Jim Hirsch's blog
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Tue, 04/29/2008 - 7:19am.
A couple of strange things have crossed my computer screen this week and I would really love to get your opinion about them.
Earlier this week a friend emailed me an article about a robot conducting an orchestra. Okay, hold the jokes about conductors for a second. Honda’s ASIMO humanoid robot will take command of the baton in Detroit on May 13 and will conduct the Detroit Symphony Orchestra as it performs Impossible Dream to open a concert performance featuring cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
I think we can all agree that robots are unlikely to replace humans on the podium anytime soon. What’s interesting about this is that Honda is a major donor to DSO, and one gets the feeling that putting ASIMO on the podium might somehow be tied to the sponsorship. I’m all for acknowledging the wonderful corporate partners who support our work, but does this go too far?
Another item that caught my eye was from the League of American Orchestra’s newsletter. Apparently classical composers and folk musicians are collaborating on creating new music for orchestras. Not exactly a new idea given the use of folk music themes throughout classical music history, but up until recently, using folk influences was considered déclassé. How do you feel about this renewed interest in vernacular music?
Finally, speaking of traditional music, the Chicago Sinfonietta will be presenting the world premiere of Three Songs for Blues Singer and Orchestra created by composer/arranger Larry Hoffman on May 11th and 12th featuring Muddy Water’s long-time guitarist, John Primer. We are pleased to offer registered users of this site a “hot deal” to attend this concert that will also feature pianist Leon Bates performing Rhapsody in Blue and Pictures at an Exhibition performed with a never-before-seen video created by astronomer and video artist José Francisco Salgado.
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Thu, 04/17/2008 - 11:13am.
I haven’t posted for a while but I do have a good excuse. In the last few weeks the Chicago Sinfonietta presented it’s Celebration of Women in Classical Music concerts that generated one of the best reviews we’ve ever received, Paul Freeman and I traveled to San Francisco to participate in a meeting convened by the Wallace Foundation, and last weekend, we hosted our Annual Ball that featured a scintillating performance by international superstar, Denyce Graves. Today feels like the first time I’ve been able to take a breath for weeks!
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Tue, 03/18/2008 - 4:10pm.
I was driving to work one morning a few weeks ago and NPR ran a story about violinist Tasmin Little. The story was about a 
series of recordings she has made that feature solo, or naked violin, if you will, that she is offering as free downloads on her website. Check out the NPR broadcast and then hit Tasmin’s site for some wonderful music – at no charge!
Speaking of wonderful music made by talented women, the Sinfonietta’s March 30-31 concerts are dedicated to music made, conducted, and composed by women. Chicagoclassicalmusic.org has a “hot deal” listed for this concert that you can access if you are a registered user of this site.
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Thu, 03/06/2008 - 11:10am.
I have a favor to ask of you. In November 2008 The Chicago Sinfonietta will partner with the Chicago Humanities Festival in musically exploring the year’s Festival theme, “THINK BIG”. We invite you to help us realize our 'big idea" for a concert by joining us in selecting the most transformative classical music compositions ever written -- works from various eras that truly changed the rules and affected everything that came after. We will perform two of the selections at Chicago's Symphony Center on Monday, November 10th at 7:30 p.m. And to "change the game" even more, we hope to either present a live streaming broadcast that evening (so you can hear the winning selections regardless of where you are) or post the performance as a downloadable video file on our website.
Let your voice be heard! A panel of experts has shared its ideas for “game-changing” nominees and you can vote right now at the
Chicago Sinfonietta’s website. Make your selection from the experts' list, or if you disagree, feel free to write in your own.
Thanks for voting – and please pass this link on to others!
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Tue, 02/26/2008 - 9:00am.
I don’t know how many of you saw Gustavo Dudamel’s recent appearance on 60 Minutes. If you didn’t see it, use the link enclosed in this post. It takes about 13 minutes and is well worth the time.
It seems to me that Dudamel is the type of charismatic artist who will attract people to the concert hall, get people to purchase recordings/downloads, and make the concert experience attractive and exciting for diverse audiences. I predict that the Los Angeles Philharmonic will be seeing some new faces in the seats when he begins his tenure as their music director. He may be the Bernstein of our time.
Kudos to the very smart people at the Los Angeles Philharmonic for hiring this budding superstar. I’m guessing that a fair number of orchestras who are looking for music directors will end up wishing they had gotten Gustavo.
