Harmonic Underpinning

Those of you that know me and my pedagogy, are aware that I'm a firm believer in utilizing harmonic underpinning while teaching melodic instruments and concepts. That is, providing some context for melodic line when teaching parts in the orchestra or in private lessons. I really believe that everything makes more sense when there is a chord progression behind or underneath the melodic line.

This week in Interlochen's Intermediate Concert Orchestra, we do not have the privilege of having a student bass player.  We will have a faculty and staff bassist for the concert, but not until the dress rehearsal.  So, we are working with an incomplete voicing in the orchestra and I have noticed that there has been a great deal of difficulty in truly tuning from bottom to top in all of our repertoire. So, today I asked my stage services staff member to set up a piano in the front of the orchestra. Throughout today's rehearsal I played bass lines and chord progressions as best I could, accompanying all of the pieces that we are working on.

Wow! What a transformation in the orchestra. I was reminded yet again that harmonic underpinning is so important for true musical understanding and learning. Quickly, everyone in the orchestra was tuning in a much more meaningful, informed manner. I had to step back and asked myself, "Would we be better off having this harmonic reference right from the beginning of the rehearsal process?" I am sure that many orchestras use an accompanist throughout a concert cycle to help with this very issue. That is not something that I typically do, but today I am really convinced that it paid huge dividends in this orchestra.

This can be done either by realizing chord progressions on the piano or on another chord playing instrument like guitar, mandolin, and others. I realize that this isn't rocket science. But, it is always good to be reminded. I'm reminded of when my children were younger and studying violin repertoire. I would frequently play piano or pick up my guitar and play along with them. Or, other days I would pick up the bass and create a bass line while they were playing the melodies of the pieces . I have particularly fond memories of performing the Monti Czardas with my oldest son, Matt. I played guitar and he played violin. We did something similar with both of the Vivaldi A minor Concerto movements that are found in the Suzuki Book 4.

All of this goes to encouraging the student to hear the function of every note of a melody. Is the note a chord tone? Is the note a passing tone? Is the cord a tonic? Is it a dominant? Or is it something else? When a student hears a secondary dominant progression on the guitar or piano common, suddenly those accidentals make a lot more sense.

I know this is a quick one but I just had to get this off my chest tonight. It was a great rehearsal and I can't wait for tomorrow!

Peace.

Scott

Intermediate Concert Orchestra Repertoire: 2017 Concert #4

We are winding down the summer here at Interlochen Summer Arts Camp and the Intermediate Concert Orchestra is deep in preparation for their final performance of the season. We have a wonderful program planned for this concert. As is my tradition, I will give you some information all on all of the works that we are doing.

First, we are preparing Highlights from An American in Paris, by George Gershwin, arranged by Jerry Brubaker. This is a Belwin publication and is listed as a Grade IV. I first heard this arrangement at a new music reading session that was sponsored by JW Pepper at an American String Teachers Association conference. I have never done anything by arranger Jerry Brubaker before. But, I really like this medley from An American in Paris. I will certainly keep my eyes open for more of his arrangements in the future. This is scored for string orchestra with percussion. I think the percussion will add a really nice touch to this piece.  It includes bicycle horns.  I spent a couple of hours today, shopping for bike horns at two different pitches!! The students will be exposed to George Gershwin's interesting harmonies and magnificent melodies. The piece features 4 distinct sections that all provide wonderful opportunities for each voice. The arrangement is also very clearly edited with fingerings and good bowings, saving a great deal of rehearsal time for me. The students really like this arrangement and I think it will be a wonderful addition to our concert.

Next we are doing Smooth Sailing by Tom Sharp . This is listed as a Grade Three and is published by Ludwig Masters Music. It features opportunities for melody in all of the voices of the orchestra and a simple and lovely melody that is passed between all of the sections throughout the piece.  It is full of beauty and grace and contains an abundance of lush romantic quality to please the most discriminating ear.  I always love Thom Sharp's stuff and this is no exception.

Next, we have been spending a great deal of time preparing Mars from the Planets by Gustav Holst, arranged by Robert McCashin. This is a Tempo Press publication and is listed as a grade IV. This one is tough! We have spent a great deal of time on the 5-4 time signature and the intricate interplay between 5/2 and 5/2 feel. There are many divisi parts in this arrangement and a few 16th note passages that are really tough. The group has worked hard on this piece. And they love it. I'm not a hundred percent sure that we will perform it for our concert but I have challenged the students to prepare it well enough that it will be easy to make the decision. This one is a real challenge!

Finally, my dear friend Alejandro Bernard Papachrysanthou has written a brand new piece for intermediate concert Orchestra to perform this session.  It is entitled Sunset Colors and is a magnificent piece that we will premiere on Saturday. Please see the separate post about this composition.

It has been another great summer at Interlochen and I'm sad to see it winding down. That said, I am ready to get home and begin my work at NCSSM. I'm also very ready to see my family. Thanks to all who have been reading these posts throughout the summer. I hope that you will stick with me as we move into the fall and the new academic year. Thanks to all of my friends here at Interlochen who have supported me this summer. Let's do it again next year!

Peace.

Scott

Sunset Colors, by Alejandro Bernard-Papachryssanthou

This summer, the Interlochen Intermediate Concert Orchestra has had several unbelievable opportunities to meet composers and perform their works. It has been a particularly strong learning experience for students to hear the words of the composers themselves and to learn the motivation behind the works which they are performing. This is one of the great benefits of coming to and  performing at Interlochen. We have such a wonderful community of musicians that do so many things. And, for one group to be involved in two world premieres in the same 3-week session is simply unheard of. But, that is what is happening this session. The Intermediate Concert Orchestra will be performing another world premiere at our Saturday concert in Kresge Auditorium, 4 p.m.

Last summer I became friends with Alejandro Bernard-Papachryssanthou over lunch down at the waterfront.  We were both eating alone and struck up a conversation. We hit it off as friends right away and it was truly my pleasure to feature him on the last piece of the summer in of 2016, Bossa Rojo, by Bert Ligon, as a keyboard soloist with ICO. This summer, we met up again and following the first ICO concert, he asked me if I might be willing to play a piece that he was interested in composing. He has been working on Sunset Colors throughout the summer and it is our pleasure to perform it this week.

He came to class today and spent about an hour with the orchestra, discussing the motivation behind the piece and several specific performance practices. It was a thrill for us to have him at the rehearsal and a great deal of work was done.

He began by explaining the motivation for the piece. It is intended to conjure up the image of the beautiful sunsets that we experience here in Northern Michigan, particularly those that are seen over a lake where mountains do not encumber the view. The sunsets in this region are absolutely beautiful and it is a perfect inspirational vehicle for a piece of orchestral music.

Sunset Colors begins with a quiet Andate section. It is in a major but really travels between a number of keys throughout the work. The opening features the viola section right out of the gate. There is a beautiful melody and tight, jazz inspired harmonies throughout the work. The opening eventually gives way to a beautiful piu mosso so that features moving 16th notes in the first and second violins and a syncopated rhythmic pattern in the viola, cello, and bass. This section certainly presents the image of the brightest, most glorious sunset. This moving passage eventually gives way to a heroic section which culminates on a beautiful, sustained C sharp major chord. We spent a good deal of time in rehearsal today dialing in that chord and even discussed what color it sounds like. We had some students say orange, others felt it was pink, and I felt like it was a deep purple.  (All were correct!!) Following a grand pause, it returns to the "A" section and winds down to a beautiful ending which conjures up the image of the last little bit of color in the sky as the sun finally goes down for the night.

This  work is a perfect challenge for the Intermediate Concert Orchestra. I would say that it is probably a Grade 4. There is a little something for everyone and every section must be rhythmically and tonally independent. The kids are really committed to this work and have rehearse with great maturity. Their work today was admirable. Mondays are always tricky for ICO because Monday afternoon is usually "beach day" for the kids. They were certainly ready to look ahead to the fun of the afternoon during rehearsal today. Instead, they gave their full attention and had a wonderful rehearsal.

