Gal on Gal

by | Oct 14, 2008 | A view from the podium

As we prepare for the UK Premiere of Hans Gál’s Violin Concerto, op 39 (written in 1933!) I thought I would be worth sharing some of Gál’s own thoughts on the concerto. I would not hesitate to speculate that his was probably the most musically thoughtful article ever...

Never attempt to eat lunch

by | Oct 13, 2008 | A view from the podium

It was a short and restless night before CONCERT DAY ONE. Sam did well with jetlag over the summer, but it’s really hit him this week, which means he wants to go to bed most days at 3 PM and wake up at 2 AM. Still, that gives me 2 hours of peace between Rainbow and...

Krugman wins Nobel

by | Oct 13, 2008 | A view from the podium

In a rare sign that sanity (at least pockets of sanity) does still exist in the world, New York Times contributor Paul Krugman has won the Nobel Prize for Economics.    Paul Krugman is one of two political writers that I read pretty religiously (the other is Salon’s...

Conducting through a mental Bloch

by | Oct 11, 2008 | A view from the podium

Tonight’s rehearsal promises plenty of challenges, but others await that I have not foreseen. Our work in the first rehearsal on Thursday had convinced me that we needed a lot more time on the Bloch. Fortunately, we don’t have to stick with a pre-announced rehearsal...

Quotes of the week

by | Oct 11, 2008 | A view from the podium

The first quote of the week is paraphrased to protect the identity and location of the speaker…. “She’s been playing in two orchestras. The first one’s claim to fame is that they were founded one year before the oldest professional orchestra in the country and, having...

A long march to the starting line

by | Oct 10, 2008 | A view from the podium

Friday Schedule- 10AM Rehearse Schubert and Tchaikovsky with Suzanne, Adam, David and Parry 12 Noon Rehearse Beethoven op 18 no 1 with Adam, Suzanne and David 1 PM Lunch 2 PM Meet with Christina to finalize press release announcing my departure 3-5 PM String Sectional...

Big news and big noise

by | Oct 10, 2008 | A view from the podium

7:05 and it is time to begin. Starting rehearsals at 7:05 has been a masterstroke of planning for us, as it has cut down late arrivals enormously, but finishing at 9:35 has been more problematic. Funny that the very musician who always remembers they have that extra...

A busy and fateful day with the OES

by | Oct 9, 2008 | A view from the podium

Acknowledging the dichotomy between real time and blog time, I’ll begin by admitting I’m back in Cardiff after all the excitement and brouhaha of the week in Pendleton, but rather than starting with the end, or even cutting to the chase with thoughts about my...

Oregon East Symphony Press Release-

by | Oct 4, 2008 | A view from the podium

October 3, 2008 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Pendleton – The Oregon East Symphony regrets to announce that Kenneth Woods, will be stepping down as the orchestra’s Conductor and Music Director at the end of this season. Woods made his announcement at a Board of Directors...

Rare pieces and bad publishers….

by | Oct 1, 2008 | A view from the podium

I’m sorry that this blog has been so quiet of late. It turns out there is such a thing as “too busy,” something that I always thought of as more of a state of mind than a state of reality…. It is a quirk of this time of year that not only do I have a lot of concerts...