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SO Y’KNOW NEWSLETTER
MARCH 2012 Vol. 12 No. 4
COMPETENCY IN AN ART FORM
John Welsh, Music Director
I
n February 2011, I attended the Washington Music Educators Association (WMEA) All-Northwest Orchestra rehearsal in Bellevue. Gerald Schwartz was the conductor and they were playing the last movement of the Borodin Symphony No.2 and Die Meistersinger Overture. It was impressive. I decided to attend the WMEA All-State Conference this year held in Yakima. I wanted to get a chance to listen to the orchestras rehearse for a couple of days.
Sponsored by Olympia Federal Savings WA State Arts Commission
Upon arriving in Yakima, my first visit to the “Palm Springs of Washington,” I found the musicians rehearsing in buildings at the fairgrounds. That fairground is a wonderful example of early to mid-20th Century Chautauqua architecture. First impression of the orchestra – huge. It was wonderful to see so many young people participating. Second impression – It sounds good. The young musicians were playing Liszt’s Les Preludes, a tone poem, which SOGO has performed in the past. There was plenty for the conductor, Mark Laytock, to work on. Mark is a very expressive conductor and a native of Puyallup. With such a large ensemble (at least 75 strings, 16 woodwinds, 8 horns, 4 trumpets), doubling in the winds, there was a lot of balancing to do. From what I heard, almost everyone was prepared with the notes and were ready for the refinement that Mark wished to accomplish. Some comments from the podium – “Strings, you are ahead, please lay back a little; woodwinds, you really need to balance the strings by playing louder; brass, can you play longer; please hold out the note through its value.” The same issues every group has! I also quickly looked for students from SOGO. Found some (see my post on SOGO Facebook page - http://www.facebook. com/studentorchestras) After checking into my hotel, I found the place where the All-State Chamber Orchestra was rehearsing. The group had a slightly smaller string section than the other orchestra and no wind doubling. They were working on a piece I didn’t know – very difficult. As it turns out, it was an early piece by Samuel Jones called An Overture for a City. It was written in 1960 for Saginaw, Michigan. Sam has a dual relationship with SOGO – he was an assistant to Richard Lert when I studied conducting in the 70’s with Lert in Orkney Continued on page 2...
MUSIC-THERAPY BENEFITS
Anne Hammond, SOGO Board
Donate non-perishable food items during the month of March. Bring items to rehearsals or the March 25 concert for the Thurston County Food Bank. Orchestras Feeding America 2011 saw 100 orchestras (SOGO included) collect 86,000 pounds of food for food banks all over the United States, bringing the total for the last three years to over 350,000 pounds.
Y
ears ago, I read an article that espoused how performing, or even listening to music could grow various parts of the brain. Classical music in particular isn’t only brain food, it can also promote better general health, wellness, and even healing. Who could be better at bringing musical healing to people than orchestra musicians! The Madison (Wisconsin) Symphony Orchestra operates a HeartStrings music-therapy program for Dane County citizens experiencing dementia, long-term illness, or developmental disabilities. A string quartet presents monthly interactive sessions that benefit caregivers, family members, and medical staff in addition to patients. The goal is to improve motor skills, Continued on page 2... relaxation, and social interaction.
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