Turning Japanese

A Big Hello from Japan! The symphony is in the homestretch of a 2-week tour of Japan, and they lugged me along as the emergency option in case the Big Guy can't conduct for some reason. (It's funny that the last 6 times the prez of the company saw me before the tour, he made a joke about me "poisoning the food" of the Big Guy...was he trying to tell me something??) From a managerial/production standpoint, this tour has been about as smooth as anyone could possibly dream: no one has gotten lost/stranded/mugged/etc, we've always arrived early at each destination, all the hotel rooms have been ready to go, all the luggage has gotten from point A to points B, C, D, etc ad inf. For the 100+ folks that have all been traveling together, there hasn't been a single technical/administrative glitch to get in the way of the job they are here to do (namely to make music.) For me specifically, it would certainly be nice to be more *musically* active...heck, I'd love to be playing keys on West Side Story! My notorious ears are doing their duty, though, and it's been a blast to go from hall to hall and decipher every aspect of the soundspace *before* the orchestra plays its 15 minute sound check.

It's also been enjoyable to roam the streets of the various cities we've visited, and to hunt down Vince-approved eating establishments. I'm all about taking in new cultures, so I have been very proactive in trying the local cuisine...which for me means trying the local McD's, Subway, Wendy's, etc etc! My first meal in Tokyo was actually a Subway Club, which tastes just like it does at home :) All of the restaurants here serve fries, and the Subway actually has a variety of flavors that they will sprinkle on the fries (like BBQ) for a few extra yen. My favorite discovery, though, was a place called CoCo Curry House (which is a Japanese-style Indian curry chain, sorta how Fazoli's is an American-style Italian joint.) The basic dish is right up my alley...Beef & Rice. YUM. I actually plan on eating there for a third time during our final trip to Tokyo in a few days. My most fun discovery was a local Domino's pizza near our first hotel. I had already searched for "pizza" on google maps, but later did a search for "Domino's" after spotting one on the way to our first concert hall. Sure enough, I found a Domino's within walking distance, and after drawing up a mini-map on a piece of hotel stationery, I headed on my way. Well, I arrived at the 'intersection' (more on streets in Japan later) but the street looked completely dark and un-Domino's like. Thankfully, a little Domino's scooter turned down the street, and (sure enough) there it was, embedded in a building where no one would see it unless they knew it was there! The workers there got a kick out of this crazy American walking there by himself at 11:30pm at night, but they were also very gracious & polite (as are most of the folks over in these parts.) I headed to a Hard Rock Cafe with a friend; I've only been to a Hard Rock once in my lifetime, and it was a sucky one in Chicago. Thankfully, this one was smaller & cooler, and the 60's lite-rock cover band of Japanese musicians was cute. They were reading from sheet music, and some of the players didn't know exactly how certain hooks were supposed to go (like the "ah" hook during "Groovin'" by the Young Rascals.) One final food story: The Denny's here is completely different! (Google it if you are curious.) It's much fancier, and only has a teeny selection of 'breakfast' items (with the French Toast being the only recognizable one.) As usual, I consulted the menu online before venturing there, and already had my choice picked out: a crust-top beef stew concoction that was delicious.

Biggest highlight of the trip, however, was meeting up with 3 folks (2 IU, 1 NYC) in two different cities! The time spent was too short, but it was still incredible to catch up with them. Yay for great friends in distant (but now close) places! A note about the streets: there are never any street signs for smaller streets, and *most* of the streets are teeny and twist/wind in to each other. Instead, they often refer to blocks rather than streets, but even then the definition of a 'block' is shaky at best. Thanks to Google maps, though, it's pretty easy to get around. I certainly would love to come back here and conduct- in a way, it feels like I'm built for this country (and vice-versa!) One friend suggested I go clothes shopping here, as everything is right in my size! I do know that this won't be my last trip to the far east.

It's been a long time since my last post, but what is interesting (or, more appropriately, 'uninteresting') is that my life has been a lot less varied & action-packed since I took my current gig. In terms of this blog, there are two problems (at least in my mind): first, things just seem a lot more mundane from day to day; second, there are a bunch of things I simply can't type about! It's not that there aren't interesting/important things going on, but the diversity/variety of those things is what has changed. I'm certainly hoping (and have been trying) to change that, but my career is in an interesting rut that needs one more nudge forward before the ball will start rolling again.

There are a bunch of great things coming up once I return to Cincy: My first series of edu concerts this season, my fam concert, and 4 Nutcrackers. Needless to say, my arms have been itching to conduct since July. Speaking of conducting, the Pops Memorial concert took place just before the tour. Old friends/faces turned up from all over the country to pay tribute to my first mentor, and it was wonderful to see all of them. Among the dignitaries were EK's favorite Baritone from the 80's (who I sang with numerous times) and one of the most spectacular bandleaders/trumpeters/personalities of all time (who might be the most impressive musician over the age of 80 in history!) There is so much I want to say about the concert that will need to wait for that proverbial book, but for now I'll say what a privilege it was to be on the program, and I tried to honor him the best way I knew how: by conducting the stuffing out of "Climb Every Mountain."

That's all for now...next post will most likely come after my first rehearsal back in the states. Until next time...

Changes x2: "Time may change me, but you can't trace time;" "That's Just the way it is...things will never be the same"

Normally, the 1-month gap between posts flies by...for some reason, the last 4 weeks have been the longest in recent memory. This has mostly to do with the orchestra being on break...I generally don't do so well with a lot of downtime. Thankfully, things got back underway this week.

The biggest news of the past month was the passing of a musical legend. He was also my first of only a handful of mentors that I've had in my lifetime, and had the biggest impact on my musical and professional development. My first gig with him involved wearing an ET costume, waddling on stage, and doing the famous 'finger touch' (with both me & him wearing light-up ET fingers bought from Walgreens.) It was a volunteer gig, and if I had turned it down (which I almost did!) I would most likely not be a conductor today. It's amazing how all the dominoes fell in just the right way, at just the right time. Just like his world-renowned mentor did with him, he never gave me a single lesson...it was all about mentorship; guiding by example. To this day, there are 3 things I gleaned from him that are essential aspects of the conductor I am today: being efficient in rehearsal; the way he worked/interacted with singers and choruses; having a supersick ear (though he shares that inspiration with the founder and former president of a major recording label.) Frankly, I don't personally know of any other conductor who has all three of those traits as major strengths. Of course, there were many other things I learned by watching him as I grew up. I was in my first year of college when I conducted his ensemble for the last time (as part of an anniversary celebration of my old performing arts school.) After the show, he joked "now that you're all grown up and ugly, go get your own orchestra!" I worked with him as the pianist for a college show choir several times over the next 2 years, came to a handful of concerts up until the point I started grad school, then essentially lost touch with him for 9 years. When I returned to work with him last year, I saw that a lot had changed. That said, it was great to work with him in his last year with the orchestra that he founded, developed, and loved so much.

Before I continue, I need to make the caveat that most of my opinions and commentary will have to wait for that proverbial "big book" I'll write in a few decades. The comments that follow all have to do with my time working with & observing him in the 90's, which is separate from my thoughts on the 2000's (when I was doing the grad school thing.)

So many people focus on his showmanship, which was certainly an important & visible aspect of his on-stage persona. What a lot of people miss is that he was a *conductor*. People that liked him (particularly audiencegoers) perhaps didn't notice the subtlety of what he would do on the podium, but they sure as hell knew things didn't feel or sound right when just about anyone else was up there instead! In essence, their appreciation for his conducting skills only came through their experiences with other conductors. On the flipside, you have a ton of classical elitists who completely wrote him off solely because of his career path. One of my most vivid memories was my first year of grad school at IU, where a complete hack of a conductor was guesting a concert. They came to my conducting class, and (when asked about pops) went on this diatribe about my old mentor, making claims that were absolutely false! It took every fiber in my being to not school this idiot, especially since they couldn't conduct their way out of a paper bag with one of IU's stronger ensembles. The problem is that most conservatory-trained musicians see all forms of popular rep as inferior to anything they studied in Music History class, and think that the only goal of that genre is to push all the buttons down correctly. While a lot of this has to do with a complete ignorance of the importance of style & groove in popular rep, this stereotype is enabled/exacerbated by the fact that most of the people that conduct/rehearse popular music are complete hacks. I can't begin to list the number of choral conductors, music theatre directors, and band leaders that I have seen who have no understanding of music beyond "just putting it together." (Luckily for them, they rarely have to share a concert with better conductors, but it's pretty LOL when they do.) So, most instrumentalists have pretty poor musical experiences when they play in a musical or pops show. Unfortunately, it's a hard mindset to change...I've heard numbers of stories where other groups (even major professional orchestras) disliked my mentor because he...wait for it...REHEARSED. One of my favorite memories happened when he was guesting out of town with an semi-pro community orchestra comprised mostly of college music majors. He was doing his second rehearsal on "American in Paris," and it was clear that most of the violins still couldn't play it. They received a short but stern lecture from my old mentor: "This music is just as important...just as legitimate as Beethoven, Brahms, or Tchaikovsky. You must play and practice this music with the same seriousness."