We are really excited to give the world premiere of this piece and I look forward to performing it many more times both here at Interlochen and in my various travels around the United States. I'm pretty sure that I will program it at NCSSM this fall!

We hope to see you at the concert on Saturday afternoon. I believe it will be live streamed as well.

Peace.

Scott

Samba Me This! by Thom Sharp

One of the pieces that will be on our program Wednesday, July 24th at 6:30 p.m. is a wonderful Latin piece by Thom Sharp entitled Samba Me This! For this performance, we will be featuring Interlochen Faculty members, David Kay on soprano saxophone, Alejandro Bernard on keyboard,  and Aaron Tenney on bass, along with Intermediate camper, Daqi on drums.

Samba Me This! by Thom Sharp is a wonderful original tune for String Orchestra and Drum kit that features dancy Latin rhythms and a wonderful chord progression.  The piece is listed as a grade 3.5. It is definitely a hard 3.5.  Audiences will need to hold on to their hats for a fast ride on the samba machine! This piece is rhythmically challenging and chromatic but has a singable main theme. All sections are featured and everyone in the orchestra has shifting challenges in their part.  It is published by Latham Music.

Today was our first opportunity to put this piece together with our guests. It was a pleasure to welcome them to our Monday rehearsal and start really putting things together. The first concept that we really focused on was maintaining tempo throughout the piece. I had a wonderful opportunity to discuss the similarities between this piece and the Haydn Allegro that we are preparing. The concept of "inner rhythm" and keeping the subdivision going through audiation (inside your head) throughout the piece is a common theme with both works.

We also had a wonderful discussion about improvisation and how we go about adding the improvised saxophone and keyboard parts to the string orchestra framework. The students got a chance to hear both David Kay and Alejandro Bernard improvising over the fantastic string sounds that Tom Sharp has created. It is always a pleasure to do Thom's compositions as they have such a representative string/jazz orchestra sound.

The students also got to participate in and witness the kind of interaction that happens between music professionals within the context of rehearsal. We discussed the arrangement, the "roadmap," opportunities for improvisation, dynamic nuances, rhythmic nuances, and other musical factors in the piece. I find that it is a great learning opportunity for students to simply be part of those discussions along with the professionals that are in the room.

Finally, when there are guests in the room , there is always a sense of urgency and a need to be efficient with the time that we are given. The students of Intermediate Concert Orchestra certainly succeeded with that today. It was a wonderful, successful rehearsal. I am sure that the audience will love this piece when it is performed on Wednesday.

I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to my colleagues David Kay, Alejandro Bernard, and Aaron Tenney for giving ICO this great opportunity!

That's it for now. It is a beautiful Monday afternoon at Interlochen. I am looking forward to welcoming some friends from North Carolina to the area today and giving them a grand tour of our campus.

We hope to see you on Wednesday through the live stream.

Peace.

Scott

Ancient Light

One of the great privileges of working in Interlochen in the summer is rubbing elbows with wonderful musicians from many different areas of the music world. One of those privileges is preparing and performing new music that our composition faculty has created for ensembles here at Interlochen. Over the last couple of years I've developed a deep friendship with Dr. Peter Terry, a wonderful composer and musician who teaches Electronic Music Composition here.  This summer, the Intermediate Concert Orchestra is privileged to perform the world premiere of his new work for string orchestra, Ancient Light. Dr. Terry came to our rehearsal yesterday to give us some insights into the work after we had spent a number of days framing the piece and getting ready for his input.

We began our time with Dr. Terry by asking him to respond to an incredibly light question that I had asked all the students earlier in the rehearsal. What exactly is your favorite dessert and why?  I have found over the years that simple conversations like this are often wonderful ice breakers and yesterday was no different. I think the question threw him for a little bit of a curve-ball and he took a moment to consider the answer. After a few moments of thought, he let us know that tiramisu is his favorite and that it was because his family had a number of traditions around this dessert. This provided a wonderful segue into our work for the day on his composition.  Immediately, he had a connection with kids and they were now ready to hear what he had to say about the new work.

I then asked him to tell us just a little bit about the title and the ideas behind the work. He explained that Ancient Light refers to the to a common interest that he and his father shared in astronomy and looking at the night sky. He was always aware when engaged in this activity that the lights that he was seeing in the stars were generated millions of years ago. The things that we see in the night sky may not even exist anymore. The magnitude of that idea is reflected in this piece. He also explained that the piece is inspired by thoughts and feelings related to family (especially his father)  and the depth of that relationship and related experiences like the time they spent studying the stars.

We continued by playing the piece for him and asking for his input. The composition features 4 sections and is in A-B-A-B form.  It floats between E minor and G Major and I would call it about a Grade IV.

The A section is a bold Allegro in 3 with a driving rhythmic underpinning. He explained that the rhythmic underpinning must have a heroic feel. It is actually a "bravura" section and he wanted the students to give it an almost march-like, military drive. This resonated with the kids and they immediately made the adjustment. Additionally, there is a rhythmic, syncopated , marked melodic figure in the other voices. He asked for very short releases at the end of these short phrases and it provided a greater sense of urgency in this rhythmic passage. I always find that having a new voice in a rehearsal yields great results and this was certainly the case. The way Dr. Terry made his points resonated with the kids and they seemed to internalize the idea behind these passages.

Next, we dug a little deeper into the primary melodies of the piece and the way they interact with each other. He noted that each time the primary motive enters in a new voice, it should be somewhat intrusive to the other voices. Again, that word intrusive really resonated with the kids. They were able to execute this almost immediately and it transformed the impact of the piece in those places .

Next we spent some time in the more lyrical B sections of the piece. Each of these sections is very chorale-like and requires a totally different approach. We looked at the greater dynamic scheme of each of these sections and noted that they grow continuously through two statements of the entire chorale. They reach an apex on the final stanza which is then followed by a hushed, brief reprise. As we looked closely at this dynamics scheme, the musical line of this section became so much more perceptible.

As we moved through the rehearsal, you could feel the energy grow and the excitement for the piece intensify. By the end of the rehearsal there was incredible life in the work and the students were quite engaged and committed. The rehearsal ended with Dr. Terry giving a wonderful charge to the students regarding the privilege of performing a world premiere. He sent them into our last few rehearsals with an inspired challenge to truly own the work and to realize that there is only ever one World Premiere of a work. Intermediate Concert Orchestra gets to experience that and no one else will ever have that experience. What a wonderful challenge! I have no doubt that this will be one of the most meaningful musical experiences of these young musicians' lives.

I want to extend my deepest thanks to Peter. I value our friendship so much and truly enjoy out all of our musical collaboration. This is the third world premiere that I have conducted for one of his compositions.  (Blindsighted and Beneath the Irish Sky, Carl Fischer Publications) I consider it one of the great honors of my musical life and my work at Interlochen.

This concert will take place on Wednesday, July 26th at 6:30 p.m. in Corson Auditorium on the Interlochen campus. It will be available via live stream as well.

Peace .

Scott

Thursday ICO Conversation

Today in Intermediate Concert Orchestra we welcomed our faculty section leaders for a second time. I decided that today would be a good day to have a group conversation about ensemble playing and the role of the individual within the ensemble. I asked my faculty colleagues to join in on the conversation. I have found over the years that sometimes faculty interaction with and in front of students is a wonderful learning vehicle. So, today, that was the beginning of our class conversation.

I started the class by asking the students to talk a little bit about what they love to see and hear when they go to a great orchestra performance. I received responses that included: bows moving in unison, physically invested performers, great repertoire, a look of purpose, and others.  I was quite impressed with the student responses right out of the gate.

Next, I asked my colleagues to talk a little bit about what they need to do to create the  performances that the students were discussing. What did they need to do to generate a performance that was exciting to watch and hear ? What is the role of the performer?

