I’m in Ithaca this weekend for the NY Area All-State Band (Zone 3). I was very excited to be invited, especially so to be in Ithaca where Mr. Husa lived and worked for so many years as a professor at Cornell and visiting professor at Ithaca College. I was looking forward to visiting the Husa Archives (housed at Ithaca College), only to learn that they were recently moved to Rochester, to the Eastman School of Music. No one here seems to know why. It’s very disappointing — so close to Mr. Husa and yet so far.
Have you emailed a copy for the concert flyer and press release to everyone on your mailing list? Download today to print or send out to encourage attendance!
Rehearsal at TMH on Monday confirmed
We received confirmation from the Music Hall that Monday’s rehearsal will be at the Music Hall. The schedule is posted. Don & Keith will be back for their second rehearsal each. Kelly will review the endings of his movements, to make sure everyone is aligned with the intended interpretation. And we get one more pass at the four movements of Prague before Saturday’s dress rehearsal. All of a sudden — here we are!
After the concert: please note that there are no rehearsals on February 12 nor 19. We reconvene to start the Spring cycle on February 26.
Keep the faith — we’re almost there — keep practicing! See you Monday!
Wow, that headline really takes one’s breath away! But it’s true. Our Winter Concert is two weeks from today. I was really invigorated by your work last week with Tom, and our steady improvement and progress with the Husa continued with his spot-on observations and suggestions.
Lastly, here’s a DVR ALERT for Monday, February 5, at 9:30 pm on Fox Business News. We’ll be in rehearsal at that time, but the program at that time will feature WSW donor Marlene Piturro, as she speaks about her late husband, Howard van Hyning, and his Turandot gongs. Marlene is the sponsor of our Percussion Section Leader chair, and a contributor to WSW for several years. Click here for a description of the program, and background on these famous gongs.
We are rehearsing at New Rochelle High School again this week
Rehearsals this week (January 22) and next week (January 29) will be held at New Rochelle High School because TMH is booked. Please use these directions to get to the Band Room. Please do not follow GPS to the school’s address posted on their website. You will end up far, far away from the performing arts wing! If you must use GPS, use “Intersection of Braemar Road and North Avenue” to get to the correct part of the large campus.
Tom McCauley has cleared his evening to spend the entire rehearsal with us. After a warm up with Travis Cross’s Tribute, we’ll spend the rest of the evening working through all four movements of the Husa with Tom. I know his insights will be incredibly helpful. (The rehearsal plan is posted here.)
Lastly, I’m sure you’ve heard the news about the tragic events at New Rochelle this past week and earlier this month. Rest assured that the administration has reconfirmed our use of the facility, and would not do so unless they felt confident that using the building will be completely safe for us.
Percussion sectional at 5:00 pm Monday
Percussion is meeting early on Monday. Please plan to arrive at 5:00 pm to set up. We’ll get started as soon as everyone as arrived (I remember that one or two of you have rehearsals beforehand). Please bring a brown bag dinner and we’ll eat together in the band room between the sectional and full rehearsal. Please be sure to bring food and do not plan on leaving campus to purchase dinner; although we’ll take a significant break, there won’t be time to leave, purchase food, return, and eat before we get started again. Thanks in advance.
We will concentrate on the third movement of the Husa, but will also hit some hot spots in the other movements as well. Please note and be prepared. Although I don’t intend to rehearse Boss and Gates, if you have questions or concerns about these pieces, please bring your list and let’s make time to discuss them.
In case you missed the Master Class
Mislav recorded Don’s class last week. All wind players would benefit from hearing what he had to say about breathing and breath support. I encourage everyone to take the time to listen.
Because it can be tricky reserving the best dates for concerts at TMH, the Board pressed ahead to reserve the dress rehearsal and concert dates for the next two seasons. We were not able to secure the same timeframe for the Winter concert as this year (Sunday after Super Bowl) because of conflicts with the Children’s Theater. And so that concert will be a little later (early March) in the next two seasons. Please note these dates, so you might be able to negotiate conflicts before they collide with our schedule.
2018-2019: 31st season
Fall concert – Sunday, November 11, 2018 at 3:00 pm; dress rehearsal on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Winter concert – Sunday, March 3, 2019; at 3:00 pm; dress rehearsal on Saturday, March 2, 2019 at 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Spring concert – Saturday, May 11, 2019 at 8:00 pm; dress rehearsal on Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 7:30-10:00 pm
2019-2020: 32nd season
Fall concert – Sunday, November 10, 2019 at 3:00 pm; dress rehearsal on Saturday, November 9, 2019 at 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Winter concert – Sunday, March 1, 2020 at 3:00 pm; dress rehearsal on Saturday, February 29, 2020 at 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Spring concert – Saturday, May 16, 2020 at 8:00 pm; dress rehearsal on Wednesday, May 13, 2020 at 7:30-10:00 pm
Last evening was a milestone for our ensemble in many ways:
The Master Class with Don Batchelder was well-attended, much appreciated, and incredibly profitable in many ways.
The clarinet section responded quickly and positively to Geoff’s weekend email, and came together to rehearse for a full hour before rehearsal.
It was a special honor to have Peter Sis visit rehearsal last evening. He was most impressed with the sound of the ensemble, and was clearly moved. He will be returning for our dress rehearsal on February 10 and the concert on February 11.
The progress we’re making with the Husa is truly amazing. I know I have said this before, but it is so sincere: I am so very proud of your work on this piece, and I am really looking forward to the final product at the performance.
The progress we’ve made with the Husa is considerable. Next week (at New Rochelle) we’ll have Tom McCauley to give his honest and thorough assessment of our progress, and what we still must do to bring this piece to its highest potential.
Percussion – Don’t forget we’re meeting at 5 pm next Monday for the percussion sectional. Please bring a sack meal, and we’ll break to eat between the sectional and full rehearsal.
And here, as promised, is the Big 10 Directors panel discussion about Karel Husa from the conference. (I edited this now so the discussion begins right at the beginning of the track.) Total time is about 55 minutes. If you have the time, it’s truly fascinating.
Where in the world am I now?
Flyer – JPG (Facebook, Twitter, emails)