That's what it all came down to in the end. He approached popular music with the same seriousness he approached all the classics he studied in his student years. Play it in tune, play it together, balance it, and make music. Of course he enjoyed spectacle, and he would do crazy and silly things, but in all the work I saw him do in the 90's (when the hall was packed every night and albums were flying off the shelves) he approached popular music like *music*.

Lots of other tidbits that will have to wait for the book: the 15-year saga of the new school building (which is still raging today;) the 2000's; the current state of 'pops' in the US, and all of my thoughts & opinions. Two final stories: 1) After I conducted for a second time (at age 14), he signed both of my scores. The first was a bravo "to the assistant conductor of (his ensemble)", which of course never had an exclusive assistant until last year. The second score was signed "to the NEXT conductor of (his ensemble)" which I always thought was funny. 2) During that performance series, a seasoned solo performer with a long career pulled me aside to tell me of a private conversation she had just had with my mentor. I had become the topic of conversation, and he said "you know, he could *really* do this if we needed him to." She said she thought it was important that I knew how he viewed me, and that stayed with me ever since. Many years later, though, I now see some humorous (if unintended) irony in that quote...while it originally referred to the gifts & potential he saw in me at the age of 14, my conducting was incredibly green and very 'level 1' at the time (IE beat all the beats correctly, hit all the tempo changes, conduct the musicians that are playing, etc etc)...in a sense that quote gives some perspective on all that is necessary to be a successful, but not necessarily a *good* popular conductor. Looking back, I am glad to have been his first (if unnamed) protogé, and feel I can best honor his memory by approaching the popular genre the same way that he did.

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Our season opened with a pops weekend conducted by a guest. It was a tough way to start the season on a variety of levels...I'll need to save all commentary for that infamous book. Thankfully, the big man returned to town two days ago to whip things back into shape! This evening was a one night only affair with a superstar soloist, playing the last concerto you would expect him to play! That said, it was a refreshing delight to see him play a piece devoid of the romantic fireworks typically associated with this particular soloist. In short, he's the real deal. He made fantastic music from start to finish, and the collaboration with the big man was fantastic. We really needed the concert we had this evening, and I hope it's a good omen for the rest of the season.

Award shows. I actually missed last year's MTV awards, though I do have an avi file of it somewhere on my computer. I lost most of my respect for MTV's live performance arm when they replaced their industry-defining New Year's show with a tweener party instead. Is their target audience really 13? I did watch this year's show, though, and here are the high/lowlights:

As usual, Beyonce and Jay-Z bring it. I was actually worried about J for a second, as he started his number by singing in the same fashion that he ripped other performers in his "Autotune" track! He quickly (and thankfully) abandoned the singsong, monotone style that I can't stand and started throwing down. While I wasn't a fan of Pink's literal acrobatics, part of me thinks it was her way of ridiculing all of the lip-syncers who use dancing as their excuse for why they can't sing live. "Oh yeah? Well, I just sang a whole number while doing a trapeze act!" Oh, and Gaga can actually sing?? It reminds me of Aguilera's first single release, "Genie in a Bottle," which made her appear like a Britney clone. Then, "What a Girl Wants" comes out, and it's a whole different ballgame. (For the pop music sticklers: yes, "Reflection" was before both of these tunes, but people didn't connect her with that tune until after her first album was released.) Taylor Swift was good, but I've seen her do better, and Green Day was fine (though I've never really been on their bandwagon.) Why was Katy Perry using Autotune?? Booooo to her, as she is far more talented than that. Muse was meh. The opening tribute to MJ was fun until little sis came out and started lip syncing. Popular music is so interconnected with flow, and to open & close the show on such weak notes (opening had Janet syncing, closing was the MJ movie trailer, followed by the worst goodbye message) was amateurish at best. The worst part of the show was the fact they actually asked that host back from last year. I'm so glad that most of his comments completely died, so that they might ask a real host to join them next year. Of course, Kanye looked stupid...not because of what he did in the moment, but because it was obvious that Beyonce was going to win the ultimate award at the end. I guess it's possible that he thought his video would win best video (haha)...but I doubt it.

Also this past month, I bought my first major appliance. No, it's not a toaster, blender, or coffeemaker. It's shaved ice machine! (One point of order: shaved ice > sno cones, as the flavor sticks to the flakes from a shaved ice machine, while the crushes cubes of a sno cone allow all the flavor to run to the bottom.) There were two inspirations for buying this item: 1) my dismay at the amount of leftover Lemon-Lime and Blue Raspberry when I buy a 100-box of Fla-vor-ice, and 2) I bought a few shaved ice deserts at outdoor concerts I did this summer, and marveled at their tastiness. The professional models sell for 4 figures, but I got a steal on a home model that was just north of $200. The machine itself is ridiculous, yet simple: There's a hopper that spins at super high speeds, spinning the ice against a metal grater of sorts. It decimates an ice cube in about .5 seconds, and sends ice spewing everywhere if one is not ready to catch it. The package came with 4 premixed flavors and 4 from concentrate. 3 of the four premixed flavors were not so satisfactory...who would want a sno cone that tastes like cotton candy or coconut?? I ordered 6 other concentrates to compliment the 4 that came with the machine, and got to do some mad alchemy to create my 10 flavors. The math is simple: For each quart of water, you need 1.25 lbs of sugar, and one ounce of flavor. I first made Grape and Cherry (of course!) using 2 separate 1.5 pint soda bottles. I was incredibly concerned about the amount of sugar involved (each bottle was about 60% full of sugar!!) They were both absolutely delicious, though, so I decided to make an entire gallon of the sugar water, and divvy it up between 5 different bottles. All of these five flavors tasted a bit thin, so (after a bit of experimentation) it turns out that it's the amount of *sugar* that makes the difference (who knew? I don't cook!) The verdict...REDIC delicious flavors: Wild Cherry, Sour Grape; Very good: Strawberry, Pink Lemonade, Orange, Pineapple-Orange Good: Red Raspberry, Green Apple OK: Blue Raspberry, Godzilla (which was subtitled "very fruit punch." I like fruit punch...oh well.) Meh: Lemon Lime. Thanks for the memories, Fla-vor-ice, but I've moved on.

The season is thankfully underway, and I look forward to the barrage of concerts coming. UFC tomorrow night. Until next time...

Freedom (Na Na Na Na, Hey Hey, Goodbye!); Handful of Keys

What a difference 4 weeks make. My last post was after a flurry of activity, and I wasn't able to completely cover all the action. By contrast, the past few weeks have been very chill and relaxed. There are some highlights to cover, but...

...the main topic of this post is my 1st day of freedom from the evil Time Warner company!! Oh Lordy, I could go on for hours about my long, painful history with the awful cable companies, starting with Insight cable in Bloomington. My brief moment of freedom was just before I started grad school, where I had dish service for about a half-year (and was blown away by their awesome customer service!) Alas, the evil cable folks (through lobbyists, unfair legislation, etc) have managed to keep a stranglehold on most markets for a long time...recent legislation has thankfully opened up the market, and in my case, a local phone company has wired my entire apartment complex with fiber-optics to supply cable & internet service! Someone actually stopped by in January to sell this new service, but thanks to my 2-year contract with the evil TW company (where they offer a 'discount' on an artificially-high "basic" price in order to lock you in for 2 years, forcing you to pay a fee if you leave early)...however, this new offer includes the first month free, plus they pay the disconnect fee! SCORE. Sayonara, TW! The internet is several megs faster, my DVR box is faster, and my bill will be about $15 a month cheaper. I'm watching the video of George Michael's "Freedom '90" right now to celebrate!

Last week, I played piano for auditions for a local theater company. I have known both the director & producer since I was 9 years old, and I ran a summer workshop with them for 7 years. Even though my piano chops have become terribly rusty this year, I was talked into playing the auditions...and I'm very glad I did! It was a blast to do, especially since I got to see so many kids that I haven't seen in 3 years. There was a brief discussion of me coming back to doing the workshop next summer...that's a long way off, but we'll see if that all works out.

