Audrey McCombes, a lucky fan at a Paul McCartney concert was invited onstage after she held up a sign that read “Sign my arm so I can get it tattooed”. From Times and Transcript of Canada, here is the complete article, “Live and Let Dye” (great title) and an excerpt:
“After the first verse, he looked at it and he got this really puzzled look on his face. I’ll never forget it. And then he kept smiling at me throughout the song.”
Ms. McCombs considered taking a different sign to the concert. She’s a tuba player and thought about taking a poster offering to play tuba for Mr. McCartney.
The Beatle fan is a music education major at a California university and hopes to attend Liverpool Hope University in the England next. It offers a master’s degree in the Beatles, popular music and society.
Music isn’t the only way Mr. McCartney has influenced the fan. Ms. McCombs is also a vegetarian.
After walking off the stage Saturday night, Ms. McCombs was so worked up she had to visit the medical tent before returning to watch the rest of the show.
Ms. McCombs left to return home at about 3 a.m. Sunday morning. She didn’t shower and got one of her friends to arrange an appointment for the tattoo.”
I just saw a great feature on CBS Sunday Morning about a wonderful public art/music program in London, “Play Me I’m Yours.” It is an installation that is touring the world created by Luke Jerram, involving placing thirty pianos outside in public areas, currently in and around London. Jerram has a unique approach, calling it “Live Art”, including some amazing projects like First Light, Sky Orchestra and Dream Concert.
In these tough economic times (I know, that phrased is overused) it’s good to be reminded that, as one woman on the CBS clip said, “Good things in life a free.” I just wonder what people would think of a public art installation of thrity tubas around the city
I stumbled upon this great video and just had to share it. It is an excellent example of Sam Pilafian’s talent for inspiring and educating through his articulate and expert speaking. He speaks of something that is probably true to most music teachers, a pride of his students who took the skills and discipline needed for music and applied them laterally to another discipline. I enjoy listening to Sam speak as much as I enjoy listening to his amazing tuba playing. It turns out, on jobing.com, there are NINE short videos of Sam speaking, teaching, and even playing accordian.
We just recently returned from a five-day vacation to Walt Disney World. Despite frequent rain, and warm weather, we had a great time. Here are some tips and resources I found helpful in planning and enjoying our time there:
Tour Guide Mike – For $20 this site generates a customized tour plan for you. Full of great tips and advice.
Do take advantage of Extra Magic Hours if you are staying in the parks, but get out of that park by noon. People tend to stay all day. Get a Park Hopper pass and after a lunch break and nap back at the hotel, enjoy a different park.
Bring a small backpack with water, with a hand towel, sunscreen, snacks, a rain poncho and anything else you might need.
If you stay in a Disney Resort hotel, purchase the refillable mug for $12, you’ll use it. Although you can only refill it at your hotel, it is worth it for morning coffee, afternoon soda, evening hot chocolate.
Get up EARLY and get to the parks before they open. Return to your hotel for a nap or a swim during midday if you can.
Read signs! We could have saved ourselves a lot of walking and time by reading signs more carefully, especially to buses.
Take advantage of the FastPass options, but get them as soon as you enter the park.
I am happy to announce that my first solo CD, “Four Corners: Tuba Music from around the World” has been released on Summit Records.
It is also available at Amazon, hbdirect, and CD Universe. There are also free bonus tracks available for download here and at napster of my own composition “Dark”, which is an electronic/acoustic backdrop to be improvised over, like I did on the CD.
Here is the complete program:
Retratos by Vinicio Meza
Fantasy on a Lakota Theme by Kenton Bales Tuba Concerto by Barry McKimm Guzheng Suite transcribed by Chi Sun Chan Silhouette by John Harmon Dark by John Manning
Thanks to the University of Iowa for funding this project. Also a special thanks to: Shari Rhoades, piano; Shin-Yi Yang, guzheng; Chi-Sun Chan, arranger of Guzheng Suite; Jeff Funderburk, Producer; my teachers Sam Pilafian and Scott Mendoker and my family.
Edutopia, the website for the George Lucas Educational Foundation has a remarkable and inspirational videoof Lukas Bratcher who plays euphonium with assistive technology. I hope we continue to help people follow their dreams regardless of any physical limitations. Please take the time to go to their site and search Lukas Bratcher and check out the site. You can also view it through VodPod here. Thanks to Josh Calkin (Yellow Tuba, White Noise) for the tip.