Listen

Watch

Uniformity

Size of Group

Equal Importance

Passion

One faculty member expanded on the importance of listening and watching from the first rehearsal to the last. Listening for the style and intonation of the other people in their section and the sections around them. Watching for technique consistency, bow placement, and other subtleties as the repertoire developed from sight-read to performance.  Another spoke of the importance of uniformity from throughout the rehearsal process until a performance. They mentioned the need for working for this uniformity from beginning to end.  Still another mentioned the equal importance of knowing the role of each voice in the ensemble. They mentioned that in rehearsals, they are always trying to figure out the role of their voice and how it fits in with the others. Finally, another mentioned the importance of a passionate pursuit of musical excellence from the first rehearsal to the end of any performance.

Personality

Role

Active 

Extemporaneous

Self Challenge

Emulate

We then discuss what they bring to the table musically in each of these goals. One mentioned that simply allowing his personality to be part of the rehearsal process enhanced the process a great deal for him. This could be as subtle as offering smiles or salutations to his colleagues as he arrived at rehearsal. Those friendly offerings lead to wonderful musical relationships. This is a great way to approach rehearsal and the rehearsal process. Another mentioned the concept of understanding their role in the orchestra at all times. Sometimes their voice is a melody. Sometimes their voice is harmony. Other times it is a rhythmic underpinning. Knowing the role is vital. Another mentioned that it is important to be prepared for active listening and reacting throughout a rehearsal process. One never really knows what is going to happen. The brain must be turned on and ready to act and react at a moment's notice.  Still another mentioned that subtleties in rehearsal can be quite extemporaneous. Things can be different every single time a piece is played. There can be subtle changes in tempo,  phrasing, dynamics , and musical interaction at any given moment. The performer must be in tune with them at all times.  Also, a section player must be willing to challenge themselves on many of these issues.  They are not always visible to the conductor, but are integral to the success of the ensemble. Finally, another colleague emphasized the importance of emulating those around them. Looking to the section leader or other sections for bow placement, style, articulation, and other technical aspects of her performance and emulating them in order to provide a uniform product.

This was a wonderful conversation and certainly timely today. As we are now three rehearsals into this concert cycle, I thought it was important that students had a good handle on their role in the orchestra. I wanted them to know that sometimes they had to be they have to be self-motivated in terms of what the next step is. There was mention of the fact that in any rehearsal process one must move from focusing on the technical -  to the artistic - to process and, finally - to perspective. If you are interested in knowing more about my thoughts on this, please refer to my recent article, "What and How?"

Tomorrow we have sectional rehearsals!  Onward.

Peace

Scott

Interlochen ICO, First Day of 2nd Session

Today, Tuesday, July 18th, 2017, marked the first day of the second session of Interlochen Intermediate Concert Orchestra.  I was pleased for have a few days off following our concert on Friday and was very ready to get back to work  today!  It was a great pleasure to meet all of my new students today and we had a wonderful rehearsal. We rehearse most days in Grunow Hall which is located along the shores of Green Lake at Interlochen Arts Camp. Today was a warm day. While there are fans in the room, they blow our music all over the place. So, most days we go without major ventilation in the room other than open windows.  So, it can get a bit steamy in there.  But, what is a day of camp without a little discomfort, right? (We did keep the windows open today.)

We started today's rehearsal by introducing ourselves to the people on both sides of us and then got right to work. The first hour of rehearsal included faculty section leaders sitting at the front of the section, while everyone sight-read the new repertoire. I will post extensively on the repertoire that we prepare over the next three weeks in coming days. Today, during the first hour, we actually got through just about all of the repertoire that I have planned for the first program. This includes a Robert McCashin arrangement of Haydn's Symphony 104, Movement 1, a Sibelius Impromptu, a brand new piece by Peter Terry, entitled Ancient Light, for which we will perform the world premiere next Wednesday, and a wonderful Latin tune called Samba Me This by Tom Sharpe, which will feature Interlochen faculty members David Kay on sax and Alejandro Bernard on piano.

To begin the second hour, I had students get to know their stand partner a little better. I had each member of the orchestra introduce their stand partner, tell us where they are from, and tell us something interesting about them other than the instrument that they play. This is a great way to break the ice with a group of young musicians and is always great fun. Today we learned that we have athletes, scholars, bakers, readers, and folks who love to sleep. We also learned that we have a large contingent from New York City, Chicago, Indiana, and numerous other places within and outside of the United States.

We then began our work on the Haydn Symphony and Ancient Light. I feel like we have a good start on both pieces and asked the kids to spend a bit of time in the practice room tomorrow on each of them. We will hit the ground running tomorrow and look forward to our first performance next Wednesday. It is a great group of new students. There were lots of smiles today. I know the next 3 weeks will be a blast - full of great music-making, learning, and fun!

Peace.

Scott

Intermediate Concert Orchestra Repertoire: 2017 Concert #2

Today I would like to take a few minutes to outline the repertoire that the Intermediate Concert Orchestra at Interlochen will be performing on our second concert , Friday, July 14th , at 7 p.m. in Corson Auditorium on the Interlochen campus.  We have selected four pieces for this program and it is a total of just about 20 minutes of music. The pieces include the following:

• Lacrymosa from Requiem in D Minor, Mozart, arranged Loreta Fin
• Allegro con Brio from Symphony Number 8, First Movement, Dvorak, arranged Robert McCashin
• Praelude and Gavotte from the Holberg Suite for String Orchestra, Grieg 
• Reels and Reverie, Alan Lee Silva

We will open the program with Lacrymosa from Requiem in D Minor, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, arranged by Loreta Fin. This work is published by Wilfin Music. It is listed as a grade 3.5 and I think it will be a very interesting, if not unusual concert opener. It is an instrumental arrangement of the famous movement from Mozart's Requiem. It is in 12/8 time and provides an excellent opportunity to teach compound time to these fine young musicians. The primary pedagogical goals of this piece are include ensemble subdivision, dynamic contrast, and appropriate bow placement and style for the work. We have spent a great deal of time working on subdivision by 3 for the 12/8 time signature and maintaining the musical movement of the work. The tendency here is for young students to slow it down. A great deal of responsibility is laid on the string bass section. They have to be subdividing in their mind the entire time in order to drive the ensemble.  We have given a great deal of attention to the need for an exceptionally light and "wispy" bow stroke on the piano (quiet) sections. Students have been encouraged to consider the length and style of every notation in their part. The piece will have maximum impact if the dynamic contrasts are huge. This piece only lasts about 3 minutes . But, I think it'll be a wonderful and surprising opener for our program.

Next, we will brighten the mood with Robert McCashin's arrangement of Allegro con Brio from Symphony Number 8, first movement, by Antonin Dvorak. I frequently program arrangements by Robert McCashin because of his tendency to toward keeping much of the integrity and spirit of the original work. This one is certainly no exception. This is listed as a grade 4 and is published by the FJH Music Company. This arrangement starts with the beautiful cello section feature that is found in the original. It moves quickly to a section that features solo violin playing the famous flute solo from the original. The arrangement features wonderful and exciting allegro passages and most of the primary themes of the work. Some of the pedagogical challenges in this piece include phrasing, hooked bowing , maintaining dotted 8th/16th rhythmic integrity, and changes in tempo throughout the work. I have found that it was much easier to teach the style after having the entire ensemble listen to the original work. There are a number of bowings in the arrangement that I have changed. I have found that a hooked bow on many of the dotted 8th/16th passages works better than some of the editors choices.  This was a great opportunity to drive home the notion that these passages may not become triplets! In the end, this is a very exciting adaptation of Dvorak's original work and I think it will bring the house down this evening.

I originally planned to only program the Gavotte from the Holberg Suite for this ensemble. We put that movement together and I felt like it would be appropriate to challenge my students with an opportunity to perform another movement. I offered them a challenge to learn the Prelude and they rose to that challenge. So, I am pleased to do both of these movements. I won't spend a lot of time talking about the pedagogical challenges of Grieg's work , primarily because it is so well-known. The Gavotte offers many of opportunities to deal with antecedent/consequent melodic relationships, stark dynamic contrasts, and the Gavotte/Musette form (Minuet/Trio). This movement features each section of the orchestra and works very well for my current ensemble. The Prelude, of course, has many technical challenges and our students have worked hard to overcome all of them. Among those challenges , I would include the difficult viola passage following repeat,  the rhythmic underpinning of the entire work, and maintaining tempo. It is been a pleasure to watch these students rise to the occasion of this important staple of string orchestra repertoire.