In other news, both my last runout & the VG concert went well. The runout concert was hit with rain, so we had to cut the concert down to about 45 minutes of music. The orchestra played well for me, despite the rainy conditions. I'd liken the VG concert to a Britney Spears concert; you *see* people onstage singing/playing, but all you *hear* are prerecorded tracks. On top of that, many of the orchestrations/arrangements were suspect at best; there were even a few wrong chords/notes in some of the more famous tunes!

This leads me to a topic I left dangling from my last post: Pops music & arrangements. The whole phenomenon of pops orchestras is a relatively new one, created in the late 1800's. The original intent was to provide "lighter fare" in order to broaden the audience base and bring people to the concert hall. Fiedler brought the genre to worldwide prominence, but EK was the first to make it an *art form.* Many musicians (players, composers, conductors) view this music in a bad/lesser light, and the only goal is to push all the right buttons down ala the game "Rock Band," with no concern for phrasing, groove, style, etc. (I'd liken this to conductors who think the only goal is to beat all the beats correctly in performance!) After all, the popular music world is chock full of wildly successful acts that suck, yet audiences keep coming. I still remember the first pops concert I saw outside of Cincinnati; I was absolutely appalled at the quality of the playing as well as the quality of the arrangements, but the audience was big, and they whooped & hollered after every tune. What was different, though, was the *quality* of their response. It was very similar to a Gershwin tune being played with no style; the applause sounded like applause, but it was hollow and missing heart. As for those successful but untalented pop artists, they might have millions, but they will never have artistic respect (though they might not care about that so much!) This, however, gets to the heart of what popular music is about: people will always enjoy listening to familiar tunes despite the quality of the performance, but when it's done at an exceptional level, the audience can tell. This actually goes for any art form, actually...layfolk might not be able to pinpoint why certain acts on "So You Think You Can Dance" take their breath away, but they do know when they've seen something magical. It's also the same for arrangements as well; at the VG concert, it was no surprise that the mediocre arrangements (even of very popular games) got the least enthusiastic response. So, on my end, I'll continue to fight the good fight, and try to set the bar high regardless of venue or genre.

Finally: poker. After a brief hiatus, I started playing some late-night tourneys. Last week, I twice finished in the top 20 of a 2000+ player tourney (though, alas, did not make the final table where the big money is.) I have been playing very well, though, and I feel another big score coming. Of course, I'll post it here it it happens!

Things will remain chill for another few weeks...I'll post again when something of note happens. Until next time...

Victory; Luck Be A Lady; Your Cheatin' Heart (pt. 2)

I don't think I'm gonna come close to covering all the big events over the past 6 weeks, but here goes:

JULY 4th. I knew it had the potential to be a very good (even great) show, but it ended up going far, far better than I had possibly imagined. This is not to say that it was a perfect show...indeed, many of the 'expected' issues (things that are out of my hands) were still there. But when it comes to the things that I impact, it couldn't have gone much better. The coolest thing was seeing how the audience was reacting/responding throughout the course of the evening, as if they started to feel that they were a part of something that was not just an ordinary pops concert; I could see it in the faces of a number of folks in the orchestra as well. It wasn't just about (my) energy, the 3-way interaction between me/audience/soloists, the musicmaking, etc...it really was the combination of all the forces involved, heading down the same path. What made it all work was that I (thank goodness!) was focused and on point...no made-up words, no bumbling introductions, etc. Never in my life have I received so many comments from so many different folks after any show I've ever been involved with (and sitting in the audience at tonight's pops show, 2 weeks after the fact, I was surprised to have folks still coming up to me!) As I mentioned, there are a lot of things I'd like to improve, but a lot of that rests on the tricky issues of being an assistant conductor. (More on this subject another time.) One of my favorite highlights of the evening: after the concert, I was approached by the first pro conductor that I ever sang for as a kid (Chichester Psalms, to be exact.) I hadn't seen him in person in AGES, so it was so great to see him.

POKER. For the third year, I attempted to win an entry to the big poker tourney in Las Vegas. As I always do, I play lots of smaller tourneys to build up a bankroll to enter the big ones. In the first three 'big' tourneys I entered, I busted well before the money...but in the 4th, I came closer than I ever have before. To sum it up: How would you like to flip a coin for $12,000?

Along with 3,599 other people, I spent $500 (+$35 house entry fee) to enter one site's massive Sunday World Series tournament, with the top 150 finishers each winning $12,000 to go play the main event in Vegas. (To clarify: they don't just 'give' this money away...3,600 players x $500 = 1.8 million dollars...divide by $12,000 and you get exactly 150 prize packages. No casino is ever a charity!)

My poker game had been in high gear that week, and I used it to my full advantage: identify the bad/weak players, read their soul, and take their chips.My starting stack of 3,000 chips quickly soared to 18,000 in 30 minutes, then 30,000 by the second hour; I was around 5th place in chips for much of this time, but with over 3,000 players remaining, place means nothing; the only thing that matters is to be one of the final 150 people standing. I played patient poker for the next two hours, picking spots, maintaining my big stack...eventually, my 30,000 chips put me in 100th place with 500 people remaining.

Doing some quick math, it was clear that 60,000 chips would be the 'magic' number that a person would need to be able to fold their way into 12k. At 9:55, a small stack of 11k raises to 1600 chips...I have a read on this player, and I was dealt a huge hand, so I push my entire stack of 30,000 all in (to encourage a call from this player with an inferior hand while keeping other players out of my pot.) There was *one* other person at the table with my stack size...he happens to be a successful online pro with over $200,000 (!) in tournament profits. He's a strong player, so he knows *exactly* what cards I have due to the move I made...his hesitancy also made it clear to me what cards he had.

Many hands/situations in poker come down to a "coin flip"; a 50/50 chance that you win or lose a particular hand. The key to coin flips is to avoid them when you can, have more chips than your opponent when you can't, and win them when you don't! (Ha!) My opponent & I had equal stack sizes, and we knew the same two things: 1) We would be in a coin flip situation if he called me, and 2) whoever won the coin flip would be 4th place in chips with 499 to go, and essentially guaranteed to win the $12,000.

Alas for me, many successful poker pros are also huge gamblers, who love the thrill of 50/50 situations. After thinking for almost 1 minute, my opponent made the calculated decision to either win or lose the tournament on THIS hand. He calls, the 11k stack runs for cover...and I lose the coin flip. Indeed, my opponent then put on the cruise control for the next 2 1/2 hours, easily coasting to the $12,000 win.

In short, if the coin had fallen heads instead of tails, I would have been $12,000 richer. While that seems pretty brutal, I actually wasn't phased by it very much at all, as I was playing at the absolute top of my game, and wouldn't have changed my play even if I knew he was going to call me in that situation. So, we'll try again next year!

MY CHEATIN' HEART. Yes folks, I'm cheating. I'm cheating on my #1 Gold Star Chili location. This was the first store I ever ate Gold Star at, with the owner (who's still there!) that saw me grow up over the past decades, and it's the store I've been going to almost every day since my return to Cincy in June 2008. First, some background: I noticed many years ago that some Gold Star locations tasted a bit different from others. For instance, every mall location tasted watered down to me. Some places seemed to have a bit more kick (in a good way.) *My* Gold Star, however, always seemed a bit more hearty in flavor, and no other Gold Star I've been to has the same flavor. Well, two things have happened since my return. First, "my" store started closing an hour earlier, and sometimes I'm just not hungry by the time they close. Second (and much worse!) the taste of my store has been different the past few months. It's bland, and not in the watered-down mall sort of way...it's more like the "we are secretly using cans of our evil, nasty-tasting competitor as a twisted experiment" sort of way! Something is *clearly* different, but I've been too afraid to ask! The sad thing is that they always take such good care of me there, giving me free drinks, discounts, etc etc. So, about 2-3 times a week, I wait until my store closes to justify a booty call to another Gold Star, which has the usual heavenly-delicious taste one expects from Gold Star Chili. Last week, however, my cheating escalated to a new level, because I made my first trip there while 'my' Gold Star was still open! Then, a few days later, I actually went inside to eat for the first time!! It's amazing how guilty I feel about it, but I really *do* need my Gold Star. In some ways, there is a twisted connection to a relationship, where the hubby sleeps with his wife 4 times a week because he feels he has to, then runs off to get what he needs the other 3 times during the week! Of course, I'll keep everyone posted on the details of this harrowing story.

