Look out! Here come the violas…
Anyone who’s spent some time in Chicago on a Wednesday morning knows that this is when the city tests its emergency alert system. These loud sirens can be heard all over downtown Chicago for a few minutes each week, letting folks know that the city is ready for emergency situations.
The Grant Park Symphony [...]
Double bassists and the homeless - Part 1
As I was wheeling my bass down the street the other day, I passed by a homeless person with a shopping cart filled with all sorts of stuff–blankets, cans, old bottles, newspapers, and all sorts of other various items piled high.
I approached, carrying not only my bass but also my stool and my laptop bag [...]
They’re throwing knives at us in the pit!
No matter how you cut it, pit musicians are an easy target for falling debris (whether confetti, props from the stage, or even singers sometimes!). After all, we are crammed shoulder to shoulder in a small dark space, with a stage full of (gasp!) singers emoting onstage without necessarily watching out for that pit.
Danger From [...]
How NOT to audition for the Chicago Symphony
The Chicago Symphony doesn’t pre-screen audition candidates for their orchestra, allowing anyone who sends a resume and deposit check to get an audition time. While this is an extremely egalitarian approach to the audition process (anyone who wants a shot gets a shot at auditioning for the Chicago Symphony), it also makes for some amusing [...]
Worst gig ever! - story from Michael Hovnanian
Chicago Symphony bassist and active blogger Michael Hovnanian just put out a post recounting a highly wacky gig that he played with other members of his orchestra. This gig (on Good Friday) happened to land on the day of a freak snow storm here in Chicago, with the metro area receiving 6-12 inches of snow [...]
Georg Solti and the kitchen
Reading Michael Hovanian’s recent blog story Bad Friday made me recall (for whatever reason) a tale that a Chicago Symphony bassist told me many years ago….
Sir Georg Solti, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s longtime music director, had a reputation for being fairly difficult to understand in rehearsal. New orchestra musicians would often gaze quizzically at him [...]
Great story from double bassist Matt Heller
Now this is a great gig story! Calgary Philharmonic bassist Matt Heller (formerly a member of the New World Symphony) recently found himself chasing down a bus, circling around downtown Calgary, all for a water canteen. Check it out here.
Flowers for Linda Eder
This story is also available in a video version.
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Ahhhh! Ahhhh!
My focus shattered, I looked up from my music and all around me. Where was that yelling coming from? We were just starting the second half of an orchestral pops concert in a vast arena-like theater out by the airport in metro Chicago, [...]
You’ll never play in this orchestra again!
A colleague of mine passed along this entertaining (and true!) tale from a concert in a local per-service gig orchestra. I know a lot of musicians who perform in this orchestra (which I’ll refrain from naming here), which makes it even funnier to me.
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A regional orchestra in metro Chicago was recently rehearsing a piece with [...]
Panic on the Podium
When you think about it, isn’t it amazing that a group of musicians can ever play together in a symphonic setting? Honestly, having all those different instruments, from tuba to tympani, with all those methods of sound production, from blowing to plucking, situated across either a vast resonant expanse of stage or a subterranean [...]
