Over my 16 years as a full-time member of a professional orchestra (and 8 years before that playing as a free-lance musician), I’ve had time both to observe others and myself engaging in both professional and unprofessional behavior. Sometimes one gets bored, or angry, or just loses it, and things happen. Here’s a guide for
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I’m dissatisfied. Not super unhappy, not depressed, just dissatisfied. With playing in an orchestra. There. I said it. I’m not satisfied by playing in an orchestra at the moment. Is this unusual for me? A little. I usually manage to find the silver lining of even the most yawn-inducing orchestral service. But this season I’ve
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We have Principal timpani auditions coming up at the Oregon Symphony, and thanks to Sam Bergman over at the Minnesota Orchestra’s Inside the Classics, here is a YouTube gem:
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Alex Ross, classical music writer at The New Yorker (and author of the acclaimed music history The Rest is Noise), has a great article in the UK’s Guardian newspaper on the role that outdated classical music etiquette plays in discouraging new audiences to the medium. Highly worth a read – here’s the opening gambit: Last
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Frank J. Oteri writes at NewMusicBox that he is not certain of the future of the relationship between composers and the symphony orchestra: I just got back from a week in Minneapolis for the Minnesota Orchestra Composer Institute followed by a day of jury duty. My time in the Twin Cities is always extremely inspirational.
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As promised (but a bit late) here are the photos that show how different my positions on stage are during this weekend’s concerts. Here is where I normally am (and where I spend the first half of the concert) [click photo to enlarge] You can see our stand on the left side of the frame,
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The reentry into life after an audition is often a difficult period of transition. One has been so focused upon a goal – often for several months on end – and then in the time it takes the personnel manager to say “thank you” it’s all over. You gather up your stuff and head out
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There have been a lot of stories in the news lately about the new concessionary contracts at orchestras across the US. They’ve been arrived at as orchestras have been desperately trying to weather the virtually unprecedented recession in the wake of the meltdown of the credit markets. There’s a hidden set of costs that you
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The OSO’s music director Carlos Kalmar has demonstrated an affinity for the music of Gustav Mahler throughout his tenure with the orchestra, usually opening or closing a season with a major work of the Austrian composer. This year, at his other gig, Kalmar began the home stretch of the season of the Grant Park Music
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In Manchester, UK, a man (who it turns out is a former principal clarinetist of the BBC Symphony Orchestra) sued a production of The Wizard of Oz over its use of a recorded track instead of a live orchestra. He sued under the UK’s Trade Descriptions Act, which essentially functions as a truth in advertising
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Photo – tforgo|istockphoto.com Drew McManus, the brainchild behind the Adaptistration empire, has recently released compensation reports of many kinds – a valuable service to the industry – the two that most interest me being the salaries for ICSOM concertmasters and music directors. I’ll cut to the chase, since you and I both want to know
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Here’s some more news from around the orchestra world as organizations attempt to stem the tide of red ink as contributed and earned income continue to fall across the nation: Phoenix cuts all salaries 17% across the board. Charlotte gets arts funding cut 50%, told to improve financial plan. Chicago Symphony cuts musician pay 2.5%
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Ask almost any symphonic musician what works they love to play, and among the most often mentioned pieces will be those by either Richard Strauss or Gustav Mahler. Why is this? Well, to put it simply, these pieces constitute exactly what modern players are prepared to perform. Our entire musical education is essentially geared to
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Seattle Symphony Starts Music Director Search [crosscut.com] San Diego Arts Groups Suffering Cuts [sdnn.com] San Francisco Symphony Launches Social Network [washingtonpost.com] San Francisco Opera Cuts Millions From Budget [bizjournals.com] Baltimore To Get New Opera Company? [washingtonpost.com] Dallas Symphony Postpones European Touring [dallasnews.com] Baltimore Symphony Musicians Volunteer $1 Million In Concessions [washingtonpost.com]
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From today’s Oregonian: In yet another round of bad news for Portland’s arts scene, Oregon Ballet Theatre is cutting its budget 28 percent. The ballet will go on. Just don’t expect a live orchestra at any OBT performances or quite as many dancers on stage next season. Approved by OBT’s board of directors last week,
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