Other notes: the death of MJ was probably the biggest news since my last post. Alas, this changed the BET awards show into an last-second MJ benefit, which led to a few disastrous performances. You all know that I'm a huge fan of live music performances on TV, and the BET awards usually have some of the best performances all year. This show had some great highlights, but nothing that blew me out of the water...in fact, this is the first time in years where the Grammys were better than the BET awards. Winner: the O'Jays (!) Yes, the lifetime achievement winners actually gave the best performance of the evening, dwarfing the rather good tribute done by the younger guns moments before. The return of Maxwell (!!) was second, mainly because the new song he sang just isn't very compelling...why do a tune that contains few/none of the things that make Maxwell unique and fantastic? Jay-Z was also entertaining, throwing in adlib the name of a new 'rapper' in his latest hit which rips on autotune...speaking of which, the only thing worse than the monotone, untalented rappers out there (Soulja Boy being just one of many) is when those same monotone rappers use autotune. UGH. We heard quite a bit of that on this show. Ciara, as always, did a fantastic job with her understated performance of MJ's "Heal The World" (though I wish she would have done a better tune.) Along the same lines, Beyonce was no surprise either, doing a performance that was good and strange all at the same time. Ne-Yo was also very good, as was the refreshing return of Tevin Campbell. Not so hot were Keri Hilson in her live debut, painfully exposing her weaknesses outside of the recording studio & editing booth (which often happens to female singers with hits that have a 1-octave vocal range.) The opening New Edition medley of Jackson 5 tunes was a hot mess, and shows just how hard it is to perform live without backing vocal tracks. I'll avoid mentioning all of the awful rappers that performed, but the biggest disappointment was Jamie Foxx, an otherwise talented performer who happens to be saddled with Autotune on all of his latest hits.

I've got one final summer runout at the end of the month...I'm also preparing a youth chorus for an upcoming Video Game concert with the pops. While one might think that's a dream come true, the arrangements/orchestrations are not the best. I've gotta type a random thoughts blog to update some things, with these topics: the art of pops arranging; the tightrope walk otherwise known as being an assistant conductor; the downside to successful edu, fam, and pops concerts (aka elitism); my current classic video game journey. That's all for now. Until next time...

Your Cheating Heart; Poker Face

Finally, an action-paced month! Lemme get to the two big stories before I get to the other stuff.

First, I had a big-ol' audition for a top 15 US orchestra's assistant conductor position. Even though I am currently employed, there were multiple reasons why I went to this audition: 1) The chance to meet/conduct/work with a great orchestra; 2) To test the waters/get my name out in the mix; 3) It was my first 'outside' invite/opportunity since I started my current job last August; 4) This job has a fantastic track record with its former assistants. The process was an interesting one, and quite different from other organizations. It was a 3-day affair: For day 1, you conduct L'Histoire, Faun, and Soliloquy from Carousel for 10 minutes with a pianist. Day 2 is the same, but it's 15 minutes with a chamber group. On day 3, it's Dumbarton Oaks, a Hungarian Dance, and a medley of Oklahoma for 20 minutes along with 2 verbal presentations. Before the audition even occurred, there were two things that stood out about this process. First, the numbers: Based on how the scores were numbered, it was clear there were going to be at least 12 folks there (and there ended up being 15 total)...far more than the typical audition. Second, the repertoire: *Every* pro audition I've ever heard about consists of "serious" standard rep. This is a bit ironic, because "serious rep" has nothing to do with what an assistant actually gets to conduct! Well, this audition cuts right to the chase, as the entire rep list is a great representation of what an assistant will most likely be waving his/her arms to.

Now to the audition: what startled me the most (in a good way) was how *seriously* they took the entire process! Let me ask a question: how many people would you expect to be on a first-round audition panel to watch 15 people conduct a piano for 10 minutes? I was expecting about 4 people in a small room...instead, the audition was on stage, with about 10 folks including the music director! Also, for all three rounds...sorry, that's a bit of a spoiler :)...there was no clapping, foot stomping, etc from the orchestra or panel on your entrance or exit (though I did get a "bravo" from the MD after round 2.) It was a bit unnerving at first, especially since this ensemble a reputation for being fun/friendly/etc. I actually enjoy the fact that they take this appointment so seriously, though- that's a big reason why this position has had so much success.

Heading up to the audition, I already knew six of the auditionees, and expected to see even more folks I recognized. This was indeed the case! A good friend & colleague from the big J was there, as was a student from the 'other' IU studio when I was studying there. There was also another conductor there who was clearly not so happy to see me...yes, I topped him at a previous audition, but come on! It turns out that we all had the exact same excerpts on day 1, including an unexpected 'twist'...(more on this later!) My first round went well, and the pianist was PHENOMENAL. (Usually, pianists are terrible at following, but we were lucky to get a great musician/collaborator behind the keys.) The field was cut to 7 for day 2, where we all (again) had the same audition. This time, the stage speaker was on in my dressing room, and I had the chance to hear a number of auditions (which was interesting on a number of levels.) The musical theater selection is such a great choice, because so many young conductors have no clue about 1) popular rep or 2) working with a singer. My second round also went very well...I'll get into more details later. 4 folks made it to the last round, and (since I was scheduled last) I had the chance to hear all three auditionees from my dressing room (which, as before, was very interesting.) The final round was fine, but there was one key element in my approach that didn't mesh so well with a number of the orchestra members (which I noticed almost immediately.) After that, they invited two of us to the interview round- when I saw that they were interviewing me first, and then asked me to wait around, I knew the decision was already made. The interview itself was fine (and fun!) but the last question, posed by the MD himself, hints at the variety of reasons why me & this job were not the right fit at this time: "If we offer you this position, will you accept it, or are you playing some sort of game?" Of course, folks that know me know that I'm one of the least-savvy people when it comes to the business...I even told them that "I stink at that type of game...I just want to conduct and make music!" The question, though, was a necessary one...after all, they don't know me. It also implies a number of deeper concerns: Why am I there? Don't I already have a similar job elsewhere? If I leave job A after one year, how long will I be at Job B? Without going into a bunch of details, it turns out that I would not have been able to accept the position, as I would have needed to take a substantial pay cut to do so (and I'm already in debt out the wazoo as it is.)

So, the wrapup is this: made the final two to a job audition that (unfortunately!) I could not have accepted...though I didn't know that until it was all over. It was an amazing experience that I am very thankful for, and hopefully they will indeed invite me back for some edu concerts in the future. Some specific comments on the trip:

1) This orchestra was *incredibly* responsive! They were searching for things to follow & respond to, and it was an absolute joy. I heard a number of the other auditionees, and it never ceases to amaze me how many young conductors simply don't make any music when they conduct! To not take full advantage of an ensemble as flexible and responsive as this is a travesty, and it was in this category that I think I excelled the most. Well, that along with:

2) What is up with conductors that can't hear? I know that my ears are freaky, and I know that most young conductors have bad/no ears, but YIKES. Balance anyone? I was appalled at the number of huge things that went completely unnoticed/unheard/unfixed in the finals. Part of this is because of:

3) Preplanned/prearranged rehearsing. When a conductor decides what they are going to 'fix' before they even conduct, it's as obvious as a crumb-covered 5 year old saying they didn't go into the cookie jar. Yes, one should definitely have a gameplan & should have a mental sound image, but when you tell an orchestra to 1) play shorter when they are already playing short, or 2) play shorter/softer/phrase/etc when they are not even playing together & are playing wrong notes all over the place, THEY KNOW YOU CAN'T REHEARSE. Oh, along those same lines, a pro conductor I know says "no phrasing is bad phrasing." Well, I think wrong phrasing/phrasing that doesn't make sense is worse than bad phrasing. Oh, and why not try to phrase with your hands first? Or, if an orchestra is playing everything ff, get the 'boom-chick' accompanying figures to play softer first so that the melody has a chance to phrase (this was the first thing I did in the final round.) I did talk about phrasing for one item in the finals, but in very specific terms- all the rest of it I did with my hands, and the orchestra responded beautifully!

4) Presentations. This is the Achilles' heel for many 'young' conductors. A few tips: 1) If you don't believe in that sort of stuff, it shows. In a crumb-covered 5 year old sorta way. 2) Don't try to be someone you aren't! That shows even worse (like in the case of one very manic presentation that day.) I came into this with my secret weapon...audience singalong! To his credit (and my pleasant surprise!) the winning conductor also had a singalong with an interesting premise...if he would have taken it one logical step further, it would have been perfect :)

5) People. I *love* auditions for many reasons; the folks you meet in the process is one of those reasons. I met a number of great people, including some conductors I hope to see in the biz in the not-too-distant future.

