{"id":640,"date":"2008-07-11T18:17:03","date_gmt":"2008-07-11T18:17:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kennethwoods.net\/blog1\/2008\/07\/11\/cheesehead-intermezzo\/"},"modified":"2008-07-11T18:17:03","modified_gmt":"2008-07-11T18:17:03","slug":"cheesehead-intermezzo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kennethwoods.net\/blog1\/2008\/07\/11\/cheesehead-intermezzo\/","title":{"rendered":"Cheesehead Intermezzo"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m sorry for the lack of new content here this week- I\u2019ve been in my hometown of <\/span>Madison<\/span>, <\/span>Wisconsin<\/span> for a few days, and there has been a lot of sentimental favorite beers and coffees that had to be consumed, as well old friends and family to visit.<\/span><\/p>\n

Musically, <\/span>Madison<\/span> was once a hidden treasure. I had grown up listening to and learning from some of the best musicians I\u2019d ever seen, and would go out into the world and mention their names and colleagues would look at me with blank incomprehension. No more- If Madison was once a buried treasure, it is now a magnet. I\u2019ve seen old friends and colleagues here from festivals and conservatories all over the country who are now living and working here, and long-time <\/span>Madison<\/span> mainstays have been making the rounds of distinguished festivals everywhere. I\u2019m glad to see it, but I slightly feel like my secret favorite movie has just become trendy. <\/span><\/p>\n

It was sad to say goodbye to Round Top after such a short visit. There were a lot of new faces on the faculty, and I was just getting to know my colleagues by the time we had to go. Happily, I\u2019ll be back next year and will hopefully have some more time to socialize. There was also not much time to get to know the students individually as much as I would have liked- Round Top has always been a place where the real social action happens after <\/span>10 PM<\/span>, which is tough with a new born.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Musically, it was fun and an interesting week. All four pieces were of 20th<\/sup>\/21st<\/sup> century origin, and spanned quite a range of styles, from the ferocity of <\/span>Varese<\/span>, to the Haydn-esque perfection of technique of the Copland, to the pastoral calm and oriental wit of the Higdon to the timeless sadness of the Barber. The Copland is a piece I never listen to anymore, so it had been a few years since I\u2019d thought about it (I think I last conducted it in November of 05, which would have been about the last time I heard it). I came away from the concert more in awe of it than ever- it is so perfectly put together, so deeply moving and so ferociously challenging. <\/span>America<\/span> has produced a lot of great music (and Copland produced a lot of that), but Appalachian Spring may be the great work of American music. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Tim played wonderfully on the Higdon, which I really enjoyed working on. There is one really, really tough passage for the 1sts late in the piece. High, exposed, physically awkward and in terrible keys\u2026 To their credit, the players really threw themselves into it, and practiced it at every break. However, it did take some persuading to convince them of the efficacy of practicing a passage like that VERY slowly. Just for the record and for those of you taking auditions- practicing in whole notes wins jobs.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Tomorrow it\u2019s back on another plane (our journey from <\/span>Texas<\/span> was a predictable litany of horrors) and on to <\/span>Oregon<\/span> for the OES camp and the Rose City International Conductor\u2019s Workshop. I was reminded Wednesday when I tried to get 3 conductors in the same coffee house at the same time and totally failed that conductors, particularly young ones, do not seem to follow instructions very well. That\u2019s good to remember before starting the workshop- I kind of have to deal with my younger colleagues as a group of young geniuses who follow instructions (particularly non-musical instructions) at more or less the first grade level. Sorry folks\u2026\u2026 Just been my experience\u2026. I\u2019m guilty too\u2026.. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n