Our rehearsal this week cannot be accommodated at TMH, and so this will be our first week to rehearse at Port Chester Middle School. Please follow the link for directions. The link is also included on the Rehearsal This Week page. When you come in the building, follow your nose (and ears) to the stage — that’s where we will be rehearsing. Please use the front rows of the auditorium to store coats and cases, as the stage will fill up quickly.

Tony Mazzocchi and I discussed last Monday’s rehearsal and decided that we will forgo including him on November 4, but he will be with us for the dress rehearsal on November 9. This will allow us to give Rich more time with the Marquez.

Although they are posted on the Resources & Forms page of this site, here are the links to the flyers for the November 10 Fall Concert and November 21 Side by Side Concert. Please download, print, share, plaster, and distribute freely! And keep those business cards in your pocket for easy distribution as well.

• 2013-2014 WSW Brochure
• Fall poster – press quality for printing
• Fall poster – web quality for sharing
• Mahopac poster – press quality for printing
• Mahopac poster – web quality for sharing

I’m still going to try to write up some rehearsal notes from last Monday’s rehearsal. I’m sending this out now so you’re aware of the rehearsal plan, and can start to look at the directions to Port Chester.

Things are moving forward. I’ve updated the Rehearsal This Week page with the plan for October 28. Our guests – Anthony, our trombone soloist, and Rich, our guest conductor — arrive for their first rehearsals with us on Monday. There are only two rehearsals remaining before the dress rehearsal.  We must be ready to pull the latter 5 movements of the Avshalomov together this Monday. And we must find a way to create integrity of rhythm and articulation in the second movement of the Sullivan.

Please continue your weekly practice to prepare for Monday. I’ll see you then!

Thank you for another excellent rehearsal this past Monday. I’ve updated the Rehearsal This Week page with the plan for October 21. We have only three rehearsals remaining before the dress rehearsal. Please keep in mind these variations in regard to two of our remaining rehearsals before the concert:

• Monday, November 4 – rehearsal at Port Chester Middle School, 7:30-9:45 pm. TMH is not available on November 4. We no longer have our connection at Pelham. Jim Savage has worked tirelessly to help us connect with the Port Chester schools, and he has succeeded in securing the Middle School in Port Chester as our alternate rehearsal site. We will discuss directions, parking, etc. over the next two weeks.
• Saturday, November 9 – dress rehearsal at TMH, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm (as published this summer). TMH could not guarantee us the usual Wednesday evening dress rehearsal, so we took the Saturday morning time as a guaranteed rehearsal time. Last year, this Saturday dress rehearsal was a necessity because of Hurricane Sandy. This year, we won’t have such a marathon session, but we are still looking forward to a great dress rehearsal on the day before the concert.

Some quick notes on the music:

• Avshalomov – As I discussed, by big concern at this point is streamlining the transitions between all these movements. Everyone must anticipate the changes (including audiating the next tempo) and physical set ups to make each transition as smooth as possible. The next rehearsal will focus on movements I-V, and the next rehearsal will focus on VI-X.
• Whitacre – We now need to take all this technical challenges and programatic sounds and weave them into one solid, unrestrained unit. Our goal is to create an image in sound which the audience cannot miss.
• Marquez – We’ll have one more rehearsal before Rick Guillen takes over this piece. Tempo at the beginning is a big concern. I am trying to take responsibility for it, but if we can’t maintain it as a collaborative effort, we’re in trouble when the guest conductor takes over. I’m moving it out of slot #1 in the next rehearsal, hoping that this may have a positive impact on locking in the tempo at the beginning. Keep thinking about the conversation which is inherent in the piece, and work to build the energy throughout the piece through to the end.
• Sullivan – Keep focusing on tackling and conquering the technical demands, so you can then “let go” and let the piece truly sparkle.

Reminders:

• The Mahopac Side by Side concert is officially moved to Thursday, November 21. Call time will be 4:00 pm. The first rehearsal after the concert on November 18 will be devoted to the final preparations for that performance.
• Ads are due this Monday, October 21. Please be sure to bring a completed ad form with each ad. I need one ad form for each ad. Anything short of that (including sending an email instead of submitting an ad form) creates a risk that I will screw up. And we don’t want that. I base the program on the ad form papers. Thanks for helping me with this. (You can download additional forms from the Resources Page.)

Lastly, if you are free Friday evening, Mallory Thompson is conducting the first Northwestern University SWE concert at 8:30 pm EDT. The program includes the Artunian Trumpet Concerto, which we are performing in February with Bill Owens. Go to: www.pickstaiger.org/webcasts to see/hear the concert.

Have a great weekend. Practice diligently. See you Monday.