6) Personal growth. I had let my conducting slip a bit this year, and this audition helped me get back to the conducting I want to be doing. It was an honor to conduct this fabulous orchestra and get to know the people at this very exciting organization. There are so many things that this organization is doing right, and I learned a ton seeing it in action. On the conducting side, I feel great (again) about where my conducting is, and where it is heading. It was also very helpful to conduct a new ensemble just to double-check a few items from this past year.

OK. Big item #2: My summer concert series. We will be doing a total of four runout concerts this summer, each about 90 minutes away from Cincy. My rehearsal for this was Friday...it's a fun program of mostly popular, mostly American music, featuring a vocalist and an instrumentalist as co-headlining soloists. I came in to the rehearsal energized from the big audition the week before, especially concerning the differences between the ensembles. The rehearsal itself gave me a "re-reminder" of things. We got through all of the material, and I felt reasonably good about the prospects of the performance. The show itself was in a nice town in Indiana- the weather was hot, but there was still a good turnout. I was reasonably pleased with the performance, esp given the parameters and circumstances...there are a number of things that will be better the next show, and a number of things that will be the same (alas) for all four shows. It was fun to do my first full-length show with this ensemble, and I'm already looking forward to the next! July 4th is also coming up soon- also quite excited about that show.

Tis the season for poker! I haven't played very much poker this past year (for a variety of reasons) but now that the series is up and running, it's time for my two-week poker binge. This will be the third year that I will try to win a $10k seat to the world series in Vegas. Two years ago, I attempted this quest in NYC...while it was ultimately unsuccessful, I still ended up a few grand ahead $ wise. Last year met with disastrous results...I had just moved to Cincy, I had tons of things that I was doing, I had barely been playing, and I ended up playing some terrible poker, losing several hundred over the course of two weeks. Well, I just started playing again a week ago, and my game finally found it's stride two evenings ago. I'm still not playing at my best; just tonight, two clear mistakes cost me a total of $150. Still, I'm feeling good about my game, so hopefully I'll be able to post an exciting update in my next blog post.

Tis the season for the Tonys! I wasn't so hot on the shows on Bway this season, so I wasn't sure what to expect INRE the broadcast...the opening number was a bit 'meh', though it ending the medley with the entire performing cast singing "Let the Sunshine In" was a great choice. Most impressive to me was the performance of "Next to Normal"...enough so that I'd like to see that show next time I go to NYC. Shrek was also fun (the parody of "Defying Gravity" was a master stroke) though I don't see myself dropping full price on a ticket to see it. I don't get Billy Elliot at all, though. The live number missed the mark for me on a number of levels...I also found the 'deadpan' approach to the Guys & Dolls revival interesting (not necessarily in a good way.) Oh, and that Mamma Mia touring cast was a DISASTER, and nowhere near as good as the touring cast I saw in Cincy several years ago. OF course, the closing number of NPH won the day, which says something about the quality of the performances this year...all told, the broadcast didn't excite me so much, which is a bit of a shame.

OK, that's plenty for now. Over the next few weeks it's programs, covering, and poker. Until next time...

Don't You Want Me, Baby?

NYC, take 2! This visit was primarily to conduct a piece by a good buddy of mine at the big J (who is tied with another composer for my most-conducted composer.) I left EARLY Sunday morning so that we could rehearse as soon as I landed...and since the flight was early in the morning, I didn't bother going to bed. I usually function quite well with no sleep, but this composer's music is very intricate/complex, and thus requires a lot more brain power. The first-day rehearsals still went well, but were certainly not me at my best. Thankfully, the rehearsal the following day went very well, as did the performance. Also, it was great that 4 folks that I have worked with quite a bit in NYC (and are amazing talents!) were in the group. One crazy item of note: If I hadn't done this concert, this would have been the first year since 1999 that I did not conduct a premiere. I also got to see some folks that I missed last month, but there are still plenty that I have yet to see this year.

The end to the Cincy season was last weekend. It was an interesting & exciting year...and definitely needs some sort of recap. As this is not a hidden/private blog, I will need to behave, but here are my highlights:

Best played concert: Concert #1 by a mile. The orchestra was running on all cylinders, Watts was amazing on Rocky 2, and the orchestra was both tight & breathtakingly musical on the Rach Symphonic Dances. I distinctly remember me & the other assistant being very excited about this ensemble due to this concert.

Most memorable performances by soloists (other than Watts): The pianist that played Beethoven 4 absolutely transformed the way the *orchestra* played. Our Brahms 2 guy was the biggest/best combo of power & musicianship. I really enjoyed the Flutist, though my memories of the live performances were far better than what the audio playback sounded like. Also, our Cellist on Dvorak was fantastic. Did I forget anyone? Oh, the pianist who shares the name of a tire company was great on the Bartok. While I can't get into my ..."not most memorable" soloists, I will say that they share the same gender and instrument.

Fave guest conductors: I actually enjoyed working with all but one of them (and that 'one' is not prominent and won't ever be invited back, so it's no problem.) The "Sir" who is king of no vibrato was an absolute delight to see in action. The best young conductor in the US led the orchestra to one of its best-played concerts all year. I've been a fan of the new "big guy" in NY for a little while, and his rehearsals were tied for the best all year along with...the new "big guy" in Nashville. He was not originally on the schedule, but was a late replacement for another conductor. It was an absolute pleasure to see him work, and he's one of the most gracious people you will ever meet. While his concert program was not among the orchestra's favorites, he was their favorite guest this season.

There have been some other small things here and there...in general, life this year has involved a general routine, something that I haven't really had the past 7 years. I definitely miss having some new/interesting/etc. musical project every 4 days or so throughout the year. I certainly am eager to get back into that as I continue down this career path...we'll see. Along those lines, I've got an audition at the end of May...nothing "major" per se, but not minor either...more details on that after it happens.

There was also some sad news released this week INRE our Pops conductor, who was my first conducting mentor. He's been in very good spirits this week (though no one should have expected anything less!) Also, our big-name guest artist (who made her career in the Christian Music world) was *breathtaking* during the Thursday rehearsal, and she is one of the best popular talents on the planet. Unfortunately, she either 1) got sick; 2) overdid it at rehearsal, or 3) some combo of both, as her voice was cashed in the performances. As people could probably guess, her at 10% power is still better than most folks in the world...it's just a shame she wasn't at full strength. At least I was lucky enough to hear her live & at her best on Thursday.

Other happenings: Earlier in the week, I was the 'questioner' for the musicians who will be featured on the pre-concert video notes next season (which was fun.) I was told I'll be going to Japan with the Orchestra for the big tour (my first trip to Asia...woot!) I'm starting to slowly get back into playing poker online...more updates as that comes along. Summer of 2007 was very profitable; summer of 2008 (which was my transition from NYC to Cincy) was very much not so! Oh, I've also had a number of college friends mention the new MTV show to me (which centers around my old school which exists in name only.) They all have been surprised at how bad the school/performers/etc are, but that it's the focus of this TV show. I decided not to watch, as it would either 1) break my heart, or 2) make me very angry.

Random thought for the day: first-level thinkers. In a post I made long ago, I typed a bit on intelligence. The Cliffs notes: 1) Musically gifted folks are, by default, bright/smart; 2) I'm very lucky that my good friends & colleagues are bright/smart! I have friends with a huge variety of backgrounds, beliefs, strengths, talents, etc etc...but they are all amazingly bright in a number of ways. I won't rehash the rest of that post, but it came out of a summer where I had to spend a lot of time, daily, with a small handful of folks that were...not so. Here's my followup to that post: first-level thinking. I'll start with an example: if you are playing chess, first-level thinking would be akin to making a move purely based on what the board currently looks like, without any consideration to what the opponent might do in response. (So, 2nd-level thinking=what will the opponent's response be; 3rd= what should I do based on the opponent's response to my initial move, etc etc ad infinitum.)

Here's are some hypothetical, real-life examples. 1st level: someone is doing a presentation on Gabriel Faure and needs a pic, so they go to google, type in "Faure," and take the 1st pic they see...alas, it's actually someone by the name of Sebastian instead. (Actually, that might be zero-level thinking, because why wouldn't you type in the first name as well??) Second level thinking: type in "Gabriel Faure," make sure the pic you like matches most of the others in the results, and click through to some of the websites to make sure it's actually Gabriel. THIRD level thinking (my favorite!): Someone (a teacher, for instance) sees the picture from example 1 and knows it's not Gabriel (despite the insistence of the person who found it) and thinks "Hmmm, what would this person have done if they wanted to find a pic of Faure?" and after some logical deduction, goes to google, types in Faure, and knows that first result is going to be the errant pic before they even hit the "search" button! Anyways, I had a few revelations about the 'levels' thing this past month, which shed some additional light on a few situations (again, it's gotta wait for that big ol' book.)