We will finish our program with Reels and Reverie by Alan Lee Silva. This work is a grade 3.5 and is published by Carl Fischer. This is another work that features 12/8 time, albeit in a completely different style than the Mozart. This has an Irish feel to it and is a wonderful up-tempo, spirited closer for the program. There are two lyrical sections in the in the middle of the piece, giving it an A-B-A-C-A form . This is one of those works that just feels good to play. String players sense the inherent string-centric style and gravitate toward the fast moving, marked, rhythmic ideas. The two choral sections in the middle are lovely and the piece finishes syncopated ending that is reminiscent of Riverdance. This, like many of Alan Lee Silva's original compositions, is sure to be favorite of performers and audience alike.

So, this will give you a good feel for the program that we will be presenting this evening. I would recommend any in all of these works for other conductors and ensembles. It's been a pleasure to put them all together. You can watch our program this evening at 7 on the Interlochen live stream. 

Enjoy!

Peace.

Scott

Intermediate Concert Orchestra Repertoire: 2017 Concert #1

Each year, while it Interlochen, I try to post some thoughts without the repertoire that we are preparing. I am a little late in posting notes about our repertoire from our first concert. But, I will make up for it in this post. Look for a second post about our upcoming concert within the next day or so. 

For first concert we did three pieces: 

• Mendelssohn's Sinfonia Number 2 in D Major, Mvt. 1
• Water Reflections by Yukiko Nishimura.
• Heart of Fire by Lauren Bernofsky  

Felix Mendelssohn wrote his String Sinfonias between the years of 1821 through 1823. He was only in his early teens when he wrote these works for string orchestra as part of a music composition assignment. This year, I selected the first movement of Sinfonia number 2. It is an Allegro in D Major and features a wonderful rhythmic verve and strong independence in each of the voices. I have done a number of String Symfonias by Mendelssohn over the years, but this was the first time I have conducted this movement of this piece. It was perfect for the Intermediate Concert Orchestra.  The real challenge in this piece, after learning the notes and general style that is appropriate for the work, is to have the students find and sense the role of their voice within the context of the greater work. Sometimes the students are in the lead and are playing the primary motive. Other times they are providing background harmonic or rhythmic information. (Or both!) The other great challenge in this piece is to have the students demonstrate the more subtle musical lines within the overall dynamic scheme of the piece. Rise and fall of melodic line means everything to the overall impact that the piece can have. It all, I am very pleased with the way the students prepared and performed this lovely work.

Next, we did Water Reflections, by Yukiko Nishimura. This is listed as a grade 3.5 and is published by Carl Fischer. When I first heard this piece, I knew that I had to perform it at Interlochen Kresge Hall. One of the most amazing experiences I've ever had as a conductor is conducting at Kresge. As I am looking at the ensemble in every concert, I can look past them, through huge plate glass windows, to the beautiful Green Lake behind the hall with boats, water skiers, sails, birds , and a generally beautiful setting while conducting. So, this gorgeous piece with a title of Water Reflections was absolutely appropriate for this setting and ensemble. This piece begins with an Andante section that is lush and beautiful . It provides ample opportunity to teach expression, bow use, and advanced ensemble technique. It then moves to a happy-go-lucky Piu Mosso that includes interesting syncopated rhythmic drive and a light moving violin part. It then returns to Tempo 1 and finishes out after a very interesting transitional section. The work ends with some well-placed pizzicato notes that remind the listener of drops of water falling into a pond or puddle at the end of the day. This piece will become a staple of my repertoire. I absolutely love the sounds and opportunities for teaching that are found within this work.

We rounded out our first concert with Heart of Fire by Interlochen composition faculty member Lauren Bernofsky. I wrote about this work extensively in a previous post, Composer Visit . So, I won't repeat myself here. This is listed as a Grade 3 work and is published by FJH Publishing. The work features a Vivaldi like opening and closing with a more lyrical middle section with a wonderful cello solo feature. Please see my previous post for more on this wonderful work. It, too, will become a staple of my repertoire.

I will be writing about our current repertoire within the next day or so. Our second concert of the season is tomorrow, July 14, 6:30 p.m. Please refer to the Interlochen live stream link to see the program. 

Peace.

Scott

Amazing Staff

Makenzie Wade, Stage Services; Saralyn Klepaczyk, Orchestra Manager; Annie Swigart, Librarian

Today I want to take some time to recognize our amazing Intermediate Concert Orchestra staff.
For those of you that are teachers in public schools or of school orchestra programs, you know that we spend a great deal of time buying, organizing, and filing music, organizing our music library, setting up chairs, creating programs, and doing all kinds of other administrative work. Here at Interlochen, one of the great joys of conducting an orchestra is working with a wonderful staff of young professionals who are charged with doing all of the administrative and set up work for my orchestra.

Truly, I feel like a king each day when I am asked, "What else do you need, Mr. Laird?" These wonderful staff members truly desire to serve the orchestra and my needs as the conductor and I appreciate all of their hard work and dedication.   I have three staff members each summer. This year I have been blessed with wonderful folks every year that I've been at Interlochen. This year is certainly no exception and my staff truly stands out as exceptional.

They include Saralyn Klepaczyk, Orchestra Manager; Annie Swigart, Librarian; and Makenzie Wade, Stage Services. Each one of these young professionals serves an integral role in our orchestra's mission on a daily basis.

Saralyn, our Orchestra manager, is wonderful. She is responsible for all of the daily details of the Ensemble. She takes attendance, makes daily announcements, deals with students who need extra attention, rounds the kids up after breaks in rehearsal, and serves as a liaison between the music department and the Student Life division of the camp. Sarah essentially handles all of the nitty-gritty details of the day-to-day work of the orchestra so that I don't have to. If we need to contact a student's counselor, she takes care of it. Just this week we have been trying to find a percussionist for one of our pieces and it has been her job to take care of that. I couldn't ask for a more dedicated, sensitive and caring person to fill this role.  I have quickly learned that I can count on Saralyn to be sensitive to student needs, articulate in every way, and interested in real conversation when it comes to what is best for both students and for the ensemble.

Our librarian, Annie, is responsible for everything related to the printed music that the students are using every day. She organized all of the repertoire before camp began. She makes sure that the parts are bowed and accurate. She distributes the music at the beginning of the concert cycle and collects the music immediately following each concert. She also handles any small details regarding the music such as providing extra pages to avoid page turns and other details. Annie also is on hand and  available for just about any need throughout each rehearsal. One day last week we had a sick student and I needed her to walk with them to the camp medical office. It is so great to have her on hand during every rehearsal.  And, the printed music is always exactly as it should be!

Makenzie is a member of our Stage Services division and has been assigned to our primary rehearsal space, Grunow Hall. So, she has quickly become an integral part of the Intermediate Concert Orchestra staff. Makenzie is wonderful! She has such a wonderful disposition and is a pleasure to interact with every day. She is responsible for making sure that the ensemble chairs and stands are set up properly for each rehearsal. She's also responsible for any auxiliary instruments that we may be using including piano, percussion, or other instruments. Orchestra setup may seem like a small thing, but it is so wonderful to walk into the room each day with the right number of chairs and stands all placed beautifully in the right position. I frequently joke that 75% the orchestra directors job is moving furniture. At Interlochen, that 75% falls on Makenzie's shoulders! Makenzie is incredibly dedicated and makes sure that everything is ready to go.

These three wonderful young professionals make my job easy everyday. As a result of their work, I can truly focus on the task of teaching the students in the orchestra and making music each day. Thanks to each of these three and to Interlochen for providing such wonderful staff members for me and all of the conductors at this amazing place!

Concert tomorrow!

Peace.

