Why the NSJO Strad Fiasco is Bad For Pittsburgh

by

If you’ve been following this fantastic saga about Herbert R. Axelrod, the New Jersey Symphony orchestra, and a gaggle of really old, expensive string instruments, then I hope you caught Arts Journal’s Sunday Music headlines.  The principal headline featured the article in the NY Times by Richard Lezin Jones about the Axelrod’s “gift” to the NJSO, but if you skipped the secondary headline do yourself a favor and go give it …

Read more

Who’s Who In Orchestra Administration

by

So does the department director report to the jr. vice president? Or should they report to the general manager?  How about the orchestra manager, do they have authority over the box office customer service representatives?  Is the general manager also a vice president?  Can an executive director report to a CFO?

Read more

Cleveland Orchestra Without a Date For The Proms

by

I’m sitting here this morning working on the Klaus Heymann interview that will go up next week and I took a break to read the article posted on today’s Arts Journal headlines from Norman Lebrecht.  In the article, Norm blasts the players of the Cleveland Orchestra for refusing to play at this year’s Proms (if you aren’t familiar with what the Proms are, join the crowd, I had to go to …

Read more

Music As A Defining Attribute Of Humanity

by

In a recent piece I wrote for The Partial Observer, I focus on two new robots, one from Toyota and one from Sony, that are supposedly the latest in humanoid robotics.  When researching the article I discovered that both companies use musical qualities to help define the humanistic qualities of their new product.  The Sony robot can conduct an orchestra and dances to music while the robot from Toyota plays a trumpet.

Read more

The Music Director Mystique

by

If there is only one individual that is traditionally associated with the idea of an orchestra, it has to be the music director.  And the past year has seen some remarkable events regarding the control and influence music directors assert over their orchestras.  Here’s a quick recap: We have Daniel Barenboim stepping down as the music director for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, one of the top orchestras in the entire world.  …

Read more