If it ain't Baroque…
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What price viola?
Q. What’s the difference between a dead snake and a dead violist lying in the middle of the road?
Music tames the domestic beast
There are no more BSO concerts this summer. That means you’ll be subjected to more and more of the inner workings of my brain until the fall season begins! Yay! In other words: there be weirdness ahead.
Let’s begin with another query: how do your pets feel about music? I ask because my cat Cello (try not to get confused) loves to sit in the room when my brother practices both viola and piano, and my grandmother’s old dog Patsy used to sing along to her namesake Patsy Cline. And then there’s a parrot at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park that will sing any number of old tunes (but not in tune).
How about you guys? How do your pets feel about your practice sessions?
THIS IS WHAT JAZZ DOES TO PEOPLE
…or so said the header of the email in which Rebekah sent me this video (I think she’s earned her Medal of Violar, don’t you?)
I think this is why I never got into the Spiderman franchise.
It’s still Thursday!
Man, these summer days sure go by fast.
Q. What’s the difference between a viola and a coffin?
Summertime, and the livin’ is easy
There is a boatload of separate BSO concerts this weekend, but first!
Good news, rust buckets (The BSO is not referring to you as rust buckets; that’s particular to me)! The Rusty Musicians program is back! While away a series of evenings rehearsing and then performing with the BSO! The concert is on September 21 at the Meyerhoff and will feature Brahms’ Academic Festival Overture and the finale to Stravinsky’s Firebird suite (oooh!). You still have to be 25 or older (boo, although I hear rumors – RUMORS, mind you – that there might be something for younger individuals in the works). Click here for more information.
That out of the way, let’s get down to brass tacks, whatever that means. It’s the last weekend of the BSO summer season!
Thursday, July 22 at 7:30 pm at the Meyerhoff, the BSO finally gets to play Porgy and Bess after it was snowed out in February. Gregory Mulligan wrote a very nice piece about this for the BSO blog and I recommend you read it right now; his blogging style has gotten so much more fluid! (Incidentally, our posts have the same title because I was typing it into Blogger for him, came up with that title, and figured, why try to improve upon perfection/Gershwin?)
Then on Friday, July 23 at 7:30 pm at the Meyerhoff again it’s music by Philip Glass and Frank Zappa, who are apparently both from Baltimore. There will be a beatboxer named Shodekeh. Really.
And finally, on Saturday, July 24 at 8 pm at Oregon Ridge Park, there is “Broadway Melodies.” You have three guesses as to what this is about and the first two don’t count. Fireworks follow!
Summer lite
For those of you who missed the BSO’s Michael Jackson tribute concert:
This somewhat ties into a question I have for all you professional musicians out there. How do you feel about playing these kinds of pop concerts? My brother’s viola teacher was talking about how during one such concert he essentially played one chord the entire time – not exactly challenging, and some might consider this sort of music “beneath” them. The same can even be said for audience members, as some BSO Facebook followers expressed dismay regarding the poppy, fun nature of the summer season. I myself could be rightfully accussed of being a music snob, but personally I think there’s nothing wrong with something a little lighter now and again. Any thoughts on your end?
If only he were a Bachxer
Before we get to our LOL Friday, don’t forget that the BSO will be at the Inner Harbor’s Pier Six tonight for its “Music of the Eagles” tribute concert (shut up I LIKE the Eagles). Click here for tickets! And remember, for a complete rundown of this summer’s BSO concerts, take a look at my summer season post.
Edited to add: There are also two concerts on Saturday, an operatic one at 2 pm at the Meyerhoff that is FREE and a repeat of the “Rising Stars” Tchaikovsky one at 8 pm at Strathmore.
Okay, back to our regularly scheduled programming.
see more dog and puppy pictures
Tasty!
You know what would be good right about now? A viola joke.
Q. How do you get a violist off your porch?
If it ain't Baroque... 