I recently had the opportunity to meet with leaders of several arts groups in Seattle. One was Gus Denhard, executive director of Seattle's Early Music Guild. In the course of the conversation, he told me about a fundraiser his organization has been involved in. Ordinarily, I am not enthusiastic about fundraisers as community engagement activities since they usually simply involve giving a portion of an event's proceeds to some worthy cause with … [Read more...]
40 Years Engaged
Sunday's New York Times article on the Kronos Quartet reminded me of one early step on the beginning of my pilgrimage as a community engagement advocate. (Kronos Quartet's 40-Year Adventure) Over 35 years ago, I had coffee with David Harrington in a small café across the street from the Eastman Theatre. I was a doctoral student at Eastman and the Quartet was doing a residency at the school. I had been blown away by a concert of theirs (some … [Read more...]
Why We Do It
I love Chicago. I love jazz. I love jazz clubs in Chicago; and one of my favorites is Andy's, a place my wife and I discovered because it has a show that begins before my bedtime. (Being a jazz lover and not being a night owl creates some real challenges for me.) We were recently in the Windy City and had the pleasure of hearing saxophonist Jimmy Ellis's quartet. (Click here for an article about him.) Mr. Ellis is in his 80's and is a legend in … [Read more...]
Can You Feel the Love?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=R0Fpl67p5qk A while ago I ran into this video clip. (Forgive me, I can't remember where. Facebook I imagine.) In the midst of some fairly heavy-duty posts, I thought now might be a good time to share it. The original source for me was http://twentytwowords.com/2013/01/11/choir-of-old-men-break-out-in-song-while-hanging-out-at-tim-hortons/, where we are told: After practice on Mondays, … [Read more...]
Engaging with Palestrina
So, I was sitting there, behaving (as well as I generally can), when a sentence leapt out of my mouth unbidden. The occasion was a grant review panel, the subject was a chamber choir requesting funds to present a concert of music by Palestrina, and the precipitating topic was a discussion of the group’s response to the question about the public benefit of the activity. As is typical (and totally understandable given the state of the arts industry … [Read more...]
Citizen Musician Initiative
EM's List Member Citizen Musicians [This post is by EM's List Editor/Curator, Stephanie Moore] Citizen Musician Initiative: Chicago Symphony Orchestra Who are Citizen Musicians? Musicians from the concert hall to the living room utilizing their talent and passion to improve the quality of life in their community: this idea is the guiding principle behind the Citizen Musician Initiative. Led by Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant … [Read more...]
Change
Given my background in the "classical" music world, I have been for some time an admirer of Greg Sandow's blog, Sandow, although I will confess that I have not subscribed to it. That has changed. Mr. Sandow is in the middle of a series of posts addressing the need for transformation in the music industry that, in spite of the fact that I have been saying many of the same things here, I could not have said better myself. I try (unsuccessfully) … [Read more...]