Last week, my students and I attended the Great Plains Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference (GPRTEC) at Kansas State University in Manhatten, Kansas. Collegium Tubum presented a concert of arrangements – some by our own students – and played better than ever. I was very proud of all of my students, but especially of those who entered the competitions. As it turned out, they all received awards, which is fantastic. They included:
Blaine Cunningham – 1st place in the over 21 tuba solo competition
Karina Ferrera – 1st place in the under 21 euphonium competition
Chris Dickey – Honorable Mention in the over 21 euphonium competition
The “Corntet” (Karina Ferrera, Melissa Reiff, Kristina Gavin, Pat Bigsby) – 3rd place in the quartet competition
Chet Aliga – won the “Tuba Toss”
Many thanks and kudos to Steve Maxwell, who hosted the event, and our colleagues in all of the studios throughout the Great Plains who participated. Also thanks to Barbara York, my pianist for my recital and composer of many beautiful works for tuba.
You Tube announced today the winners of their Symphony Orchestra audition. (Click on Winners, then on the instrument/sections to view the videos of the winners) Congratulations to Andy Chester, who studies with Floyd Cooley at DePaul University in Chicago. We were all rooting for our buddy Jim Lyons, who sounded great on his audition video, but Andy’s win is well-deserved. Below are a few news items about the announcement:
I recently heard the sad news of the passing Boston tuba busker, Paul “the Tubanator” Dosier. With his band, Made In the Shade, he was a mainstay on the streets of Boston and Cambridge. Please watch the videos below to learn more about this talented, gentle man who died long before his time.
The first, a two-part documentary about Paul, is really well-edited, with surprisingly excellent sound. Listen to Paul’s solid bass lines, and a confident and tasteful solos. Also be sure to check out the promotional video of Made in the Shade’s school show, Jazz: America’s Music.
Thanks to Phil Johnson, and my condolences to Dan Fox and the rest of Paul’s friends.
I just returned from a very enjoyable visit to Boston, despite all of the expected weather-related delays. I got to hear my niece and nephew perform a piano recital, visited with family and friends, and best of all, stayed at the Bertram Inn bed and breakfast. It is a beautiful Victorian house in Brookline, with a very cozy atmosphere, fantastic breakfast and coffee all day long.
As expected, we encountered numerous weather-related delays, both comic and ironic. Here’s a short list:
Leaving Moline, IL our flight was delayed due to the fact that that de-icing equipment was frozen
We arrived late to Chicago, but luckily our departing flight to Boston was delayed as well
Unfortunately, we had an eighty-minute hold on the runway due to a traffic problem
Upon arrival at Logan airport in Boston, our jet, which successfully landed in a blizzard, was temporarily stuck in the snow
We waited for two hours for our luggage because the luggage compartment doors were frozen shut
When I checked in for my return flight home, the ticket agent asked for my passport. I said I was just flying to Moline. She replied, “You aren’t flying to Shang Hai?”, “No, not that I know of”, I replied. Oh, I see, your flight from Chicago to Moline has been cancelled – you’ll will have to fly tomorrow. I opted to be diverted to Cedar Rapids, an airport closer to home, even though my car is in Moline.
Holiday Tubas 2008 went very well, despite the cold. We had a healthy addition of tuba and euphonium players join us, and the crowd was very enthusiastic. I am especially proud of the fact that we filled two boxes of toys this year for Toys for Tots. Thanks to the Old Capitol folks for hot cider and cookies, and thank you to all my students for a great job during this challenging semester.
Here are links to some of the press about the performance:
I just completed a week-long residency in the Quad Cities (Davenport, IA; Bettendorf, IA; Moline, IL; and Rock Island, IL) with the Atlantic Brass. It was our third time back as Quad Cities Arts Visiting Artists, which included performing three concerts a day in schools and other venues through out the week. We also gave a full recital Tuesday night at the John Deere Administrative Center, and were soloists with the Quad Cities Symphony Orchestra Holiday Pops concert. Held at the iWireless Center, the Holiday Pops center was an extravaganza of epic proportions. It included a children’s choir, an adult choir, a drumline from Moline High School, lights, and about a dozen costumed ice skaters.
