Yesterday’s 2300 word post needs a little counterbalance so today is going to be a diminutive yang to that XXL yin. First up is a nod to the 5/21/2011 Syracuse Post-Standard which reports that a new orchestra to replace the defunct Syracuse Symphony Orchestra is underway. Over at non divisi, Frank Almond would be happy to give his tuxedo a Viking funeral…
Current Events
A Reply To Tony Woodcock
Per his blog post from 5/18/2011, it appears that New England Conservatory president Tony Woodcock has declined my invitation to employ a community engagement exercise in the form of a live public discussion to examine a number of the issues he has been writing about over recent weeks. He feels “this is a topic for more than two voices” and I couldn’t agree more, which is precisely why I proposed that our event be open to the public…
Into The Belly Of The Beast
The 5/16/2011 edition of the New York Times (NYT) published a superb article by Dan Wakin (with assistance from Michael Schwirtz and Kathryn Shattuck) which serves as a representative example of quality investigative reporting in the arts. The article dives into the seamy underbelly of foreign orchestra tours within the US…
A Letter To Tony Woodcock
Dear Tony,
I watched your appearance as a panelist on the WQXR American Orchestras: Endangered Species? program on 5/4/2011 and became concerned with what came across as a very aggressive and unproductive posture toward orchestra musicians and the basic system of collective representation not to mention the greater field as a whole…
Relax, It's Not A Crisis
In case you missed it, WQXR hosted a live discussion panel webcast titled American Orchestras: Endangered Species? yesterday which you can watch online at wqxr.org or in the embedded video after the break. In complete candor, I haven’t watched the entire session yet myself but I was disappointed at the onset by phrasing of the initial question from host and WQXR VP Graham Parker…