Scott

Intermediate Concert Orchestra Section Faculty

Intermediate Concert Orchestra Section Faculty

Left to Right: Aaron Tenney, David Carter, Jane Schranze, Brittni Brown, 

Scott Laird, Graham Emberton

Today I want to highlight our awesome Intermediate Concert Orchestra Section Faculty.  We are fortunate at Interlochen to have a magnificent faculty of some of the finest musicians and teachers in the country. In every orchestra there is a faculty member assigned to each section. That faculty member runs sectional rehearsals and frequently comes to orchestra rehearsals to take note of the work that is being done and give instructions specific to that instrument or voice. Every year we have wonderful folks and I wanted to take a minute to thank and highlight this year's section faculty.  

In ICO, we welcome our Section Faculty to the first hour of rehearsal on Tuesday and Thursday.  We call these "side-by-side" rehearsals.  During this time the faculty member sits in the section and plays along with the orchestra. They hear what the orchestra is doing, how their section is responding musically, and have opportunities to offer suggestions and insights into the repertoire and technical aspects of the works. These are wonderful collaborative rehearsals and I value their input very much. I believe that our students find this time to be fun and exciting. There is nothing like sitting beside your teacher while in a rehearsal. I believe I learned more about orchestral playing sitting beside my college violin instructor than in any other class. I do my best to rotate our students so that as many as possible have the opportunity to sit beside their teacher.

Additionally, on Fridays, the orchestra students have a one-hour sectional rehearsal with their section faculty member. At this time the section focuses on their specific part and the faculty member offers specific suggestions on bowing, fingering, specific techniques, and other aspects of the music. Sectional rehearsals are absolutely vital to the life of an orchestra. That is certainly the case here. A great deal of progress gets made individually and corporately in these rehearsals.

For more information on each of these fine musicians:

Dr. Brittni Brown, violin

Graham Emberton, violin

Jane Schranze, viola

Dr. David Carter, cello

Aaron Tenney, String Bass

This will give you some insights into the folks that are working with our students this summer.  They are a wonderful group and we certainly have some magnificent teaching going on here.  I want to personally thank each of these folks for their investment in the Intermediate Concert Orchestra.

Peace.
Scott

Essence

Last week in rehearsal we began talking about the concept of finding the essence of difficult passages in the repertoire. This is a rehearsal technique that I have been developing over the past several years and wanted to introduce to this fine ensemble. This technique is by no means uniquely mine. But, I believe I have created some wrinkles in the technique that allow for greater learning by each member of the ensemble, regardless of their technical proficiency.   (If you heard the Mendelssohn Sinfonia last night, you heard this without knowing it.)

In virtually every ensemble there is some range of technical ability exhibited by the members of the group. There will almost always be some who grasp the most difficult technical passages quickly and others who take longer to learn the passages or, perhaps even find those passages to be above their technical capabilities. This is the case this week and virtually every summer here in the Intermediate Concert Orchestra. Again, I would stress that this is the case in most youth and community orchestras.

So, as music directors, we have one of two choices. We can either program all music in which everyone in the ensemble can play every technical passage. Or, we can give the musicians tools for seeing the deeper meaning in passages and finding ways to adapt technically so that they are enhancing the orchestral performance, not detracting from it. In several of the conducting situations in which I find myself, the latter is the better choice. (Let me stress to young teachers that sometimes the former is the better choice. It depends on your particular situation and requires great thought in reference to the goals of the ensemble and the type of musician that you are reaching.)

My friend, conductor Scott Speck, put it this way: think of a meter in front of the orchestra. For every right note you play the meter goes to the right. That is good! For every wrong note you play, the meter goes to the left.  That is bad. If you don't play anything the meter stays straight up and down. No harm done. The goal for each musician is to make the meter go to the right constantly. That said, by not playing a wrong note, the meter is not impacted. I am trying to get young musicians to make that meter go to the right. If they play in correct rhythms or incorrect pitches, that meter goes in the wrong direction. It is hard to convince young musicians that they are helping The Ensemble by leaving stuff out. So, in response to this I created this rehearsal technique. If done correctly, the musicians that ought the for playing the essence not only serve a benign role of not hurting the ensemble. They also help the ensemble by stabilizing rhythmic and pitch information for the other players.

I called my technique finding the ESSENCE of a passage.  It works like this:

Many times in the repertoire there will be very fast passages of 16th notes, difficult fingerings or shifts or, perhaps, very high notes that are technically challenging. I can always tell from the podium when there are students who are struggling to keep up with the ensemble.  It is at this point that I invite the ensemble to step back, listen to the passage, think about the passage, and ascertain the essence of the passage. Sometimes when we are simply seeing a difficult fast passage or technical requirements that are above our level, it's easy to get lost in the forest and missed the trees. Many times in a sixteenth note passage the essence is the first note of the 16th . Or, perhaps if the passage is very high and require shifting on the part of the string player, simply taking note of the name of the note can be an enlightening activity. I always say that correct pitches are way more important than high notes. A pitch that is difficult to find up high on the fingerboard is better off being played an octave lower in a position that is accessible to a less-experienced string player.

In addition to finding these essence passages when left hand is in focus, I will also look for rhythmic essence at times. If an ensemble is struggling with a rhythmic passage, I try to look for the fundamental rhythms and break the difficulties down into manageable pieces. Sometimes this means adding sixteenth notes to a tricky eighth note passage that may be rushing or slowing down. Sometimes it means just finding the accented notes in a fast passage. Other times, it means clarifying who is providing the rhythmic information in the passage.  Really, it is the same process: find the technically difficult passage and break it down into manageable parts that still fit into the greater work.  After a while, musicians get quite good at doing this!

Please bear in mind that these are my values as a conductor and ensemble leader.  My thinking might be different if I was working as a private instructor on solo repertoire.  As a conductor, my ultimate goal is an accurate and moving performance.

Once I have established exactly what the essence of a passage includes, we go to work on using it meaningfully.

• We play the essence passage by itself. 
• We add the rest of the ensemble playing the actual part while the section in question is playing the essence. 
• Sometimes I will have the outside player play the written part and the inside player do the essence. 
• I will then reverse that. 
• Sometimes I will have the front three stands play the written part and the rest of the section play the essence. 

I typically give musicians the choice as to what they will play in a concert. In other words, a student might play The essence in rehearsal for several weeks while they are perfecting the difficult passage. I always make it clear that I would prefer essence in performance over a sloppy technically difficult passage. Essence always makes the ensemble stronger. Wrong notes make the ensemble weaker.  And, I always remind students that no one in the audience will have any idea that they are playing something other than what is written in the part.  At the core is the notion that each players' responsibility is to make the ensemble better!  Sometimes that means playing the essence.

So, this is a brief description of my thoughts on finding Essence in Ensemble repertoire. Sometimes it is absolutely imperative that this be defined and that students know that they can use it as a purposeful tool as part of the rehearsal process and perhaps even part of the performance . I welcome your comments and thoughts on the subject.

Until next time.

Peace.

Scott

What? and How?

This week in Intermediate Concert Orchestra, in the days prior to our performance, I asked my students to consider what inspires them when they see and hear a great orchestra and how can we work to emulate that in our performances.

Response: I can see Passion and Emotion in the performance.

The response that I received from my students was primarily that they can see and hear passion in a great performance and that they could see and hear emotion in a great performance. This interested me a great deal because neither of these words have anything to do with the difficulty of the repertoire being performed or the technical prowess or capabilities of the players.  My students (and all music consumers) want to be moved by a performance.  The want the performers to feel something and they want to in turn feel something.

How do we show or achieve passion in performance?

The larger question, of course, is what do we need to do to give that same experience to our audience. When I asked that question, the answer was significantly less clear. The students know what they want to see and here, but were certainly not sure how to get to the point of giving that to their audiences. They definitely knew that the first step was to play the right notes. They also had a good sense of the importance of finding the inner dynamic motion of a piece of music. So, I knew that I had begun to do my job as their conductor. These, of course, are the first steps in developing a fine ensemble. Students must know and demonstrate correct notes and rhythms, they must play with the appropriate technique, and the must know and demonstrate the shaping of phrases and dynamic contrasts . This, however, is still not the end of the process. There is so much more that an ensemble can achieve in order to truly demonstrate passion and emotion inner performance.

