I hope everyone had a nice 3 week break. We’re rehearsing again on Monday, and the rehearsal plan is posted.

We had a wrinkle develop last week at TMH when we learned that the administration there planned to move all of our equipment back and forth from the underpass storage area to the Annex six times between now and September, at our expense. This was because of dance ensemble programs in June, and the need for that underpass area for costume changes. Our only other choice was to ask you — the members — to make these moves. I politely said, “No thank you.” But it seemed prudent to reduce the number of moves to conserve funds and also reduce wear/tear on our equipment.

So we contacted New Rochelle High School and we have a tentative approval to move rehearsals there on June 4 & 11, eliminating 2 of the 6 equipment moves, and several hundred dollars. But, by end of business Friday, we did not yet have an iron-clad commitment from New Rochelle. We’re hoping and expecting it on Monday, but we need a Plan B. Therefore:

• The pre-rehearsal Board meeting tomorrow is postponed to next Monday, June 11.
• Plan A rehearsal site is New Rochelle High School, starting at 7:30 pm. Park/enter as we’ve done before.
• Plan B rehearsal site is Temple Kol Ami in White Plains, beginning with access to the chapel at 7:30 pm for setup, and ending by 9:15 pm so we can reset the room and clear the space by 9:30 pm. Percussion – please bring drum set and whatever small personal percussion is possible.

We will confirm the final site on Monday by both email and phone text message. In the meantime, please contact your section leader/principal to acknowledge you’ve read this post and are ready for New Rochelle or Kol Ami for Monday, until we send final news.

We’ll be in touch again on Monday to confirm the final rehearsal site, at noted. Thanks for your flexibility, attention, and response!

I held off sending this note of thanks because 1) I thought you deserved a full week without an email from me, 2) I was really tired, and 3) I wanted to wait to be able to include the link to the 30th Anniversary video which Gina & Stan produced. You’ll find that link below.

Congratulations to everyone! May 12’s concert was a win/win in every way. I am so very, very proud of your diligence, focus, concentration, and musicianship. We tackled a substantial program with lots of guests (weren’t they all wonderful?!?!?) and considerable musical challenges. We had a great house, we sold 30 conducting raffle tickets, earning $1500 for the group, gave Russ Ebersole a conducting debut for the record books, earned recognition with a wide array of political figures, plus ArtsWestchester and Caramoor, and brought musical joy to a whole lot of people on a wonderful Saturday evening.

Shelley, Tom, Lois, and Jack all had high praise for the ensemble. And Barry Ould, the President of the International Percy Grainger Society, who Jack and I met on the morning of the concert, was visibly elated by the performance of Lincolnshire Posy. It doesn’t get much better than that!

Thank you so very much for the beautiful silver plate; it’s already found a home, displayed on the bookshelf in our living room. Special thanks go to Barton Green, Rachel Eckhaus, Gina Serafin, Stan Serafin, Marianne Lepre-Nolan, and Dan Harrison for all their work as members of the 30th Anniversary Gala Committee. Thank you to Dan Chiplock for underwriting the reception bar. Thank you to the band directors in the group who brought the additional music stands needed at the concert: Ben Acrish, Joe Bergamini, Erin Dawson,Elliot Semel, Marc Tartell, and Amy Wilcox. Thank you to the Board, with extra special thanks to David Church. Thank you to those of you who made financial contributions, bought raffle tickets, and contributed to the GoFundMe campaign. But all of you, in one way or another, made special contributions to make this a truly memorable event.

Remember that we meet next on Monday, June 4 to start to prepare for the Caramoor Fourth of July concert. We’ve already had a reading rehearsal, so we will start to dig in that evening. As usual, I will post the rehearsal order so you can prepare.

See below for the 30th Gala video. Feel free to share — it’s not only a great retrospective to honor this milestone, but it’s also a great promo video as well!

PS – See the email, sent separately, regarding the Rye Town Community Band. They are seeking additional players for their Saturday, June 16 concert.

Here we go! Here’s a reminder for the schedule for tomorrow night:

• 4:00 pm – TMH opens for setup. Shels/risers will be in place. Percussion and stands/chairs will be on stage, but we must place them.
• 5:00 pm – antiphonal brass rehearsal
• 5:30 pm – full sound check. Note early call time!
• 8:00 pm – performance
• Reception on stage after concert.

Parking – Leave plenty of extra time. Saturday night in Tarrytown, you know.

Jack’s published parts – Please take 5 minutes to proof his published parts, and bring them with you tomorrow. We need 100% of them returned!