Here is an excerpt from the review:
The Quad City Arts’ visiting artist was the Atlantic Brass Quintet, and they provided a warm, solid sound to some beloved holiday favorites. Mr. Smith introduced them in a “dueling” piece with the QCSO brass quintet (“In Dulci Jubilo”), but decided that term sounded too harsh for the season and said they simply were “communicating” back and forth.
The local brass more than held their own, trading buoyant phrases with the guests. The ABQ returned a few other times, including a delightful medley in the second half. The quintet’s gorgeous renditions were precise and radiant.
Read the full article here by Jonathan Turner and here for a multimedia display by Paul Colletti.
Although it was tiring, it was a rewarding and enjoyable week, and I got a chance to explore the area a bit more. There were a lot of things going on, including the Festival of Trees, for which we played a few events, including the lighting of their Remembrance Tree. (Special Thanks to Dave Hamburg of the Quad Cities Brass Quintet for loaning us some Christmas music for the ceremony)
We enjoyed our great accomodations at the Stoney Creek Inn, and checked out some of the local spots like Dead Poets Espresso, Lagomarcino’s, Bent River Brewery and Restaurant, and Bier Stube, the local German restaurant. Dead Poets had a great vibe and excellent coffee, Bent River had an outstaning American Wheat, Lagomarcino’s is an amazing soda fountain style shop with fabulous homemade chocolates, ice cream, fountain drinks, and sandwiches. I would recommend them all if you are ever in the area.
Click to watch my interview with Julian Dixon, Professor of tuba and euphonium at Sacramento State University and the organizer of the 2008 “Down In the Valley” festival. Julian and I are old friends going back to our days at Boston University in Sam Pilafian’s studio. We were able to find a few minutes to shoot this interview at ITEC Cincinnati following a concert present by he and his students. Special thanks to David Kinkennon, a University of Iowa tuba and film student for the videography, editing and posting to YouTube.
The “Tuba Man” of Seattle, Edward McMichael has been brutally murdered. Read “Violence takes iconic tuba man” by By Robert L. Jamieson Jr. This is an absolute, tragic and senseless act of violence. Read more about Mr. McMichael here, here, and here. Rest in peace Edward, and thank you for your contribution.
UPADATE: Here is an article in the New York Times, including an audio slideshow.
Happy Halloween from Collegium Tubum, the University of Iowa Tuba Euphonium Ensemble. Today’s “Spooky Tubas” concert was held at Lemme Elementary School in Iowa City.
I am pleased to announce the following job description advertising our current search for a new Professor of Trumpet. My friend and colleague, and gem of a guy, David Greenhoe is retiring after years of dedicated service. I am a member of the search committee and would like to help get the word out. Filling David’s shoes will be a daunting task, but we look forward to reviewing the submissions of all qualified candidates.
Here is the advertisement:
The University of Iowa
School of Music
Notice of Faculty Position
Assistant Professor of Trumpet
Appointment begins: August 2009
Rank: Assistant Professor, Tenure-track
Salary: Commensurate
Responsibilities: Primary responsibilities for the position include private teaching, mentoring and advising undergraduate and graduate trumpet students, and recruiting trumpet students. Additional duties will include performing with the Iowa Brass Quintet, coaching chamber ensembles, teaching courses in the brass curriculum, serving on recital, thesis and graduate exam committees, and participating in School of Music and university committees. It is also expected that the candidate be an outstanding performer and maintain an active performance schedule both on and off campus. Preference will be given to applicants who have already established a national and international reputation as a performer and teacher.
Qualifications:
Basic: Master’s degree required. Evidence of outstanding performance ability as a trumpet player, and record of significant professional performing experience and successful studio teaching are required.
Desirable: Doctorate or equivalent professional experience and college/university level teaching preferred.
Application: You must submit your application online. To apply for this position go to http://jobs.uiowa.edu and refer to requisition #56242.
Additional materials requested. Send a CD recording that includes some unedited, live performances. Applicants are encouraged to include on their recording not only selected examples of their core solo repertoire, but also (if desired) representative examples of other areas of musical expertise or interest, including, for example, jazz, early music, or new music. CD Recording should be sent to: Trumpet Search Committee, 107A Lindquist Center, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242
Deadline: Review of materials received will begin December 1, 2008 and continue until position is filled.