All for now. Until next time...

Reunited (and It Feels So Good) part 2...The Division Bell

Another month zips by (again, again.) Unless something changes in a big way, my guess is this once-a-month post pace will be the norm.

Big story was my long-overdue trip to "Blooming Town." I usually visit in January, but my schedule didn't allow for that this year. I often play these visits by ear, as I know I won't come close to seeing all the people I want to see...I always end up running into a ton of people, though, so this method usually works out. In short, I got to spend a ton of time with a number of people I really care about, which is what life is all about. Events of note: As soon as I arrived, I headed to 3 different orchestra rehearsals. The first rehearsal was led by the head of the program, and I stayed about 5 minutes (nothing really new to see.) I then went across the hall to see one of my favorite people...it's someone I've known for most of my performing life, and have worked with as a: child singer, college singer, and (most recently) as a conductor. (IU used to be both of our stomping grounds back in the day...) He gave me a big ol' wave when I walked in the room, and I gave him a big ol' hug after he wrapped up the rehearsal. It was fun to see him there at IU, and we chatted about the concert he recently did in Cincy. I might actually go back to IU to see his concert if it works with my schedule. I then went to observe someone who I had heard a lot of good things about, but had never seen in person. He was fantastic. I went up to chat with him afterwards; I had actually received a recommendation request from him via e-mail last month INRE a pianist I had worked with, so we chatted a bit about the upcoming audition. This guy did wonderful work with that ensemble, and IU is very lucky to have him there to...counterbalance things. The next day I saw another one of my absolute favorite people in the world. He came to IU the same year I came back: 2001. He already had an illustrious career in the choral world, but (essentially) 'retired' to a teaching position at IU. He's retiring for good at the end of this year, and (as always) it was such a pleasure to catch up with him. I also went to two big parties on Friday night...one was a quasi-birthday bash with mostly grad students & upperclassmen. The other was at a house where two old friends of mine live, and was hosting a prominent/famous IU-connected musician.

Along with seeing friends that are still in Bloomington, I ran into 3 folks from the old days that just happened to be visiting for the weekend! One of them was at my first IU backstage pants-dropping, which we commemorated by simultaneously dropping trou in the kitchen. (I also dropped trou at party #2, at the request of the party host. Of course, that's a request I can't deny.) I also saw a musical (Most Happy Fella) that had a number of friends in the cast...both were fantastic. I was particularly proud of the one with a substantial role, as she has grown *so much* since the last time I heard her sing. Heck, 4 years ago, we needed to transpose "Dance 10, Looks 3" down a step so she could do it; now, she's got a robust chest/belt that knocked the socks off of an otherwise tough crowd that evening! (She was definitely the show stealer!)

As for the show, I've played 6 of its tunes over the years, and 5 of them are (IMO) stinkers. I went in with an open mind, though, because of Fiddler on the Roof. Back in 2001, I *hated* that show, because the 7 songs I had played from it were (to me) annoying & hokey. That's when the broadway tour came to town, and I was hired to play keyboards! Guess what? On the stage, with a pit orchestra, that show is great. So, I came to this performance with high hopes...hopes that were obliterated. Many of the musical numbers don't make sense, the storyline is wack, and the pacing is atrocious (though perhaps the fault for that last comment is not with the composer...) There were some good individual performances, but I know that's one show I won't be seeing again in my lifetime.

On the Cincy front, two items of note: First, I was sent to speak at a women's lunch club INRE the symphony. To my surprise, 4 (!) former faculty/staff from my old perf arts school were at my table! One has known me since birth (and was my teacher in the 4th grade)....and one was my last teacher. It was fantastic to see them after so many years & catch up. Speaking of my old school, the second item was a trip to that school...it's the first time I've been in that building in over 10 years. There are reasons why I (and many others) have not come back...in short, the school we went to simply does not exist anymore, and this visit highlighted that fact in clear fashion. A donor to the arts has set up a commission where a famous/prominent musician will make a visit to the school, and I was asked to moderate a discussion with her. I hadn't gotten any info from the school itself, and only knew what to do from the soloist's itinerary. After lunch chat, we head into the auditorium (which was not the location the school mentioned on her itinerary!) On stage there is one stool, and one mic. Just before I'm about to ask for another stool & mic, an admin from the school grabs the mic and gives (frankly) a terrible into to our soloist, beckons her to the stage, and gives her the mic. Well...I mosey up on stage behind her, and (through an awesome mind meld) we both reach back and grab two chairs to sit in. (That's when I realize this admin, who is in charge of this whole visit, somehow forgot I was moderating this.) We start by bantering back & forth, then open the floor for questions. How is it that the only two awful questions happened to come from teachers?? The second question evoked an answer that became one of the most brutal public ownings I've witnessed in my lifetime. (when 150 kids "oooooooooo," then applaud wildly, that's one hell of an owning.) After the discussion, I touch base with my 'boss' about what a clusterf**k the visit was, which is when I made two discoveries: 1) The owning was built up from the disaster of a session that happened earlier in the day. The disaster was neither the fault of the kids nor the guest. 2) As part of this 'commission,' kids from the school were supposed to come to observe the soloist in rehearsal the day before. THEY DIDN'T SHOW UP. How the f**k do they not show up?? People are (literally) throwing money at the school, and the admins can't get their act together enough to bring the kids to see their guest artist in action?? As I start to leave, two other people have revelations: 1) The man representing the donor discovers that I am alumni (probably because he asked "who's that random guy on stage," since no one bothered to introduce me.) 2) As I headed out of the auditorium, a teacher realizes they should probably introduce me to the students, given the fact that I'm in the profession and that I'm alumni (or, much more simply, to answer the open question of "who the heck was that random guy on stage?") I was already halfway down the hallway, and didn't stop until I got to Gold Star.

Back when I attended this school, whenever ANY guest came to visit, everything was planned around them. A guest like this wouldn't have 150 kids...certainly all of the music students would have attended, and most likely the entire school (in two different assemblies.) Artistic Direction 101: when a major guest comes to visit, they are the AD's #1 priority! How does that trip get botched so badly? It's not like there are a ton of pro organizations calling up the school to hire kids like in the past, so what else would the AD be doing? Perhaps organizing a trip to the symphony to see the guest in rehearsal? No, wait...that didn't happen either! (In fact, I had *guaranteed* three performing spots to the school in my edu concerts...all the AD needed to do was call me. He never did. So, even when people *want* to use kids from there...which is rare these days...they don't follow through.) The fact that the folks in charge don't understand why it is important for *all* the students to see this guest artist IS the problem. The fact that some folks over there blame the artistic condition of the school on the kids, saying "they aren't as talented as they used to be" or "the talented kids go elsewhere" IS the problem. The problem is in the quality of the training, and the standards being set for them by people that should (but don't) know better. The guest artist touched on this in that 'owning' I referred to earlier: the students are there to learn, and if they don't know what they should be working on, that is 100% the fault of the teacher. This is why I get on my soapbox...the kids deserve much better, but the only thing the kids can do to change things is go elsewhere, which is what many kids often do.

Currently finalizing my concert programs for the summer, and getting ready for a return trip to NYC. Plus, lots of other work at the symphony. Until next time...

Reunited (and It Feels So Good)...You've Got a Friend

ZOOM again! It's been about a month, and (as usual) there's a ton of catching up to do. Lots of wonderful highlights since last time:

I had my 2 final concerts: the Baseball concert for little ones, and my Strings concert. As I predicted, the Baseball concert was a big success...what I didn't expect was how big of a success it was going to be! Last month, I mentioned that I wished there was a little more Meat & Potatoes in the mix...now, I've gotta say (with a bit of surprise) that it was the most successful of all of my concerts. The orchestra was wonderfully attentive & flexible given that it was a morning Pops concert, the kids chorus did just fine, and the singalongs were fun...the *best* thing about the show, though, was the involvement of several figures from our city's pro baseball team. We had 3 (!) mascots who came out at different times, and the stadium announcer did a fantastic job with Casey at the Bat. These mascots were phenomenal. They came out and (essentially) ad-libbed throughout the 8-minute "Casey," and were brilliant beyond words. One amazing bonus story: About 1 hour after the show was over, all the audience-folk had cleared out, and the mascots were in the Green Room about to take off their costumes, in walks one of the great piano soloists of the world (who had a concert later that evening!) Well, the 'fuzzy' mascot walks right up to him and shakes his hand. "I want him at MY concert" says the pianist! It gets better, though: while this soloist has perfectly groomed hair in his headshots, his hair is much more wild when not in performance...resembling more the hair of this fuzzy mascot! So, the mascot points at his own head, makes a circling gesture, points at the pianists head...then PATS DOWN THE PIANIST'S HAIR! This pianist is also known for his great sense of humor, so it was was all good. It was also one of those once-in-a-lifetime moments where you wish the people that should have cameras would actually have had them...(ugh, that topic will need to wait for my big ol book.)

