We’ve learned that ConEd has disconnected all sources of heat at the Music Hall while doing construction up the street. There will be limited heat for rehearsal tonight. Marge and I just visited TMH and it was a balmy 65 degrees inside at 4:00 pm. We also spoke to the ConEd workers themselves, who said they HOPE to have heat restored by 7:00 pm. But it’s not something we can count on.
Please prepare for rehearsal with extra layers and heavier shoes if you’re able to go home after work. If you have a spare lap blanket, hat, or fingerless gloves that you can bring to share with someone, please do. If conditions are dreadful, we won’t take a break and I’ll end early.
Please come with an open mind and a warm heart! And pray that this does not extend til Wednesday!
The last Winter Concert we produced was February 9, 2020 – four years ago! So this coming week is pretty special on many fronts. We have our final rehearsal on Monday night at 7:30 pm (including both soloists), then the dress rehearsal is Wednesday at 7:30 pm. Call is 12:00 pm on Sunday, concert downbeat is 2:00 pm.
Rather than emailing them, I’ll simply give notes regarding the Tull rehearsal last week. Please be ready with pencils to mark your parts.
Friends & Family tickets are still available in person from Marge ($10) or from the TMH Box Office ($15, including Box Office fees if you use the coupon code distributed to members). Help us bring in a great audience!
After the concert, our next rehearsal is Monday, February 27 at TMH at 7:30 pm. We will read through the Spring Concert that evening.
Rossi clarinet for sale
See below for a message from Jenn Dashnaw, our clarinet soloist from November 2019 (and Rich’s sister). She’s selling her Rossi clarinet.
Luis Rossi Bb clarinet. Serial #: A1189 (2014). Boehm system/American model/silver plated. Adjustable thumb rest. Comes with 2 barrels & Rossi hard case. Contact Jenn at jdmooclar@gmail.com.
This week: news about our rehearsal on Monday, our concert, inspirational recordings, and a tour of the Grainger House. And — Happy Birthday today to Gerould McCoy!
Rehearsal on Monday evening
We return to TMH this week, and all of our remaining rehearsals/dress rehearsal and concert will be held there. This is a big program, requiring your best musicianship and stamina, and we’re down to the final two Monday rehearsals.
I’ve posted the rehearsal plan for Monday. Our guest conductor, David Blumenthal, will be on hand for his working rehearsal of the Dunton. Jessica will also have her final working rehearsal of the Standridge. We need to include a run-through of the Navarro (keep in mind it’s our opener) and the Tull (to gather all the past week’s work into a cohesive whole). We’ve been working intensely on the Thomas for many weeks; we’ll put that to the side this week and return to it next week on February 6, before the dress on February 8.
Concert on February 12
Click here for our listing in Westchester Magazine. Our press release has gone out to 100+ local media outlets!
Remember this is a 12:00 pm sound check/2:00 pm concert (because of the Super Bowl). Pick up Friends & Family tickets ($10) at rehearsal on Monday. They are also available on the Box Office concert site for an additional $5 convenience fee; use the coupon code shared in the separate email to unlock the discounted tickets. If you are a music educator, remember that you can request free tickets for your school group. Please share info about the concert –including the Box Office page — with friends, family, and neighbors, post the flyers we printed for this purpose, and bring in the audience!
I’m very grateful to Rebecca Weissman for her amazing talents with marketing our concerts, and to my former student Greg Governale, who continues to spearhead our publicity distribution from his home in New Jersey. Let’s pack the Music Hall once again as we did in November!
Lift Every Voice and Sing
If you haven’t yet, please listen to these recordings to help us prepare for our most authentic performance of our concert finale, Of Our New Day Begun.
Click below to hear the powerful recording of Lift Every Voice and Sing that Andrew Hill described in rehearsal this past week.
And click here to listen to the Bear Mountain Brass recording of the same hymn. Many of our members are part of this ensemble, which includes Ben Acrish, Stan Serafin, Chris Larsen, Chris Carbone, Michael Lucke and David Church. (Also in the band are Austin Day and John Hahn, who have subbed with us, and Uma Karkala.)
The Grainger House has invited me to lead the inaugural house tour in their new Third Sundays program. Because this is specifically geared toward conductors and music educators, I’m hoping it will be especially enjoyable for any of you who’d like to attend. This is scheduled for Sunday, February 19 at 2:00 pm. The tour is free, but registration is encouraged. The house is quirky and full of history, intrigue, and surprises. As I move closer toward actually retiring (insert laugh track here), I hope to spend more time volunteering at the Grainger House, especially since I live within walking distance and conduct the closest world-class wind ensemble to Grainger’s home.
We had an incredibly successful ticket sale for the concert in November. We now have the challenge to meet or exceed that ticket sale next month. You can obtain Friends & Family discounted tickets one of two ways:
Purchase F&F tickets at one of the remaining rehearsals for $10 each from Marge Hone. Cash, checks payable to WSW, and plastic accepted. Advantage: $10 is our best available ticket price.
Purchase F&F tickets directly from our TMH Box Office concert page. Enter the Winter Concert coupon code (sent in a separate email) to unlock the F&F discounted tickets for $15 each (price includes the $5 box office handling fee). Advantage: You can share the box office URL, discounted rate, and coupon code with friends and family without having to be the go-between.
Amazon Smile program ends February 20
We learned this past week that the donation program from Amazon Smile will end on February 20. We’ve received several hundred dollars in donations from Amazon since we joined the program, so it’s a bummer this is ending. If you selected WSW as your Amazon Smile designee, please make any applicable purchases by February 20, so we benefit from the resulting final donation. After that date, there’s no more free money.
Hear Andrew Hill’s recording
Click below to hear the powerful recording of Lift Up Your Voice and Sing that he described in rehearsal this past week. Thanks for sharing, Andrew!
