Archive - November 2009

1
Dept. of Homeland Obviousness update
2
Honolulu Symphony files for moral bankruptcy
3
Musicians Business Challenge—A Highly Competitive and Large Talent Pool
4
Yet more trouble for Honolulu
5
2 Guys + 1 Guitar = Mozart
6
Musician’s Business Challenge—Reduced Resources
7
Great Performances Without all the Fuss and Bother

Dept. of Homeland Obviousness update

If the person who wrote the headline for this article went to J-school, they should get a complete refund on their tuition: Honolulu Symphony Bankruptcy Disturbs Musicians Musicians Fear Uncertain Future HONOLULU — News of the Honolulu Symphony’s bankruptcy announcement is sending shock waves through the community.

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Honolulu Symphony files for moral bankruptcy

The truly shocking part of this announcement is the fourth paragraph (italicized): The Honolulu Symphony Society Board of Directors announced on Friday that it has decided to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The announcement comes after more than a week of uncertainty. The chairman of the Honolulu Symphony’s board of directors told KITV, that as[…]

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Musicians Business Challenge—A Highly Competitive and Large Talent Pool

OK, so we all agree that it’s tough out there in the real world. Nobody argues with that, but we don’t let it get in our way. Successful people in music are drawn to the music itself. It may sound corny but music and performance can be very addictive. The music profession calls us, and[…]

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Yet more trouble for Honolulu

Things look bleak in Honolulu, even after a $1.8 million gift in September: The chairman of the Honolulu Symphony’s board of directors told KITV on Wednesday, that as of last Friday, the symphony did not have enough money to make its payroll. Peter Shaindlin said he hopes to make an announcement about the symphony’s future[…]

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2 Guys + 1 Guitar = Mozart

Someone sent me this several weeks ago, and I just stumbled upon it again while straightening up my very cluttered desktop. I used to do a variation of this with beginning clarinet students to demonstrate how good breath support made for good finger technique. They would blow into the clarinet and I would finger it.[…]

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Musician’s Business Challenge—Reduced Resources

We read about orchestra financial pressures all the time. Musicians demand a decent wage and when communities and boards have difficulty supporting them, an impasse results. Of the 51 ICSOM orchestras , there are ten with minimum scales over $100,000. Not surprisingly these orchestras are in large metropolitan cities like New York, Boston, Chicago and[…]

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Great Performances Without all the Fuss and Bother

Recently I wrote about several “apps” that allow users to virtually play an instrument. The Nov 1st issue of the NYTimes has a longer article about a similar idea: “Orchestra Hero”. Written by Michael Gordon, a composer, it’s an enthusiastic endorsement of the art form we all know and love, but which is unknown to[…]

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