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November Pontificating

by | Nov 14, 2006 | A view from the podium

Some random pontifications taken from recent podium chats…. On Scott Joplin- The history of 20th Century popular culture is really the history of American popular music, and the history of American popular music is really the history of black music. The musics that...

Listen harder

by | Nov 10, 2006 | A view from the podium

Endurance sessions of comparative listening are not for everyone’s taste, but, aided by sufficient quantities of libations and good company, it can be great fun, and certainly illuminating. It’s easy to fall into the trap of taste-testing, listening to a few cool bits...

Halftime show part II

by | Nov 2, 2006 | A view from the podium

In part two of my halftime show, I want to have a quick look at some of the repertoire I’ve been working on since the season got started.                                                                                                     Popular as a few of his works...

Ormandy on Sibelius

by | Nov 2, 2006 | A view from the podium

Eugene Ormandy talks about Sibelius Meeting Sibelius for the first time, I had the impression of being in the presence of someone almost superhuman.  Here was a being I had admired and looked up to all my life — and suddenly I was in his presence.  He was a...

Crumb

by | Nov 1, 2006 | A view from the podium

Funny that Roger Bourland at Red Black Window would write about Crumb’s graphic scores at more or less the same time I was talking about score marking, including re-baring some experimentally notated 20th c. works to facilitate performance  I’ve done a...

The halftime show

by | Nov 1, 2006 | A view from the podium, Performing Life

Normally half-time means you get a break, but the looming renewal of my work visa in the UK (fun, fun) completely killed off my modest three free days last week, and now I am back in the maelstrom after a slightly-more-tiring-than-usual flight over to the US....

The future in Philly

by | Oct 31, 2006 | A view from the podium, Music and Media

An interesting follow-up, one of what I assume will be hundreds, as the Philadelphia Orchestra begin looking to the future.  I don’t know Eschenbach’s work there at all, and wouldn’t comment on it anyway, but I do think music director search issue is...

Score Marking

by | Oct 31, 2006 | A view from the podium, Nuts and bolts

I thought I might wade in and try to slightly de-mystify the question of score marking by conductors. Orchestral players and audiences alike can often be quite overwhelmed by, and even suspicious of, the complex systems of red and blue, circles, highlights and so on...

Nottingham Philharmonic: Review

by | Oct 29, 2006 | A view from the podium

From the Nottingham Evening Post   NOTTINGHAM PHILHARMONIC    Albert Hall -Peter Palmer  The Nottingham Philharmonic have long been an orchestra to be reckoned with, but on Saturday there were signs that American guest conductor Kenneth Woods could give a new...

Audio goodies

by | Oct 27, 2006 | A view from the podium

There are few new audio items spread around my website, including the mock mini metal-opera “Mr. Potatohead” and the Berio Serenata for Flute and 14 Instruments. I can’t imagine anyone has ever put those two works in the same sentence before....