A Little Something Extra

We're now at Day 4 of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra's single ticket launch. The "biggies" are going quickly as we imagined--Josh Bell, Liza Minnelli, Bugs Bunny, Andre Watts and Pink Martini. And we continue to ask our musicians--which classical, pops or special concert would you recommend a person (either a newbie or a veteran) experience this season? 

Bob Goodlett, Assistant Principal Contrabass:
"I would recommend Mahler's 5th Symphony. It has such monumental emotional substance. In...

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...

ISO intern Ben Luttrell provides an update on the Circle the City for the Symphony walk/run.

Things are beginning to fall in place.

That’s not to say it hasn’t been stressful. I’d liken it to one of those big domino exhibitions: it’s fun and amazing to watch and you can’t help but admire the hard work that goes into it, but it gets more stressful as each element is revealed and open to the public.

**Something I think needs to be overstated before we go any further: this blog is only one...

Intern Ben Luttrull is feeling the momentum now, as we near the home stretch for the planning of the Circle the City for the Symphony event on Aug. 7. 

If my internship was with the Indianapolis 500, we would be at about lap 350 right now: over halfway through and time to start really focusing on pushing as hard as possible down the stretch.

Some exciting things are happening with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra's Circle the City event presented by Finish Line on Aug. 7.  For example, our...

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...

Mark Newman is the ISO's Vice President of Marketing and Communications. I've turned my blog over to him so that he can remind you about the ISO's user-friendly Your Season~Your Way flexible subscription packaging. 

 The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra is changing . . . evolving more accurately.  Much of the impetus for this evolution has been you—our patrons, fans and friends—and your changing lifestyle.  For some time, we’ve known that a traditional fixed subscription package didn’t fit...

Ben Luttrell gives us his third installment of his thoughts about the ISO's Circle the City for the Symphony event. Perhaps I need to give him his own blogroll?

I was a team captain for Ball State University's Relay for Life this past April. The opportunity I had to work with the BSU chapter of PRSSA (the public relations group for students) was good, but the real pleasure for me came from the opportunity to tell people all about this wonderful event and the cause it supports. It wasn’t about me...

Ben Luttrull is an intern with the ISO this summer and is working on the Symphony's Circle the City for the Symphony event in August. I've turned my blog over to him for his second installment!

If being competitive is defined as hating to lose, then I consider myself a fairly competitive person. I’ve been known to attach allegiance to teams for a month only to disavow any relationship upon the missing of playoffs. I still follow my high school marching band and cringe upon seeing any ranking other...

Ben Luttrull is an intern with the ISO this summer and is working on the Symphony's Circle the City for the Symphony event in August. I've turned my blog over to him to talk about this important fundraising event for the ISO.

When I first found out I was going to be an intern with the ISO this summer, I started mentally racing through what my first assignment was going to be. I’d like to say I was prepared for the 35,000-plus people at the Mini-Marathon Expo, but I had sadly focused on more...

The month of May in Indianapolis...what can I say.  Thousands of gearheads, casual fans and a slew of out-of-towners descend upon our city for the greatest spectacle in racing. 

And so do the journalists.

It's the media folk who interest me the most. I especially enjoy those who have never been to Indianapolis before.  Or the ones who haven't been here in 10-20 years.  After touring Indy, they usually say to me:   "I had no idea Indy had culture."

[Yes, we aren't just hoops, open-wheel racing...

For 16 years, Indianapolis' arts institutions have come together for one night and staged an incredible concert experience -- all for the benefit of the Indiana AIDS Fund.

Held at Clowes Memorial Hall on the campus of Butler University, the event is called "Spotlight Indianapolis." And it's the one place where you can see and experience the cultural side of Indy.

The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra has been a part of this great tradition for many years. Tonight, 21 ISO musicians have volunteered...

Daniel Spilsbury ("DJ") works as an intern in the marketing & communications department at the ISO. DJ just finished following the Butler University basketball team on their journey to the championship game.  Why? DJ is a proud member of the pep band!  Here's his story.

Of all the things I could brag about, the one I enjoy the most is the fact I got paid to go every step of the way along the NCAA tournament with the Butler basketball team.  For four years I’ve supported Butler basketball as a...

Memory is a funny thing.

I've been known to get up, walk to someone's office, and forget why I just got up and walked to someone's office.  More times than I care to admit, I send emails and forget to include the promised attachment. I know I've said this phrase more times than not: "Didn't I tell you that already?"

Luckily, my long-term memory is better. I can still rattle off the books of the Old Testament in seconds (taught to me as a young kid in Sunday school). I memorize lyrics quickly, and...

Crash, crashed, crashing.  I've done a lot of it.

My car.  Cymbals.  A party or two.  At a friend's house.  After an 16-hour workday.  My computer.  A diet.

But I've never crashed a wedding.

These guys have -- or so to speak.

Tonight's Stella Artois Happy Hour at the Symphony, headlined with "Look Who's Crashing the Marriage of Figaro" features the ISO's new resident ensemble, Time for Three. The string trio performs a pretty diverse set list tonight--from Mozart and Bartok to Bernstein and...