I have been reflecting on these same questions throughout the week. I want to be able to articulate a model to my students which they can fall back on in their process of preparing music . They are all at various stages of working towards a goal of artistry and greater proficiency on their instrument . But, if they don't have a sense of the path to giving passionate, emotional performances , it is possible that they will be less than purposeful in their practice and rehearsals. So, I have come up with a simple model that can begin to tell the story of this process.

I believe that an artistic, moving performance requires the following:

• Technique
• Artistry
• Purpose
• Perspective

Obviously, the technique aspect goes without saying. Many music students never get past this. The musician must focus on so many aspects of technique in their practice time. They must isolate various techniques in their practice. For a string player, this includes intonation, fingering, vibrato, bow hand and arm, bow technique, tone production, posture, intonation, shifting and many many more. As I said, it's easy to get stuck right here and never get past it. Technique is the first key to giving a moving performance.

Next, I would include all of the aspects of artistry. This includes shaping phrases, adjustments and variations of tone quality, dynamic contrast , fluency, and many more.  This is where the young musician begins to find a voice as a an artist. Their music begins to take on a personality and the process of true communication with the audience begins.

Now we get into the nitty-gritty . I list purpose next. Purpose, from an ensemble perspective, is having a clear understanding of the role of each instrument at every given time in the context of the piece. Everyone must know when they have the melody or a supporting role. They must know the purpose of each line , motive, and passage in the repertoire. Sometimes their voice must be the lead. Sometimes their voice is a response to a question. Sometimes their voice provides rhythmic underpinning. Sometimes a voice provides harmonic underpinning. Sometimes they are plaing the role of another instrument.  They must know when the tempo stretches and when it pushes. And, they must know how to demonstrate these variations within the piece.These larger questions in the preparation of ensemble and solo repertoire are vital. If a musician performs an ensemble piece in a vacuum, without regard to their role and the role of others, they really can't be part of a moving performance which requires that they interact with the other voices.

I would consider perspective to be a greater understanding of the history of a composition, the artistic possibilities of the composition, and a desire to emote all of the possible responses to the listener in both a sonic and physical way. I believe that listeners of live music take cues not only from the aural information that they are receiving, but also from the physiological information that they are receiving. We must look the part in order to convey the message. We must know the message before we can look the part. This, of course is not a fully objective task. This is where a great deal of subjective concepts and decisions come into play. It gets a little abstract. And, thus, can be a roadblock for a young artist.I was talking with a friend last night who was a jazz musician. He was telling me that in order for a jazz musician to perform a great ballad well, they must know the lyrics to the song. This, is perspective.  In order to perform an instrumental piece as a soloist, or as an ensemble, everyone must have a unified perspective on exactly what they are saying.

Almost 10 years ago, I gave a session to the American String Teachers Association and many other state organizations entitled "The Art of Developing Passionate Ensembles."  For that presentation, I developed the following model. It stated that in order to develop a passionate ensemble, the teacher/director had to provide and model the following criteria:

• The importance of the experience and the relationships between the members of the ensemble
• A safe artistic chemistry and environment in the rehearsal
• A clear understanding of the importance and value of the experience
• A clear demonstration of the human value and overall humanity of the process.
• The importance of the investment of self in the process

I feel like, after a decade, I still adhere to this model as an instructor.  I find it interesting that I don't list the technical aspects of the whole musician in this model at all.  I think that I believed it was understood. And, I find the variation in the models to be interesting especially as one is directed particularly at the person in the ensemble and the other is directed at the one leading the ensemble.  It is, I believe, an important distinction.

I will continue to consider these models as I move through the summer with ICO. I will continue to challenge the ICO musicians with these concepts. I will also bring them to my work in the fall at the North Carolina School of Science and Math. I welcome your input and thoughts on these and look forward to possibly hearing from some of you.

Here's to many passionate, emotional performances as we all move forward.

Peace.

Scott

Saturday is "Moving Day"

Today is Saturday at Interlochen Summer Arts Camp and that can only mean one thing for the Intermediate Concert Orchestra. Today is MOVING DAY.

So, you must be wondering what I mean by "Moving Day." No, we are not moving to a new rehearsal space. No, I am not moving to a different orchestra. And, no, we are not going to rehearse while walking around campus. While all of these sound interesting and fun, moving day has a completely different meaning for me and this ensemble.  Moving Day actually has three meanings.

First, Saturday always feels like a bonus rehearsal day to me. We have put in a full week and Saturday seems like it ought to be part of the weekend. While that is the case in many places, it is not the case at Interlochen. Saturday is a regular rehearsal and class day, so I always feel like this 2 hour 50 minute rehearsal is bonus. It is an opportunity to make a significant move in our preparation for our upcoming concert.  And, I always feel like we make strides that are over and above my expectations.  Thus, Saturday at Interlochen is always "moving day" in my mind.

Second, I always try to focus on physical movement during Saturday's rehearsal . We will work on visual and physical cues within sections and throughout the orchestra. We will work on showing a physical representation of pulse and beat preparation, especially for, but not limited to, entrances. We will work for each member of the ensemble to play with a physicality that expresses the character of the music and offers a richer ensemble experience for each member of the orchestra and the audience.

Third, Moving Day represents a focus on movement of lines or the direction of melodic material in the repertoire. We will work hard to find the inner dynamic direction of every phrase in our repertoire. Students will be encouraged to see how lines that are ascending frequently need to grow in dynamic level and descending lines often dissipate in dynamic level. Those of you that know my teaching, know that I often refer to lines with the designation approach, arrive, or depart. That concept will be a big part of today's rehearsal.

And so, today is "Moving Day."   I look forward to seeing the kids and celebrating the end of Week 1 of camp.  It has been a good week!

Peace.
Scott

(PS: Earlier this week, I asked the students to consider what inspires them when they hear a great orchestra.  And, how do we achieve that same effect.  I haven't really had time to follow up on that discussion.  It will certainly be part of today's rehearsal as well.  I will let you know what I learn!)

Heart of Fire Composer Visit

Today in Intermediate Concert Orchestra at Interlochen Summer Arts Camp, we welcomed composer, Lauren Bernofsky to our rehearsal. She is the composer of Heart of Fire, a string orchestra work that we are currently preparing for a performance on July 5  at Interlochen Kresge Auditorium. This 2012 publication is a wonderful string orchestra piece and we were thrilled to take advantage of the opportunity to have the composer join us for a rehearsal today.

The rehearsal began with opening remarks from Dr. Bernofsky. She told us about her educational background, how she became a composer, and the motivation behind this piece. It was commissioned by the Bennett's Mill Middle School, under the direction of Patti Davis, in Fayetteville, GA. It is published by FJH Music Company and is listed as a Grade III work. The inspiration for the piece was the basic style of  a Vivaldi Allegro and we also learned that there was a call for a featured cello solo.

Following her opening remarks, the orchestra played the piece for Bernofsky. We then proceeded to rehearse the piece with her comments as the centerpiece of the work for the day. We worked on the overarching style, balance of the ensemble, dynamics and dynamic contrasts, and a number of other important musical issues embedded in the work.

We finished the rehearsal with a brief Q&A session with the composer. As part of the time together we learned about the background of the title, how composer royalties work, publishing and copyright, and a number of other issues related to the profession of music composition.

In all, it was a wonderful 90 minutes of rehearsal and conversation. I firmly believe that all of the students left rehearsal with a new perspective on music composition and this piece specifically. I wish to thank Lauren Bernofsky for taking the time to come to our rehearsal and to share her insights with the ensemble. What a valuable day of rehearsal and music making it was! We have so many opportunities here at Interlochen for these types of interactions. Today was truly memorable!

Tomorrow, I will joining her composition classes here at the camp and sharing some of my perspectives as a string educator. I look forward to returning this favor and to a wonderful morning tomorrow.

Peace.

