I really do resent the tone that you present, whether you mean it or not, that I’m some uninformed yahoo who has nothing better to do with their time and talent than blather away on some narcissistic blogging project. I actually DO have some expertise in the areas in which I write, and I think I’ve earned the right, after 12 seasons as a professional musician in a major orchestra, four years of undergrad at a liberal arts college, a master’s degree, and a post-graduate degree at a top conservatory, to share my opinions on what I think works and what I think does not.

By the way, Gregory Vajda and I are on great terms, we have great mutual respect for each other, and I saw him tonight and it was a relaxed and happy exchange we had. I’m sure he appreciates your support, but we’re both adults, and we’re going on our way in friendship.

I might not have stated things in the best possible way, but at least I was honest, and gave a straightforward opinion, which usually is something for which one earns props, not haughty admonitions from people who won’t even risk giving their real or entire name.

You’re the only person I’ve run across that’s ever had anything negative to say about what I do here (on my own time and money), either in person or online. You must not have read any of my hundreds of previous posts (or should I say “diddles”), some of which were very candid as to my passion for the orchestra I play in, the music I play, and my deep respect for the people with whom I work and work for.

I’m sorry that you cannot appreciate that.

Finally, if my employers have a problem with what I blog about, I expect that I’ll hear from them, and I’ll respect their wishes. Until then, I’ll make a good faith effort to offer my observations about the arts in Portland and anywhere else, which seems to be working for most everyone else.

So is the answer asking the Symphony to assign a full time person to moderate the hundreds of comments – and inevitably becoming a censor, deleting the comments that will turn away ticket sales and donors, and hyping the unpopular pieces as “must hear” events?

I don’t see what your suggestions would accomplish in this unpatrolled world of say what you want, post it, and it is so.

PS Your unintended slams of Vajda and his work were insensitive and unfortunate. He handled it with aplomb. Just think if every member of the Symphony had a blog and diddled away on every issue that they desired to broadcast to the world on…Carlos et al would be spending 24/7 justifying their every breathing moment. Yet they don’t blog away when y’all play out of tune of hit a clam or three…..

Glad you loved the MacMillan, it was a lot of work, and I’m happy that people ‘got’ it. Cliburn is always fun, a living legend. I hope we have a chance to do the Bartok again, maybe on an IS concert, it would be great to get another chance at it, and I think audiences would love to delve into its mysteries. Carmina – always a crowd pleaser, and there’s nothing wrong with that, especially when the houses are over 90% sold like they were for the whole run this year! And thank you for the great performances of the Portland Symphonic Choir – the improvements over the last few years have been amazing and haven’t gone unnoticed by us in the orchestra!

Confessions of Isobel Gowdie: Wow. I had never heard this piece before, and was absolutely thunderstruck by it. I love it when a piece I have never even heard of immediately rockets to the top of my musical consciousness and stays there for days afterward.

Van Cliburn: Vanka can still pack ‘em in. It was an honor to hear the grand old man do what he’s most famous for, even if his chops have slipped a bit over the years.

Bartok Music for Strings/Celesta: It’s great fun going to a concert to hear a beloved chestnut (Mozart) and then I end up enjoying a brand new (to me) piece even more than the one I went to hear.

Carmina Burana: I appreciate your critique of this work Charles; it isn’t especially complex or deep. But there are some astonishingly beautiful melodies scattered throughout, and boy the audiences sure eat it up! It was great fun (as always) to sing with the OSO.

Thanks again all, and I can’t wait for next year.

I am giving cheap Hungarian lessons over the internet!

As for Gregory’s follow-up comment, I have a lot of respect for what he’s done with the orchestra this year, and any nit-picking I do here on the blog is just that: nit-picking. I’ve written an email privately to him about it, and I’m looking forward to working with him (even if much less with the OSO next year due to schedule constraints, but maybe possibly some chamber music?) next season.

I only hope we can keep him around for a couple more seasons before he hits the music director jackpot!

And let’s take some Hungarian lessons from GV!

Just to wrap up our little conversation here:
1. I put many hours of background work in my “seemingly flying by the seat of one’s pant” performances
2. I don’t think that calling my English better than your German will make me happy… I have no idea though how your German is.
3. Mining for deeper nuggets I think is the next step anyway for the IS series. (But, please don’t go “Nerve Endings” if you listen to me!)
4. Your remark was not unfair just perhaps a little short.
5. Thanks for the compliments. I’ll pick up the tab for the beers!
4.

Even though you did 3 out of 4 IS concerts this season, I have the same complaint about pretty much every one of them from previous seasons as well, so I’m not laying it all at your feet (yet ). In fact, I think that in many ways, you do a great job, I’d just like to see it go a bit further. The orchestra plays relaxed and very well for you, and that (as another reader mentioned to me in an email) is as much of a draw as the talking. I just think that after a while, the pieces that one can do will cycle themselves out, and then you’ve got to mine them for deeper nuggets, not just relying on a good performance to smooth over whatever might be lacking. As for “winging” it, it means flying by the seat of one’s pants (or seeming to) rather than following a script, and while I think my remark was a bit unfair (and I apologize for that) I do believe that a well-written script (and I’m not criticizing your English, it’s certainly better than my German!) which is timed out and has carefully placed (and timed) examples can make these concerts even more rewarding for the audiences. And that’s what I’m after, ultimately, as I know you are.

I think a beer or two is now in order!

I agree that I am on the “lighter side” of the Bernstein-like lecture type entertainment. It seems to attract and entertain a particular kind (neither POPS nor Classical subsciber!) of audience though! (The IS concerts nevertheless sold really well…) Anyway, I am all for “more, deeper and better” when it comes to music, music education and concerts in general. All suggestions are welcome and will be taken seriously!
Next season however I am doing only one of the four IS performances so I won’t have a lot of influence on what is going to happen.
I’ll do my best with Schubert’s Unfinished in January! Take my word for that!
See you at Viola Burnout in a couple of days!
Best
Gregory