Category - Uncategorized

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Minnesota nasty
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Didn’t work
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Norman thinks it’s “The Rulebook”
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Dumb s**t conductors say
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10,000 lakes, one fish, and no settlements
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On the fungibility of musicians
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Musicians as managers
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On governance
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Tears, Elf Kings, and Michael Jackson
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Ruggiero Ricci: A Tribute

Minnesota nasty

Minnesotans are known for being averse to conflict, generous to arts and educational groups of all kinds, and generally plain-spoken (unless, of course, such speaking would lead to conflict). So, on top of the ongoing Minnesota Orchestra lock-out, this comes as a shock, even if not a surprise: The Twin Cities’ distinctive status in the[…]

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Didn’t work

The Los Angeles Philharmonic has pulled the plug on its attempt to emulate the Metropolitan Opera’s successful series of live broadcasts to movie theaters: When the Los Angeles Philharmonic launched its series of live broadcasts to cinemas in 2011, the organization touted it as an innovative program intended to broaden the popular reach of the[…]

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Norman thinks it’s “The Rulebook”

In a post rife with reader comments, Norman Lebrecht thinks the top European conductors are shunning American orchestras because of the current wave of strikes, or because they don’t like rules, or… something: Stumbling into the new season, Minnesota has become the third orchestra to lock out its musicians, after Atlanta and Indianapolis. In San[…]

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Dumb s**t conductors say

Leonard Slatkin has been guilty of cluelessness in public again (a previous example can be found here). He’s actually quite reminiscent of a certain candidate for President currently out on the hustings; he goes along saying quite sensible stuff and then runs completely off the rails and reveals his true beliefs: …Relations between the musicians[…]

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10,000 lakes, one fish, and no settlements

And not a lot of truth from employers in the Land of the North Star either, it seems: Musicians for the Minnesota Orchestra say management is threatening to lock them out at midnight Sunday unless there is a contract agreement by then. Orchestra musicians say they will vote on a management contract proposal on Saturday.

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On the fungibility of musicians

One of the uglier memes being spread by the proponents of the Great Attempted Orchestral Downsizing of 2012 is that cutting the pay of musicians won’t damage the quality of the orchestra because everyone is replaceable. A recent post by Chicago lawyer Kevin Moen summarizes it perfectly: Perhaps most disturbing, however, is the response from[…]

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Musicians as managers

My orchestra managed to startle a fair number of people the other day: In a surprising development, principal trumpeter Mark Niehaus has been named the new president and executive director of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, the MSO announced Wednesday. Niehaus succeeds MaryEllen Gleason, who has resigned after two seasons as the MSO’s executive to pursue[…]

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On governance

Recent news about the negotiations in Atlanta, St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Indianapolis have caused a great deal of discussion amongst orchestra musicians. Some online discussion got me to thinking about the role of governance in all of this, and how at least three of these situations are directly related to governance issues and misconceptions.

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Ruggiero Ricci: A Tribute

By Tony Woodcock The great American violinist Ruggiero Ricci died this week at the age of 94.  I had the great privilege of seeing Ricci perform many times and of working with him on countless occasions. The first time I saw him live I was a boy of 14 with very “sophisticated” tastes.  His programme,[…]

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