hurt.
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