The Daily Show with Jon Stewart is always good for a smile and the 10/28/2009 show was no exception. Toward the beginning of the program, Stewart examined how “liberal protesters sing show tunes to pressure Harry Reid into putting the public option back into health care reform.” The segment includes a few clips from the actual protest where the protesters use music from Annie with their own lyrics to disrupt a health insurance convention…
Month: October 2009
Guess The Transparency Jelly Beans
I received an intriguing question via email in response to yesterday’s article which provided a reference list making it easier than ever for 77 professional U.S. orchestras to improve institutional transparency: “How many do you think will take you up on it?” I thought about how best to respond and decided that unfiltered candor was the best option: “I’ll be surprised if more than three take advantage of it.”…
The Transparency Two-Step
As promised in yesterday’s article, today’s post includes some direct support with helping U.S. orchestras improve institutional transparency. All that’s required to take a giant step forward in improving institutional transparency across the entire field is something that is “cut and paste” simple…
Examining Transparency Amidst The Economic Downturn
Regular readers know that institutional transparency is an important topic here at Adaptistration as it impacts nearly every aspect of a performing arts organization. Nonetheless, the majority of orchestral institutions don’t embrace institutional transparency as it applies to financial disclosure and up until a year ago, that didn’t have much impact on operations. But since the onset of the economic downturn and the resulting wave of corporate and non-profit scandals, that attitude is no longer an affordable luxury…
Orchestral Acoustics 102: Orchestra vs. Hall
In a recent blog post, Washington Post music critic, Ann Midgette, posed questions concerning:
- what influence a hall’s acoustic response has on orchestral performance technique, and
- what effect the 1997 renovation of the Kennedy Center Concert Hall had in improving acoustics onstage and in the audience.
In response to the first, I can report conclusively that orchestras have great flexibility in adapting their playing to different environments. I offer a few anecdotal observations here supporting this contention and also comment on the effect of recent acoustical adjustments at Kennedy Center Concert Hall…