My last performance of the season was the strings-based program for 1-4 grade. These edu/fam concerts are always a bit of a challenge, because 1) they are at 10am; 2) they often happen many weeks after they are rehearsed; 3) they aren't always taken so seriously. (There are a few more points, but they'll need to wait for that book.) What has been great about this year is that I've tried to improve these concerts on many fronts, and have had a wonderful amount of success! One important thing to me is the *quality* of playing...it don't matter who's in the audience, it's still the Cincy f'n Sym Orch! So, I make it a point to make music with this ensemble any time I'm on the podium, and they've met me halfway. Well, from the first downbeat of the Strings concert, I felt that they were right with me...and they stayed with me the entire program. There couldn't have been a better musical end to the edu season! Alas, that's not the end of the story...I've worked very hard to improve my off-the-cuff mic/radio skills this year, and it's generally been a success. All of the concerts leading up to this one went very smoothly INRE my mic work...this final concert, though, was a DISASTER. DISASTER! It was a nice wake-up call to me, though, to be sure I'm sharp on my spiels for every concert, and to not lose my edge.

Also of note at the symphony was a big ol' luncheon to announce our new season. We had around 1000 long-term subscribers in our ballroom, with a number of presentations. The 'keynote' was a convo between me & the big guy...it's the first public forum discussion with the two of us, but it was a ton of fun. Afterwards, a number of the guests asked why they didn't have the new season brochures at their tables...a very good question! (Which will also need to go in the book...)

It was a long time coming, but I finally got my rear-end back to NYC! It was purely a visiting trip, and it was much needed. One thing that dawned on me recently was that, although I've been diligently reading/following the FB pages of all of my friends (and thus keeping in touch with what they are doing) I haven't actually been *keeping in touch.* So, when I called a few people up, their responses were (understandably) "wow, why are you calling!" Alas, my NYC trip was ninja-quick, so I didn't get to see all the folks I wanted to, but I did get to see a number of them! Seriously, my friends up at the big J are some of the most fantastic, amazing people on the planet. I also saw the 3 boys conduct lab orchestra for JDP's mock audition day (which was one of my favorite lab sessions in my time there) and I saw my 'Bro' conduct his final rehearsal for his 5th Carnegie concert (that got a supersick review in the Times!!) Seriously, youth orchestras aren't supposed to play like that. (Oh, since my 'bro' will read this at some point...this season, I've seen you do 2 concerts and 2 rehearsals over 4 trips...when are ya coming down my way to see some arm waving, huh??? hee hee)

Oh, our fearless leader (OFL) was caught up in a bit of news (which wouldn't have been so bad if it weren't for the police dashboard camera...) I will REALLY need to save any comments for that big ol' book...I can't, however, stifle the funny, so here's a great anecdote: we had a morning concert the day the news came out. Well, OFL was about to come out with the soloist, but he tripped on an ill-placed chair and stumbled. Me & the other asst happened to be sitting opposite the door, so we were one of only a handful of folks that saw it (as it was well offstage.) After the show, I told OFL "Good thing that chair wasn't a few feet further forward!" and he said, "Yes! They would have said, 'SEE! He STILL can't...'"

One of the best young conductors in the country is in town to do a challenging program...I met him for the first (and last) time back in 2001 at a regional round of an ill-fated, one-time conducting competition (where he was the best by far.) First rehearsal was great, and I'm looking forward to the concerts. I'll be heading back to NYC to conduct my first new music premiere this season (which I am very excited about!) I've conducted two other works by this composer, who writes very tricky & intricate material. He's got a vocalist in the mix (another great talent that I have worked with before) so it's going to be a ton of fun.

All for now! Until next time...

Fast living

Yikes. Once again another month flies by...unlike January, though, February was chocked full of action. Honestly, it's too much action to adequately recap in one post, so I'll try to stick to highlights? Problem is that there were a TON of highlights...

I'll start with the work front. Since my last post, I've had 2 rehearsal days and 4 concerts. Rehearsals went well, and the only bumpy concert was the 'return' of the Bugs concert. If you remember, the Bugs concert on Nov. 1 was my first concert in my new job, and it went very smoothly. It was actually a better program this time around (with a merciful cut in the opening number, and adding Firebird as an encore) but it didn't go quite as smoothly the second time around. My two "American" concerts were actually back to back, and only a few weeks removed from the rehearsal...while my Romeo & Juliet-themed concerts were my favorite (and had the best music) I have to say that these American music concerts were the best in overall design, and (now that they are finished) I'm particularly proud of them. My next kiddie concert has a Baseball theme, and while the program I put together last summer fits the bill perfectly, I do wish the concert theme allowed for a least a sliver of musical 'meat & potatoes' (vs the candy that essentially comprises the program.) I know the show is going to be a big hit...looking back, though, I wish there was a way to sneak something more weighty in the show. Without a doubt, though, one of the biggest triumphs of this year was the use of young, talented soloists. It makes a huge difference.

There have also been a number of out-of-town adventures...one was a visit to a major music school that I had never been to before. The school was much more "put together" than I imagined, but with a head conductor that was far worse than the anecdotes I had heard since I was a kid! I say this all the time: the quality of a music school, in the end, is going to hinge on who is conducting the orchestras at the school. Of course, a number of fun adventures were part of the trip, and I even ran into a few familiar faces who were also out-of-town visitors. The latest road trips happened yesterday & today: my bro from anotha mo was called in to take over a concert just 90 minutes from here, so I headed up yesterday to hang out & catch up. Tonight was the concert, so I headed up again with the big Texan to see the concert! The only real problem with the show was that it a unique creation by a, ummmm..."unique" individual, and it's a dirty task to have to jump in and take over a monstrosity with such a specific design. Also, this ensemble is dealing with a whole host of major issues, which only compounds the difficulty. That said, my bro did a great job with the ensemble, and made a distinctly positive impact on the outcome of the show. The added bonus was getting the chance to hang with Big Tex, who I haven't had the chance to hang with in the past few weeks. Quick side note: I *love* my radar detector. Not only did it save me from a guaranteed ticket from a laser-wielding sheriff this evening, but it's GPS function alerted me to all the evil red light cameras in this city.

Also on the docket: two awards shows! I'll deal with the Oscars first. Opening number was very funny. The nominated song medley was fun (esp the Bollywood stuff) but was also lame for this reason: because they insisted that each tune only get 60 seconds of time, Peter Gabriel didn't want to perform. C'mon, you spend so many minutes rambling away on stupid stuff in that show, but you can't give Pete enough time to do at least 1 verse & chorus?? And while I normally like Beyonce (see below) the compilation she did with Jackman was a mess. It wasn't their fault...actually, they performed it very well! The problem was that the arrangement was like a movie that changes frames every two seconds...the songs changed so fast, my head actually started to spin! I was surprised when they announced that the medley was put together by Baz Luhrmann, as I am usually a big fan of his stuff. Hey Baz: Next time, sing at least more than one sentence from each song before you switch, OK?

Now the Grammys. I didn't realize that I never got around to doing a writeup of last years show, because 1) I watched it long after it aired, and 2) it was a pretty ho-hum evening performance-wise. To make up for lost time, here's a quick recap of that 2008 show. There were some great moments: Beyonce (who was impressive as always), the gospel tribute (though Aretha was good, but not great)...some very good moments: Carrie Underwood (whose performance would have been great without the silly "Stomp" percussion accompaniment) and Amy Winehouse (I'm not a big fan, but she was good.) Kanye & Fergie also did well (though Kanye's poor singing performance should have kept him from singing live ever again...which he did on SNL anyways), the reunion of The Time was fun, and the Lang Lang/Hancock 5-minute version of Rhapsody in Blue was also fun (though the backup band was iffy.) The problem was with the number of disappointing or outright bad performances. As much as I love Alicia Keys, her Grammy-winning song is simply unlistenable because she sings so flat throughout the recording (as she did in this live performance as well.) The Foo Fighters were great up until 2000 or so ("Learn To Fly" is one of my favorite rock tunes) but they've replaced singing with shouting/screaming, and it just doesn't work for me. Plus, the "My Grammy Moment" thing was asinine. (For those of you that didn't watch the show, they assembled a young back-up orchestra for the rock group, with the final spot going to one of three finalists who were voted on by the TV audience.) The Beatles/Cirque Du Soleil thing didn't work for me at all, and the old-school rock revival, while great on paper, was a terrible way to end the show. They hyped the 50th anniversary thing so much, but completely failed to deliver on the performance side. The best they could do to honor the past 50 years was that lame & ill-designed rap by Will.I.Am?