K-kov sound check – I was not clear on Wednesday. We will run the section of the piece involving the antiphonal brass, but we will not run the entire piece at the 5:30 pm sound check. There’s no point. I think if we start a m.223 (oboe solo), we’ll give them enough of a running start to remember about how much time remains until their first entrance.

Jack’s video: Here is the link to the video montage that Jack mentioned accompanies Prayers for a Troubled Nation on the publisher’s website. It’s definitely worth the 6 minute viewing.

See you tomorrow!

This is a big week coming up. Remember that we have a final working rehearsal on Monday, and dress rehearsal on Wednesday. Shelley, Tom, Lois, and Jack will be with us on Wednesday. Please review the rehearsal schedule posted.

From Band Director Curt

Recognizing that we all have lives, families, car breakdowns, tooth extractions, etc., it is still critically important to start on time at 7:30 pm. It’s been embarrassing for me over the last several weeks to have so many players arriving after the guest conductor has begun his/her work. We’ve also had players who arrive in plenty of time, but are distracted by their phones until the very last minute. Without warming up properly, we end up with a poor first 30 minutes. We can’t afford that. And I can’t end at 9:45 if we don’t start at 7:30 in full force. The only way we have come this far over 30 years is by maintaining standards, and I must remind everyone that starting on time is not only efficient, but respectful. #growl #lovingsmile

From TED Talk Curt

We have a lot of work before us this week. There are — as usual, I will admit — a lot of moving parts to this important anniversary program.
Bring your best selves.
Be present.
Take risks.
Make your best contributions.

The program book is extra long — 32 pages. Even by editing the four guest bios, there was only one page available for program notes. In addition, on this occasion there are a lot of people to acknowledge and thank. As I conisdered this, I knew it was an impossible task. So, I went rogue. I’m including the text of page 23 below in the hope that you will read, reflect, and find inspiration for the week ahead. Come to this week’s events with fire in your bellies!

30 Years: The Greater Conversation

I usually devote this page of the program to introduce the repertoire for the current concert. Yet, at this juncture, it seems more important to use this space to reflect on this anniversary event, and what it means to so many of us. Since starting my tenure at The Masters School in 2013, I’ve come to appreciate the deeper meaning of conversation, as it pertains to learning. And I believe this is very relevant this evening.

If you were to ask any member of the band, “Why do you give up one evening a week to play in this ensemble?” you would get any number of answers. But at the root of all responses would be the longing to communicate music with others. Throughout these thirty years, the wish to share the human spirit through music has been at the heart of every rehearsal and every performance. The circumstances that brought this group’s founders together to recruit players and fashion a rehearsal/performance plan was based in dialogue. The repertoire in 1988, as in 2018, was chosen to communicate joy, excitement, yearning, patriotism, love, sadness, hope, humor, wonder, and so much more. All of us here tonight – conductors, soloist, ensemble players, audience, Music Hall staff – have come together to fulfill a role in sharing these musical ideas. This chain of inspiration starts with the composer, flows through the conductor and the ensemble, reaches the listener, and reverberates in the moment. We’re all a part of this greater conversation.

But this broader discussion reaches out in many more forms. Consider: The personal invitation, “Come hear our concert!” The agenda at board meetings to keep the band running. The press releases to advertise the next innovative program. The reflections of students upon hearing their own band director perform a challenging composition. The feedback from a composer or arranger attending a final rehearsal. The referral of a colleague for an intriguing but yet unheard composition. The evolved emotions of an audience member, forever changed by the listening experience. The phone call to recruit a new player. The shuffling of feet to encourage a fellow performer. The recognition of a historic milestone. The praise and critique of a guest artist. The design of the audio recording to archive the live performance. The reflection of playing in a new venue, and sharing our music with a new audience. The newly redesigned website. The promise to financially support the ensemble’s endeavors through membership dues, ticket purchases, ads, and recurring donations.

The web of this amazing conversation has sustained this ensemble for thirty years, and its ever-increasing development has nurtured its growth here in our community. Through highs and lows, the longing to share, perform, hear, analyze, and challenge all those involved has encouraged and galvanized us with a unique musical experience.

Through it all, it has been the love of music, not the promise of personal or financial gain, that has been the fire in the belly of this organization. The conductors, players, board members and managers, volunteers, guest conductors and soloists, spouses and family members have joined and sustained this dialogue to share, to challenge, to learn, and to grow.

May this conversation continue as long as there is music in our souls.
Curt Ebersole