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Mon, 02/18/2008 - 2:41pm.
As most of you know, we made some changes to this website in December. We now offer registered users free music downloads thanks to our member organizations, NAXOS, and Music Giants, access to some special offers from member organizations under the “Hot Deals” section, and a few other enhancements. We would love to hear how feel about these changes. At some point I’m sure we will ask you to provide more detailed information via a survey, but as a quick check-in, I’m hoping that some of you will share some anecdotal feedback right now.
Please hit the reply link and let us know if you like the free downloads, the “Hot Deals”, the periodic emails, and be sure to mention anything you think is missing. Thanks for the feedback!!
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Thu, 01/31/2008 - 3:23pm.
There has been some nice coverage of a few events that relate to diversity in classical music recently. Last week John von Rhein of the Chicago Tribune wrote an
article about a Chicago Sinfonietta diversity initiative entitled Project Inclusion that we launched on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. day. There has been further coverage of this important new initiative in the
Chicago Sun-Times and The Strad Magazine will soon print an article, as well.
The Sphinx Organization, headquartered in Detroit, also made an announcement about a consortium of orchestras they have pulled together (including the Chicago Sinfonietta) that will award a major commission each year to a composer of color. Check out this
article from Crain’s Detroit Business for more details.
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Tue, 01/15/2008 - 9:11am.
When last I blogged (seems like a while ago), I wrote about a stellar
educational program that takes place in Los Angeles. For this week’s post, I want to brag just a little about the Chicago Sinfonietta’s Audience Matters program. Administered by Jeff Handley, the Sinfonietta’s Principal Percussionist, and funded by a number of very generous donors,
Audience Matters sends our musicians into Chicago Public Schools for six-week residencies that introduce the children to classical music and also includes free tickets for the students and their families to all of our performances. Each session focuses on a period of music, a section of the orchestra, and provides the children with a good foundation for understanding and appreciating classical music. We are able to serve over 1,000 students each year with this program.
One of the fun things we did last year was to create a CD that uses examples of how contemporary musicians use classical music themes, and is then followed by the same theme performed in the traditional, orchestral form. There’s nothing like seeing how the students respond to their musical heroes using this music and watching how this enables them to appreciate the original version even more.
This year’s addition to Audience Matters is the introduction of a creative writing element that invites the students to write a story or poem inspired by Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings – one of the pieces we are performing at our January 20-21
Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. concerts. We have posted some of our
favorite examples of the student’s writing on our website. If you are concerned that kids today can’t write creatively, check out some of these stories!
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Wed, 12/19/2007 - 9:30am.
I’m always looking for “feel good” stories at this time of year. One such story caught my eye this week. There was an article written in the Los Angeles Times by Deborah Schoch about a classical music program entitled “The Harmony Project” that provides classical music training to 500 people ages 6 – 18. The disadvantaged children who participate in this program are organized into two orchestras and two choirs, once again picking up the slack left by the devastating cuts made in our school’s music budgets. In addition, the program, which is provided free to the participants, takes the children to the Hollywood Bowl for concerts and includes the use of instruments. The Harmony Project is partnering with the L.A. Philharmonic to extend this initiative to children throughout the area.
We have some wonderful programs for low-income students in Chicago, as well. Among others, the Merit School of Music, the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Sherwood Conservatory of Music all provide music instruction for low-income children. I recently met with the administrative staff of El Valor, located in Pilsen, who are also providing free music instruction for the children of that neighborhood.
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Tue, 12/11/2007 - 12:39pm.
Today's blog is written by the Principal Clarinetist of the Chicago Sinfonieta, Dileep Gangoli.
OK…what do Chicago Sinfonietta musicians and retail stores have in common?
Give up?
We all depend on the month of December to put money in the bank (or pay off credit cards).
It’s our busiest month of the year due to the Sinfonietta’s role as orchestra to the Joffrey Ballet. And that means multiple performances of Tchaikovsky’s masterpiece “The Nutcracker”.
But, for many of us, that’s not all we are doing.
Orchestra members are often involved in other ensembles doing Messiahs, church services, and casual work (holiday parties, lobby music, parties at private homes). Some are able to capture some of the spin-off work produced by the bigger organizations such as the CSO, Lyric Opera, and Broadway musicals.
The month is definitely a challenge as we integrate our private teaching schedules, holiday shopping, and family with our musical obligations.
Click here to continue reading
Posted in
