I was first
introduced to Mendelssohn's "Scottish" Symphony a few years ago
when I had to play the second movement clarinet solo for a summer
program audition tape. While learning the fingerings, attempting to
perfect the articulation patterns and drilling the section with a
metronome to train myself to play it more quickly, I repeatedly
listened to the recording of the peppy, folk-like second movement.
This lively section consists of a rousing dance theme and bouncy
woodwind staccatos and...
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After graduating from DePauw University in May 2009, two of my
friends and I stayed at our alma mater working various jobs, trying
to fend off real life just that much longer. The economy was
uncertain, and our futures looked like they might be bleak for a
while. We enjoyed spending time together, but our worries about the
new chapters of our lives made it hard for us to live in any given
moment. Every time I smiled, I felt like I had a hornet’s nest in
my throat. Misery was spreading around the...
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My husband and I bought tickets to go to the music of Queen. It was
the first time we had attended an event there and we were hooked!
We ended up buying ticket packets and taking our family. We have
been to several shows since then with our son, and parents. I love
being able to sit around and visit with family and friends, enjoy a
picnic and great music. We are so happy we found out about this! We
are excited every year to get the schedule in the mail! Can't wait
for summer time!
Name: Jillian...
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Hi
Everyone:
I have not written for awhile - just too busy.! But, we are
getting excited about this summer's run at
Symphony
on the Prairie. The music looks
fantastic.
Was at Home Depot (kitchen remodeling project and porch furniture)
and I saw a couple picking out chairs and discussing if the
attached umbrella would bother other concert goers at the
Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra concerts this summer.
So, we struck up a conversation - they recognized me (darn
pony tail). A great couple -...
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My husband and I brought our two boys (ages 10 and 12 at the time)
to see the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra perform Queen.
We put our blankets and chairs down, ate dinner and waited for the
concert to start. Our youngest wanted to go down in front of the
stage when it started, so one of us went with him. Slowly, more and
more people came down, and eventually our whole family was front
and center. We all sang and danced through the whole concert and
never went back to our chairs! It felt like a...
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Hard to believe, but the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra's Marsh
Symphony on the Prairie series is celebrating its 30th
season this summer.
It's funny how much has changed (the orchestra
under a tent ca. 1986).
And what still remains the same (our Nike swooshes
and bangs are smaller now, but thank goodness you can still sit
back, relax and listen to great symphonic music under the
stars).
What are your memories of
Symphony on the Prairie through
the years? Do you have a favorite performance? A...
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The
final
Symphonic Hits of the season is upon us, and in fact, it's
the final week of the Indianapolis Symphony Orcehstra's Classical
Season. Next week, summer officially begins with the
Indianapolis Symphony's move out to the
Prairie. For this last concert, we're hearing Beethoven's
final two symphonies led by Music Director Emmeritus, Raymond
Leppard.
These two works are as different as they could be. The 8th
Symphony is bubbly and delightful (it even lacks a slow movement),
and imitates...
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I've
been really looking forward to
this week's Symphonic Hits concert for a long
time. While I love the music we play week in and week out,
it's nice when the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra turns to
something that is a bit different from its usual stomping
grounds. This week's concert includes the Vivaldi
Four
Seasons which comes from the Baroque Period in music history,
and it's one that we here at the ISO don't often get to
visit.
The Four Seasons is of course one of the most
famous...
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The
title says it all. Making music and changing lives is what the
Indy Symphony does. And now, you have a very special chance to
help us change the lives of deserving children.
On April 15, the Indianapolis Symphony and the Columbia Club will
host "Making Music Changing Lives," a fundraising event
for the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra (MYO), and we would love for
you to join us!
MYO is an amazing program sponsored by the ISO's Learning Community
that provides individual and chamber music lessons...
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This is my sixth week at the Indianapolis Symphony
Orchestra and I am finally starting to get my desk organized.
Just a little behind, right?
It does my Type A heart good to see a freshly-organized stack
of manila file folders labeled and stuffed and sitting in my desk
organizer next to my stacks of ISO program books
and collateral materials. What can I say, I'm a neat
freak.