Scott

When Expectations are Exceeded

Isn't it a great feeling when you walk into a project expecting one thing and your expectations are completely exceeded?!

Well, this happened to me today. You see, today was the second day of rehearsals for the Intermediate Concert Orchestra at Interlochen Summer Arts Camp. Yesterday, our first rehearsal was fine. I met the students and we sight-read two of the pieces that I selected for the first concert. The kids did great. I always like to start with music that isn't too difficult for students on this age: something that everyone can read or at least feel confident that they can prepare in the course of the week. Going too difficult too fast can be demoralizing for some students and I wanted to make sure that everyone knew that there was a place for them in this ensemble. They took in all of the information that was given and worked very hard through a two-hour morning rehearsal. I walked away from the rehearsal feeling very good about those two pieces, but I was a little concerned that another piece I selected would be too hard for them.

Today, for the first hour of rehearsal, I had the pleasure of welcoming my faculty colleagues that will be running sectional rehearsals into my my large group rehearsal. They are magnificent professionals from all around the United States, most of whom I have worked with on numerous occasions previously. When they come to this rehearsal early in camp, I simply have them sit in the first chair position of each section and play along with the ensemble, occasionally demonstrating or remarking on various parts in the repertoire. Today was no different. We started with the two pieces that we had worked on yesterday. I had assigned these pieces to the students to practice overnight. The kids did a great job and the run-through with the faculty went great. After these were done I decided to read the more difficult work. This is Mendelssohn's Sinfonia 2 in D Major. The Mendelssohn Sinfonias are wonderful works for string orchestra that Felix Mendelssohn composed during his teenage years. But, don't be fooled. They can be quite difficult to pull off in a student orchestral setting.

To my pleasant surprise, the first read-through of the first movement went very well. I decided next to simply run it a second time with the faculty members again leading each section. We did so and then, to end the first hour of rehearsal, I had the faculty members perform the first part of the first movement for the kids. I wanted the students to hear and see all of the best practices that these magnificent colleagues would demonstrate to end that portion of rehearsal. I couldn't help but to smile as they demonstrated such beautiful ensemble and individual musicianship. It was a great example for the kids.

We took our break, said goodbye to my faculty colleagues, and I decided that we would spend the next hour wood-shedding the Mendelssohn. As I often do, I spent the second hour of rehearsal with my instrument in hand, demonstrating parts and helping the students get an early feel for the style and technical demands of the work of the work.

The second hour of rehearsal flew by and by the time we finished, we had framed out the exposition and had begun the slow process of learning the development. Much was accomplished and the benefit of having my colleagues in the first hour of rehearsal was certainly palpable.

We finished out our final portion of rehearsal reviewing the two pieces that we had begun the day before. Everybody left with a huge smile on their face and I believe that the students felt proud of their accomplishments. I know I was very pleased. My expectations has certainly been exceeded. I really didn't think that the Mendelssohn would be within our reach after the first rehearsal. That said, the students dug in and really impressed me today. Now, I am considering doing more than just the first movement. I challenged the students to come back tomorrow with the first movement under their fingers. I told them that if they did so, I would consider starting the second movement as well. Wouldn't it be great if we could perform all three movements by the end of the three-week camp!

And so it goes. Sometimes our expectations are exceeded. It's the greatest feeling. Isn't it? And in many ways, that's what happens here in Interlochen. Students are challenged and they rise to the occasion.

What surprises will be in store for me tomorrow?  I wonder!

Peace.

Scott

Getting Started

Today marks the first day of rehearsals for my 7th season as conductor of Interlochen's Intermediate Concert Orchestra and for all of the ensembles for the 2017 summer season. I am excited to get started with my group and woke up this morning with a great amount of energy and anticipation for the coming day. I know that this will prove to be a wonderful summer of music-making and learning. I can't wait to meet my students and begin to learn who they are and what they are about.

I began my morning with my (third) cup of coffee out at the dock on the lake in front of my cabin. I looked to the north and saw grey clouds with a little bit of sunshine peeking through. I look to the south and saw blue sky and white clouds. I couldn't help but to reflect on the beauty of this place and the wonderful life that I live as a musician , teacher, and artist . I'm feeling blessed this morning.

On Saturday we had our opening faculty meeting. It was a wonderful reunion of magnificent friends and colleagues. I always love this meeting because so many of us are coming back together after a year of successes, trials, and arts events . We get to catch up on all of this personal and professional experience and renew our deep and lasting friendships . There is also always a great anticipation of the work and fun ahead of us and the incredible art that is about to be created. This gathering is always a highlight for me.

This year, Interlochen has a new president, Trey Devey. He is truly just days into his tenure at Interlochen. We met him and heard his opening remarks. I feel confident that he will bring a deep respect for the institution and tradition along with new perspective, ideas, and energy to this special place. I feel certain that we are in good hands moving forward.

We also heard opening remarks from Ted Farraday, Interlochen's Vice President of Education Programs.  I always look forward to Ted's remarks at the beginning of Camp. I have actually written about them before in a previous post. He has an incredible ability to cut to the chase on our goals and motivations for teaching and promoting the arts . This year was no different.  I take notes on his remarks every year and this one was no different.  He reminded us the the best teaching occurs when we ask questions.  Not just "who, what and where."  The important questions are "why and how?" 

He also articulated this idea:

There are really only 2 kinds of questions:

What?
The response to this is facts and information.  In this information age, this is readily accessed.  Important, but accessible.

and

So what?
Why do we care?  This cuts right to the human condition.  Thinking has to take place.
This question requires more time and consideration.

We know this as teachers, but it is always good to be reminded.  Our content is important. Notes, rhythm, technique, and history all matter.  But, the inspiration and thought that gives the content relevance to the human condition is where real arts learning and inspiration occurs.

Ted also encouraged us to be thoughtful when meeting folks for the first time.  Ask them, "What's happening?" "What's important right now?" "How can I support you?"

Wow. What a wonderful charge to start the summer. These are the questions I will be asking my students and colleagues.  See?  This is why I can't wait to get here and get started each summer.

To add to all of this anticipation, I am also digging into a thought provoking book that I will be writing about in coming days.  It is Beethoven: His Spiritual Development, by J.W.N Sullivan.  I was cleaning out some bookshelves at NCSSM before coming to Michigan and ran across this 1927 publication.  The title totally intrigued me and I had to stick it in my backpack and bring it with me.

This book looks at art, expression, interpretation, and, of course, Beethoven's life and works in interesting ways and will certainly provide a great deal of food for thought for me in the first week or so of camp.

Time to go to rehearsal.  More later!

Peace.

Scott

Interlochen 2017

Hi friends!

I arrived at Interlochen yesterday to begin my 7th season as conductor of Intermediate Concert Orchestra.  I am really looking forward to another great summer in Northern Michigan at this special site where the Arts are celebrated and experienced in such profound ways.  I am honored to play just a small role in the community here.

Throughout the summer I will be posting here.  I will discuss ideas, repertoire, and experiences that come up throughout the season.  This morning we had our first faculty gathering and students are beginning to arrive.  You can feel the excitement in the air.

So many students and faculty find their experience here to be life-changing.  I know that I have over the years in specific and broad ways.  I am sure that I will change this summer as well.  It will certainly be a fun ride!

I hope that you will take the journey with me.

Peace.
Scott

More Habits

A few weeks ago I published a post entitled Five Habits of Successful Musicians. A few days after that post was published, I was discussing it with my orchestra at Interlochen. The kids listened with great interest and really took the notes to heart. Following my remarks, the kids begin adding their own suggestions of habits that are important for successful orchestral musicians. I promised them that I would publish them as soon as I had some time to sit down and write the article. So, here it is. More Habits of Successful Orchestral Musicians as discussed by the Interlochen Intermediate Concert Orchestra in the summer of 2016.  The habit and the person that suggested it are in bold, followed by my commentary.

