Wednesday, July 1, 2009

For the past ten years I've been assistant principal cello in an excellent professional orchestra that performs for nascent, and experienced conductors at an upstate NY college during the month of July. These conductors are there to improve every aspect of their approach to the conductor's art which is exceptionally demanding, and highly stressful. We are there to perform significant repertoire in a way that accurately mirrors what they, the conductors, are attempting to show through gesture. This month the repertoire includes Mozart-Jupiter Symphony, Beethoven-Symphony No. 8, Brahms-3rd Symphony, Mahler-5th Symphony, Ravel-Daphnis and Chloe Suite No. 2, Bartok-Concerto for Orchestra, Stravinsky-Rite of Spring, Berlioz-Symphoy Fantastique, a wonderful full string orchestra version of Shostakovitch-String Quartet No. 8, and a yet to be chosen contemporary work that will have a world premier at the end of the month. Sooooo.....I just haven't got time to make photographs, nor post here this month. I need to be able to play these pieces well, and be flexible enough to modify what one conductor chooses to do, with the next, and possibly different approach that may immediately follow.

I thank you who visit here regularly for doing so, but there will not be any new posts till sometime in August I expect. Ironically, my drive to and from Bard College is a gorgeous one, and I'd love to be able to stop and make photographs, but it just can't be done. So...please visit as often as you'd like to review past work, but nothing new will appear for a few weeks.

Bye for now!

3 comments:

jervo said...

Shame that you won't be posting photos, but that's a pretty amazing repertoire you'll be playing!

Gail said...

WOW! John,that's quite an impressive line up:o) I envy you,and hope you have an incredible time this year :O)

John Voss said...

Just finished the first week, and it's been terrific! Good conductors, wonderful repertoire, a reunion of colleagues from years of doing this, and some exceptionally fine playing.

This is just about the only work I do that I wouldn't rather trade for full time photography (because teaching music is only rarely actually making music...), but it's my first love and what I was trained to do. Okay...perfect life?...2 days a week teaching interested students, 2 days a week doing full time photography, and 3 days a week rehearsing and performing serious repertoire. There now, that feels better! ;-)