The best part of organizing my desk was that as I separated my
messy stack of papers, I realized just how many...
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Today was a good day.
It has been said that the most challenging part of the classical
music business these days is trying to bring in new, excited people
to build the next generation of concert goers in order to help
sustain the future of our art form. And in a world of endless
entertainment choices just a mouse or remote control click away,
its no wonder that we have to work harder to make sure the beauty
and power of classical music is available to everyone that wants
it.
So I thought to...
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I've only been to Yuletide Celebration once-- it was possibly 15
years ago. It was a fieldtrip with the school orchestra I was in. I
always have enjoyed performances, and although I don't remember
much, I do remember enjoying it. I'd like to share the wonderful
holiday experience with my husband some time. I would love for this
year to be memorable with this prize-- he's been laid off from his
career, and was diagnosed with a chronic debilitating illness this
summer. We sure could use some...
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My mother was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia on June 18,
1999. It was a horrific summer as she spent a month in the
hospital. Was home, going to get blood/platelets every week.
December of 1999, my grandmother, her mother passed away. Our
family had gone through a lot of emotions. The week after my
grandmother's funeral we planned to have an early Christmas. We
decided to start off our Christmas Celebration Weekend by going to
the Yuletide Celebration on a Friday nite. It was neat to...
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This
coming weekend we return to the full force of our Indianapolis
Symphony Orchestra musicians (and then some) to command another
performance of a Mahler symphony, which thankfully (for me, anyway)
has been an annual tradition for most major orchestras since the
mid-20th century. While I probably said in my last blog that
Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony (his 2nd) was my favorite,
I will probably eat just a few morsels of those words. Each
of his symphonies affects me in different ways, and...
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It's hard to believe we are in the final
weekend of
Symphony on the Prairie! The
Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra musicians have been on a 3 week
vacation, which began after the
Tribute to Michael
Jackson. Conner Prairie has still been a busy place
without us, presenting the music of Duke Ellington, The Beatles,
Buddy Holly and now River City Brass Band. Every September
one of the assignments I was always given in school was to write a
paper on what I did over vacation. It's been decades...
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I
can’t believe summer is almost over. I can’t believe
Marsh Symphony on the Prairie is ending. But I
do believe that we will see the 100,000th
patron enter those Conner Prairie gates this weekend.
In 2009, we celebrated with Debra Fleetwood, as she was the lucky
100,000th patron to arrive.
If patron number 100,000 walks through our gates (we think on
Thursday evening), it will be the third time in history that we
have achieved that feat. What helped bring us to this magic
number? Amazing...
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It's a bittersweet goodbye. Ben Luttrell has worked as the
Symphony's intern this summer for the fundraising event,
Circle the City for the Symphony. Thanks for all
the hard work Ben!
As I stood looking at the Circle the City for the
Symphony finish line when I took a picture, the first thing
that came to my mind was “I’m looking at the Finish Line-sponsored
Finish Line.” The next thought was “This is really surreal.”
From what I’ve gathered from other interns and friends from BSU,
many internship...
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As
you’ve probably heard by now, my time as Associate Conductor of
the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra is quickly
drawing to a close – I’ll be conducting the last concerts of my
tenure this weekend at Marsh
Symphony on the Prairie, before I head to Boston to take
up a new position.
As I reflect on my two years here in Indy, I’m struck by how
fortunate I’ve been to have had an incredible diversity of
opportunities with the ISO, conducting on every concert series,
from the classical subscription...
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ISO
Development intern Ben Luttrell gives us another glimpse into
planning for the ISO's Circle
the City for the Symphony event Aug.
7.
Between Conner Prairie trips, Circle the City for the
Symphony duties, internship adventures and the dreaded
“professional development," I’d say I’m having quite the summer so
far at the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. The honeymoon of
“Wow, I have my own phone line!” has faded into the “I’m expected
to do real work” feeling, but I’m quite excited to report that...
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In
an effort to avoid a reputation as the intern who 
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