In a nutshell, the 2009 show was everything last year's show should have been. I can't remember a Grammys that had so many live performances (the drawback being that there were so few awards given live.) First and foremost, there were no stinkers on the show, and the two weakest performances were still slightly above average: alas, Neil Diamond and Paul McCartney are not very reliable live, and I'm really not interested in hearing Mr. Foo Fighter perform until he starts singing again (see above.) All of the other performances were B+ minimum, so I'll just deal with the wow moments. Having Timberlake paired with Al Green was genius, and the results showed. It's too bad that Boyz II Men were delegated to a backup role (made worse by their low mic levels.) Underwood absolutely threw down on "Last Name" (thankfully without last year's misguided "Stomp" accompaniment.) Hudson then threw down even harder in an emotional rendition of "You Pulled Me Through," and that Sugarland singer can blow as well! Honorable mention goes to Coldplay (who were great but not amazing) and the 4 Tops Tribute (with Jamie Foxx, Ne-Yo, and Smokey!!)



What kicked me in the pants, though, were two performances that I thought I was going to hate, but ended up being spectacular. I already liked Taylor Swift, and I knew Miley had a good voice (when she's not lip syncing, which is my main problem with her) but whould'a thunk I would love a performance of a song about being a teenage girl?? Amazing. Even *more* amazing, though, was the collaboration between Stevie Wonder & The Jonas Brothers. What?? I hadn't looked up who was performing before the broadcast, so my giddy delight in seeing Stevie (woo!) was quickly squelched by the sight of the three chronic lip-syncers. First off, those kiddos need to start performing live more, as they can actually do it, and do it well. It was a real kick to see Stevie 1) throw down on a talkbox for much "Burnin' Up," and 2) actually sing a verse himself! Also, I must say the kids were great on "Superstition," though they all looked like they were trying a bit too hard (though frankly, I would have too if I was a scrawny white teenager performing a funk classic with an R&B legend!) There was one instant karma moment for me: after little Jonas (I don't know their names...) shouted out "let me take this one, Stevie!" he completely bombed on the words. It's a little harder to remember the words when you actually have to sing them, hmmmmm? This also violates one of my long-held corollaries: If you are performing a classic with the legend that made it famous, you've gotta know it. He did redeem himself the rest of the way, though, capped off by a *super-sick* upper harmony he sang with Stevie at the end (I actually hit rewind a few times to make sure my eyes/ears weren't deceiving me!) Dare I say this was my favorite performance of the evening?



Only one disappointment for me in this show. The first time I heard "Swagger Like Us," I thought it was some remix/freestyle compilation that was being played on the radio for fun. Once I realized it was a legit collaboration between 4 of the biggest names in the Rap industry, I knew the Grammy was already in the bag for them. This performance should have been (and probably was expecting to be) the highlight of the show, but it was a little too ragged to meet that threshold. There was no edge to the individual performances, M.I.A.'s token appearance was annoying (as she was lip-syncing the moment the rap track started, but pranced around as if she was actually doing something) and the mic level problems just made it worse. It's a shame, because I've been looking forward to this performance ever since I discovered this was a 'real' track.

I hate leaving this post here, as February was such an action-packed month...but I will. No random musings this time around, other than the need post sooner than April for my next entry. Until next time...

Easy living

A month passes by in a hurry. Especially when things are uneventful. It's the same story I tell folks every year...my Xmas break consists of various things which, while fun to me, are rather mundane in story form. I bounced around various parts of the city, saw the fam, went to different stores, etc etc. The most interesting story comes from New Year's Eve. For the first time in my life, I headed down to Fountain Square in Cincy for the big countdown. It was ridiculously cold, so I lingered inside a local restaurant/bar until 11:57 or so. I headed outside to watch the big screen for the countdown...for most of the evening, they had been showing the ABC NYE show, but now they were only showing an overhead shot of the ice rink on the square (with no clock on the screen.) My inner clock was telling me that something was amiss, so I pulled out my cellphone...it said 12.01 AM. 2009 was already here, and it passed by everyone at Fountain Square. At 12:02, the 4 fireworks cannons on top of the screen went *Poof*. Once. Everyone in the square went "Wooooh! Yeahhhhh!" and then stopped. Is that it? One *poof*, with no countdown, no fireworks show? 4 minutes, later, something pops up on the big screen: 59! 58! 57! 56! 55! etc etc! So, at 12:06am, Cincinnati finally rung in the new year. What followed was a fireworks display that was about 10% the spectacle that usually comes from this company, though I think that was becuase of the big buildings that surround the square (They'll do their usual thing this July 4th at Riverbend!) It was certainly a very unique way to ring in the new year...and will probably be the last new year I celebrate at the square ;)

Now for my usual roundup of New Year's TV performances. Here was the roster:
NBC: Carson Daly
CBS: Letterman
ABC: Dick Clark
Fox: Robbie Knievel
ESPN: Two stunt performers
BET: 106 & Party
CNN: Anderson Cooper
FoxNews: UParty 2009
MTV: Miley Cyrus

My Equipment: 1 VCR, 3 DVRs. So, I have to choose 4 of em. Normally, NBC, ABC, BET, and MTV have the most live performances...however, the ABC & MTV shows always get posted on the internet, and the FoxNews show had some great classic performers in past years, so I dropped ABC & MTV from the roster, expecting to download the shows later. As for the other shows, I figured they either had no live performances, or nothing worth recording. Now, the wrapup:

Fox: Daughtry was AWFUL, as his voice was completely busted. Scott Weiland was quite good, as was David Cook...nothing worthy of adding to my permanent collection, though. Oh, the Knievel stunt was LAME, especially compared to...

ESPN: I actually saw stunt #1 live at the restaurant I was using to keep warm pre-midnight, and I saw #2 on youtube. holycrap those were amazing stunts! #1 was an attempt at the first backflip by a truck. A TRUCK. He almost landed it, too. What makes this more impressive is that he was supposed to do this last year, but he busted his spine practicing it! After months of rehab, he started preparing again, and almost landed the sucker. #2 was a Motorcycle jump on top of a 10-story structure, then jumping back down! He landed both.

CBS: Aired repeats of the Letterman show, so I didn't even bother.

CNN: Invite a d-lister to cohost, and she'll say something worthy of a d-lister.

FoxNews: Their first NYE show was 2 years ago, and I stumbled upon it as they were re-airing it for their west-coast viewers a few hours later. They had a number of big names, and there were some surprisingly good performances. Alas, the 2009 show consisted of small-name artists (who were good, though) and a d-list funk cover band (who were hit & miss.)

MTV: UGH. MTV redefined how NYE shows worked in the early 90's. They jumped the shark last year by centering their show around a reality skank. They have officially left the planet (and conceded defeat) by aiming squarely for the tweeny demographic. Miley is a talented performer (as are the various EMO groups that performed with her) but the 'hip' days of MTV are officially over.

BET: This was my favorite show by far two years ago. Last year consisted mostly of monotone rappers, with the king of dump rap being given the honor of appearing at midnight. This year was better than last, though the only great performer was Jazmine Sullivan (singing Need U Bad and Bust Your Windows.)

NBC: Katy Perry was meh (yes Katy, we know you liked kissing a girl), the girl from the group the Ting Tings (who??) must have given Carson some sort of "favor" in order to get live airtime for that inane song, Ludacris was great as always, and even TI did pretty well.

ABC: It's Deja Vu all over again (again!) as we had Fergie, Natasha Bedingfield, Taylor Swift, and the Jonas Bros returning to the NYE show. I love Bedingfield, but ABC needs to bring in different folks. Oh, how was 2009 Lionel Richie's first time performing in Times Square for NYE?? He actually did quite well.

So, nothing to write home about from the different TV specials...I think NBC edges out the competition in terms of musical performances, but (amazingly) I'd have to give the win to ESPN this year. Who knew?

The Cincy Symphony season got underway shortly after the New Year, and we are wrapping up our 3rd concert weekend this evening. We have concerts every weekend from now until April, so it will be an active 2009. One of the most AMAZING UFC cards in ages occurred in December 2008, but was followed by one of the more underwhelming cards just last weekend. Unfortunately, the nature of the sport is hit & miss in this regard. I'm in full swing preparing for my edu, family, summer, and July 4th concerts coming up over the next several months.

That's all for now. Until next time...