1. Stop playing immediately when the conductor stops conducting. ~Abigail. 

Nothing derails a rehearsal faster than students playing past the conductor's direction and wastes valuable time. It is such a good habit to stop immediately. Also, by playing beyond the conductor's direction, there really is a question as to whether the musician is truly mentally with the ensemble. Great advice!

2. Listen to each other at all times. ~Yael

It seems so simple. But, listening is key. So often, students get tied up in reading the notes and the part that they forget to listen. This habit must be developed very early in a young musician’s life.

3. Mark Your Parts independently without being prompted. ~Alma. 

Student who mark their parts independently are clearly demonstrating that they're thinking independently. Ultimately, that is the goal in any orchestra rehearsal. We want students to be independent musicians that are tied into the greater good of the group. And, we want them to mark their part so much that it will be impossible for them to make the same mistake the next time.

4. Ask questions when you are confused. ~Julietta.

This is such great advice. So often, if the student has a question, they worry about being the only one with that question. The fact is, if one student has a question, probably many are thinking the same thing. As hard as conductors try to be clear, sometimes it just doesn't happen. Ask questions when you're confused. More than likely, others need that answer as well.  We can handle it!

5. Practice the most difficult parts first outside of class. ~Charlie.

Human nature is funny. We want to practice the things that sound the best. The fact of the matter is that we don't need to practice the stuff we already can play. Go directly to the most difficult passages and practice them first when your attention is at its highest. Practice them slowly and accurately. Then go back and play the stuff that you can play well and like to play. Those passages are much better held until later in the practice session.

6. Make a plan for turning Pages. ~Katelyn.

So often, student musicians turn pages way too late. The inside player should always stop well in advance of the page turn and be prepared to get that page turned before the downbeat of the first measure of the new page. It is always the inside player's responsibility. Anytime the outside player feels compelled to turn the page, the inside player has dropped the ball. This is standard etiquette of orchestral playing and should be adhered to in every situation.

7. Be prepared for every entrance two bars early. ~Gloria.

I always instruct my ensembles to have instruments up and ready to play two bars before any entrance. This consistency helps everyone in the section know exactly when to enter. If someone has lost track of a long series of rests to be counted, they can jump back in if the entire section is bringing their instruments up exactly to bars early. Consistency is the key here.

8. Bring water to rehearsal. ~Eva. 

I am not sure that I would have included this in my list. But, at Interlochen where we were making the list, it is close to 100 degrees in many of the rehearsal spaces during the summer months. Hydration is absolutely key for these kids. And, as I think about it, having a bottle of water on the floor is actually a pretty good idea in any rehearsal setting. As long as it doesn't distract from the rehearsal, a sip of water can be quite refreshing in the middle of rehearsal and can actually provide a little bit of extra energy toward the end of a long rehearsal. 

9. Mark your mistakes so you can go back and practice them later. ~Eva.

It is always good to put a little note in the music on passages that need to be reviewed. This, again, demonstrates independent thinking and musicianship. Anything that makes practice more efficient is always welcomed by a conductor!

10. Look through the section not just at the conductor. ~Julietta. 

Musicians that get in the habit of looking not only at the conductor, but also at the front stand and those around them tend to be the most accomplished ensemble musicians. They should be paying attention to the bow placement of those around them, bow direction, style, articulation, and many other facets of the ensemble's work. This would include those in their own section and those in other sections around them.

11. Breathe into phrases. ~Yael

I always ask section players to breathe into every entrance, just as if they were playing in a string quartet. Every player is the conductor.  That breath and preparation into a phrase is vital to strong ensemble performances. And, it is a great habit to take to the chamber ensemble as well. (By the way, soloists need to develop this as well!)

12. Look the part.   Play the role.  ~Yael.

I always tell students that if they don't look like they know what they're doing, they probably don't. The first step is always to look good in an ensemble. That means sitting on the front edge of the chair, having feet firmly planted on the ground, and holding the instrument in a beautiful, perfect playing position. Other aspects of looking the part include bow hold, position relative to the conductor, general posture, and many others.

I hope that you find these helpful and encourage you to share them with your students.  What have we forgotten?  Please share your thoughts in the comments section.  

Best wishes for a successful 2016-2017 academic year!!

Peace.

Scott

ICO 2016 Interlochen Final Concert

Before I close the door on my 2016 Interlochen experience, I want to make sure that I say a few words about the repertoire that I selected for our final concert of the season. That concert actually took place several weeks ago.  I am sorry I didn't post about it prior to the performance. I do, however I encourage you to check out the audio recordings of the concert at the Interlochen Public Radio website. I will attach the link here as soon as it is available.

For this concert we did 5 selections.

We began the program with Mandolina by Gabrielle Faure, arranged by Tom Sharp. Those of you that know me, know that I frequently perform alt styles works arranged and composed by Tom Sharpe. This, however, is a wonderful piece by Faure, originally scored for piano and soprano solo. Tom Sharpe has brilliantly arranged it for string orchestra. Let me Begin by saying that this is a pretty difficult work. We actually had to modify some of the viola and cello parts to accommodate some of the less experienced players in the Intermediate Concert Orchestra. That said, it was quite easy to transcribe the bass line for these areas of the piece. This work includes beautiful melodies for each section of the string orchestra. It begins with a lovely soaring cello line and then hands the melody off to the violins. The B section is led by the violas. The melody then returns to the cellos  featured on the A' section to the end. I must say that this addition does require a good deal of editing. The bowings also must be modified for young orchestra in order to make the phrasing really speak. Also, it takes some time to really figure out who has the melody at any given moment and how the accompaniment parts fit in underneath the melody. That said, when all assembled, this is an absolutely beautiful work. I would rate this as about a grade 5 piece. It is absolutely stunning when performed.

For our second piece, I continued with the French theme. We performed the Minuet from Le Tombeau de Couperin, by Maurice Ravel, arranged by Carrie Lane Gruselle. I became aware of this work 2 years ago at a new music reading session that ASTA presented in North Carolina. It is a little outside the box of what I would normally Program for young orchestra. Each voice in the string orchestra is very independent and it requires attention to dynamic detail, as well as attention to details in phrasing, bow technique, hooked bowing, and other techniques associated with the impressionistic period. This piece features lovely melodies in each section and requires students to be very cognizant of conductors' nuances in the stick. The B section of this work features a muted string section performing a haunting minor melody.

Third, the orchestra presented the world premiere of Peter Terry's Blindsighted. You can see my notes on this piece in my previous post.

Following that, we performed the world premiere of another String orchestra work. This piece, the Colosseum, by Macenna Hanson held a place very near and dear to my heart. Miss Hanson, you see, was the concertmaster of this very ensemble during the summer of 2015. She approached me at the beginning of the summer of 2016 and informed me that she was now a composition major at the Interlochen Arts Camp. She told me that she had been working on a piece for string orchestra. I offered to read the piece in one of my rehearsals and she enthusiastically accepted the offer. After looking at the score and hearing a midi recording of the work, I offered to spend some time on the piece and see if it might be performable. It became clear very quickly that this piece would be a favorite of the students and myself and we could certainly perform it on the stage of Kresge Auditorium. Of course, Macenna was thrilled and we, in fact, performed the world premiere of that work on our concert. It was such a thrill and pleasure to perform a work by a young composer and see her hard work come to fruition in such a magnificent performance space.

Our fifth and final selection for this concert was Bert Ligon's Bossa Rojo for string orchestra. This is a wonderful, light bossa style piece for string orchestra that features opportunities for teaching articulation, improvisation, and pop style playing for young string orchestras. This piece is a grade 3.5 and is truly a pleasure to perform. The melodies have been stuck in my head for the past several weeks! We decided to feature Interlochen faculty piano instructor, Alejandro Bernard  Papachryssanthou on the electronic keyboard as part of this performance. He added a solo on keyboards that was a true face melter! What a blast! It was a wonderful way to end the 2016 concert season for the Intermediate Concert Orchestra.

Again, I encourage you to check out the recordings of these pieces. I could not have been any happier with our performances. I look forward to continuing to write about repertoire that I select for the various orchestras I am working with in coming weeks and months.

Until next time.

Peace.

Scott