What an impactful performance!
I really don’t know how to say thank you to you all for the dedication, individual work, and creative collaboration that made last night possible. Most music directors in a capacity like mine hope for one such pinnacle performance during their career. I recognize that I have been so lucky to experience multiple performances that match that criteria — and for that I am so grateful to you.
I wish I could have taken a photo of your faces at the end of the symphony — there was a great deal of joy mixed with disbelief and that “shell-shocked” look. Priceless. The first half of the program was also performed at such a high level — the Milburn and Sousa never sounded better! MaryKay’s selections really connected with the audience in such an authentic way. The Colonel’s presence, experience, and leadership were also in clear evidence.
Moving on to Hackley
I don’t know how to move upward from here . . . expect to literally move us all upward, up the hill to The Hackley School. You’ll find the entrance at 293 Benedict Avenue, Tarrytown. Our June schedule looks like this, with the first three Caramoor rehearsals at UUFNW and New Rochelle, and the final two rehearsals and dress at Hackley.
Here are a few photos to help connect you with our new home. You can also take a virtual tour of campus. Find Diller Hall in the Allen Center (second “i” from the left), and the All-Purpose Room in the Lower School (central “i’s” at the top). Once on the tour screen, click Locations at the bottom to move to major locations.
When patrons enter, the first thing they encounter is this massive, glass-enclosed staircase, which takes them up to the second and third rings. The lobby has plenty of room for ticket sales and processing. We can also set up pre- and post-concert events here in the lobby.
This is the view from the rear of audience left on the main floor The beautiful wood trim on the seats matches the natural wood on the concert hall floor. This is definitely built as a concert hall, not a theatrical space, which will suit our ensemble well. The acoustic curtains on the each level can be adjusted as necessary. And the seats are very, very comfortable!
This is the hall from the perspective of the players on stage. The capacity is 550, which means we will fill this hall much more easily than the 800+ seat Music Hall. The full tech resources of light & sound will be available to us, staffed by Diller personnel. We will, however, need to hire a front-of-house manager and look for our own volunteer ushers. We plan to rehearse here on June 22. For this rehearsal only, we’ll use “hand-carry” percussion (as we did at Knights of Columbus) because our percussion will be stored in the Lower School. We expect to have help from the Hackley Facilities team to move the percussion equipment back & forth between the APR and the Diller stage. For the performances, we’ll use Diller chairs and stands.
This is the All-Purpose Room in the Lower School. It is the site of our regular Monday rehearsals. The yellow tape divides the room in half — we believe there is more than enough room for the full ensemble. We will use Hackley chairs. For now, plan to bring your own music stand (which could be either the WSW you took home after the concert, or your own folding stand, whichever is easier).
This is another shot of the All-Purpose room, looking down the long side. Percussion will have to be stored in the basement, but no more carrying items up stairs — there is an elevator! Note that this room is on the second floor, so we’ll want to use the stairs adjacent to the room to allow the percussion exclusive use of the elevator. There is plenty of parking immediately adjacent to this building (outside the windows on the right side of the building in this photo.)
Caramoor on July 4
Our repertoire for Caramoor includes:
| Title | Composer first | Composer last | Arranger first | Arranger last |
| The Star-Spangled Banner | John Stafford | Smith | John | Williams |
| WSW American Overture | Barton | Green | ||
| The White Rose | John Philip | Sousa | Keith | Brion |
| An American Elegy | Frank | Ticheli | ||
| The House I Live In | Earl | Robinson | Matt | Podd |
| Over the Rainbow | Harlold | Arlen | SGM Douglas | Richard |
| God Bless America | Irving | Berlin | TBA | |
| 1812 Overture | Peter I. | Tchaikovsky | Mayhew L. | Lake |
| The Stars and Stripes Forever | John Philip | Sousa | Keith Brion & Loras | Schissel |
The new works (SSB/Williams, Green, and Ticheli) will have their own heavy-lifting, but as you can see, there are a number of reprises that will help lighten the load. I’ll advise everyone by post when the Caramoor parts are ready for distribution and download, hopefully within the week.
Thank you once again! Happy Mother’s Day to all!