If you haven’t been keeping up with the situation developing at the Honolulu Symphony, the organization is in the midst of a cash flow predicament. As a result, they have not been able to meet payroll since Friday, December 14. My Inside The Arts blogging neighbor, Joe Patti, wrote about this issue in grater detail on December 18 but I wanted to add a few thoughts to his prudent observations…
Current Events
Conductor Smack Down! – Dress Codes
The dynamic duo over at Sticks and Drones have come up with a fascinating new series they call “Conductor Smack Down!” In this series, blog authors Bill Eddins and Ron Spigelman square off over specific issues while allowing readers to take sides or take issue via comments. In the inaugural Smack Down, Bill and Ron tackle issues related to dress codes and concert attire: Read Bill’s Article Read Ron’s Article
Tangentially Related
Although the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike isn’t directly related to the orchestra business, the core issue they are striking over is. At the heart of the matter is what sort of share will writers get of revenue from new media. In this business the revenues simply haven’t been large enough to necessitate any serious considerations by any players’ association or management to induce a work stoppage but in Hollywood, it is a different story…
Enough Already With The Audition Nonsense!
The 11/11/2007 edition of the New York Times published an article by Anthony Tommasini’s which features an interview between the author and Marin Alsop. Since its publication, the article has been making the usual rounds inside the business due to Alsop’s comments regarding auditions. In that article Tommasini quotes Alsop as saying the process of blind auditions (where candidates perform behind a screen) is “fundamentally flawed.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, her comments have …
Sticks and Drones: A New Adaptistration Blog
There’s excitement in the air as today marks the launch of the first of several new blogs here at Adaptistration. Sticks and Drones is all about the world of classical music from the perspective of two conductors, Bill Eddins and Ron Spigelman. If you are hoping the blog will be chocked full of filler such as discussions about whether or not Stokowski’s orchestration of Pictures at an Exhibition is superior to Ravel’s edition and the advances in graphite baton design, you might be disappointed.
Instead, Sticks and Drones is all about providing a public forum for two very insightful musicians who live and work in classical music’s trenches. With the comment throttle thrown wide open, they’ll examine where classical music is, where it needs to go, and the challenges along the way. In due course, Sticks and Drones is the first addition to a growing three-way mirror of cultural conversation designed to provide a comprehensive view on the field of performing arts (more on that at a later date)…