Sunday morning. Slept late. Groggily pulling myself out of bed, when Chuck sticks a newspaper under my nose.
His picture. Huge. In the Farmington Observer and Eccentric. Playing his saxophone with the New Horizons Band. Continue reading
29 Musicians Make A Wonderful Sound
Just back from Camerata Ireland’s performance at the brand-new Palladium in Carmel, Indiana.
The view from our seats in the new Palladium in Carmel, Indiana
First of all, the facility is a winner. Chuck and I bought seats in the choral terrace behind the stage, and they were great. It was almost like sitting in the orchestra, with a full view of Barry Douglas conducting and nearly close enough to read the music on the stands. Continue reading
Filed under Events and Calendar, Inspiration
Symphony Fantasy Camp
The envelope was large, brown, and addressed by hand.
“Dear Georgeann,
“Congratulations! After careful review of your application, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is pleased to offer you admission to the second annual BSO Academy …”
I’m in. Continue reading
Filed under Fun Stuff, Opportunities to Play, Personal Journey
Camerata Ireland Begins U.S. Tour
Members of Camerata Ireland
Camerata Ireland, the all-Irish orchestra founded by Barry Douglas, plays Carnegie Hall tomorrow night. It’s the first stop on a week-long U.S. tour that includes stops in Nashville, the Chicago area, and Indianapolis. They’ll be playing Mozart, Bunting, and works by the Irish composer John Field, who is said to have invented the nocturne form perfected by Chopin.
It’s part of a year-long celebration of Irish culture in the United States sponsored by the Irish tourism department. Continue reading
Filed under Events and Calendar, Inspiration
Motor City Festival of Bands #2
Some of the area’s top community bands are gathering at the Dearborn Center for the Performing Arts again this year, for the Motor City Festival of Bands 2. The event is taking place Sunday, March 13th at 3:00 p.m. and will feature the Oakland University Brass Band, the Farmington Community Band, the Plymouth Community Band, the Washtenaw Concert Band, and the Motor City Brass Band.
Last year’s festival was spectacular, and this year’s promises to be another great afternoon.
Full details and ticket information are available at http://www.mcbb.org/pdf/MCFB_2011.pdf
Filed under Events and Calendar
Catching Up …
2011 has started in a rush, and it’s already a week into February!
Just back from the 2011 Sphinx Competition, which featured final performances from the Junior Division this year. Congratulations to Alexandra Switala, who captured the first place price with a passionate, charismatic performance of Mozart’s Violin Concerto #5 in A Major. Her animated performance stole the show from Annelle Gregory, whose more restrained classic performance was gorgeously rendered, but which left her in third place. My row, however, was rooting for Xavier Foley, the young bassist who captured second place while bending in half over his instrument to play notes in positions never intended on the bass in his performance of the Dittersdorf Concerto in E Major. Continue reading
Filed under Inspiration, Personal Journey
Steve Richko’s Final Performance
The statistics show many of you coming to the blog arrive as the result of a search for Steve Richko, the very talented jazz pianist who passed away unexpectedly last fall. Thanks to Tim Hoy and Cliff Monear at the Steinway Piano Gallery of Detroit, Steve’s final performance has been captured on film. This concert, featuring Steve, Cliff, and Tad Weed, took place just a few days before Steve’s death. Continue reading
Filed under Fun Stuff, Musicians of Note
Compiling A List Of Orchestras
Anne Midgette, who writes The Classical Beat blog at the Washington Post, has a posting today about the large number of orchestras in the Washington, D.C. area. In her post, she writes:
“I’d submit that orchestras also offer a more participatory experience than, at least, opera; more people have had enough music lessons to make their way through some symphonic repertory than are able to sing “Don Giovanni” on stage.”
Indeed. The full post is worth a read, and is inspiring to look at.
Filed under Inspiration, Opportunities to Play
Forming a Musical Community
As the Christmas/New Years holiday week approaches, Chuck and I have finished a furious round of concerts. The New Horizons Band where Chuck plays had three concerts of Christmas music – one in the midst of the big snowstorm that hit southeast Michigan on the 11th. Continue reading
Filed under Inspiration
Playing for Fun
I spent a couple of hours this weekend playing string quartets with a group of people who get together every week just to have fun with music. These long-time friends have been meeting regularly for several years, ever since a child’s wedding surfaced a sudden need for a string quartet to play.
One of the regular first violins was away on vacation, so I sat in to fill the spot, sight-reading all along the way. (Mozart at first glance – now THAT’s a mental workout!). Continue reading
Filed under Fun Stuff, Music and Aging
Midlife Musicians 