The University of Iowa has a historic commitment to the arts. The School of Music enrolls approximately 500 majors and has a full-time faculty of 50. Voxman Music Building which normally houses the School of Music, was built in 1970 and contains a 200-seat recital hall, a 700-seat recital hall, a 2600-seat auditorium, and the Rita Benton Music Library. However, due to the 500 year flood of June 2008, music facilities are temporarily relocated. The Iowa City/Coralville area includes a population of about 75,000. Cultural demands are high and the atmosphere is cosmopolitan. Public schools, libraries, and health care facilities are rated as outstanding.
The Department and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences are strongly committed to gender and ethnic diversity; the strategic plans of the University, College and Department reflect this commitment. Women and members of underrepresented minorities are especially encouraged to apply. The University of Iowa is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer.
Our Oktubafest 2008 has started off well. On Sunday, we performed a concert at the Amana Colonies Oktoberfest. Chris did a great job preparing and conducting Collegium Tubum, and the Festhalle Barn sounded great.
This week we also enjoyed a visit from euphonium artist and Iowa alum, Dr. David Kassler. On Monday, he performed a wonderful recital at the Buchanon auditorium in the Pappajohn Business Building. The recital was excellent, and we had an unusually large audience, mostly due to the fact that there are fewer concerts for recital attendance students to go to. It was the first time we heard a concert in this large lecture hall, and although it was a little dead, it’s not a bad room for a recital. I had the pleasure of joining Dr. Kassler for the Stevens Suite for Two, the rest of the program included: Barat Introduction and Dance, Galliard Sonata No. 5, OctoNervosa Beta by Timothy Crowley, Boaccalari Fantasia di Concerto, and Schumann’s Five Pieces in Folk Style
Tuesday, Dr. Kassler joined us at Zion church for a masterclass. Freshmen Steve Neilssen and Melissa Reiff, and Senior Pat Bigsby performed and got some great advice. I took a few notes, and here are some of the highlights:
He suggested to Steve to try to “radiate your sound from your entire horn, not just out of your bell”
Recommended that euphoniums, who also play trombone, to play Rochut etudes on trombone without articulating, then switch to euphonium and do the same – only changing notes with the valves.
As I do, he recommended playing Rochut/Bordogni in three octaves, or for euphonium, putting them in tenor clef instead of an actave higher.
Instead of the phrase “avoid bearing down as you play”, I like how he suggested to “avoid using the cough muscles”
To Pat, he asked “Will you invite me more, as a listener, into what you are doing musically?
Recalling a suggestion from a Russian conductor, he reminded us to “play with more hunger”
Finally, a metaphorical image: “Sometimes, when a teacher asks you to adjust something, the pendulum swings too far the other way, then finally centers on exactly what you are looking for”
We all learned a lot and enjoyed Dr. Kassler’s visit, and wish him well.
Well, it’s been over a month since school started, and despite the great flood of June 13th, the University of Iowa School of Music lives on. We have been relocated to about seventeen different venues accross Iowa City. I have been teaching at Zion Lutheran church, and the music department has leased two new buildings in Iowa City – coincidentally, new buildings created after the disastrous tornado a few years back. Out of one disaster, comes the solution to another.
This week, about twenty sound-proof Wenger practice rooms were installed in one of the new buildings. So, I went up there to try them out. Not only do these 12×12 rooms provide a sound-proof place to practice, but also employ Virtual Acoustic Environment (VAE) technology. There are numerous settings to create artificial reverberation, which helps to enhance the practice experience. Additionally, and this is the best part, you can RECORD high-quality digital sound in this room. Just play and the room records! No separate external microphones, and speakers are built into the walls. There are also jacks to transfer the files via USB cable to a laptop or music player.
This new development will great improve the practice situation for students and new month, when we move into the former University of Iowa Museum of Art, we will be teaching in these types of rooms. If anything good came out of the flood, these rooms, and eventually an upgraded Voxman School of Music are the silver lining behind the cloud of the flood.
The 2008 Iowa City Brewfest was a success. Sponsored again by John’s Grocery, the Brewfest raises money for the American Heart Association. It was a little warm, but it was nice to see that the event was held once again outside of the Old Chicago in Coralville (which was flooded in June, but is to reopen in a few weeks.)
I kept notes this year, and here are some of the best beers I tried. I favor wheat beers, but I also enjoyed several other styles. Here are the highlights:
University of Iowa Professor Emeritus and namesake to the Voxman Music Building Himie Voxman will be honored along with Tom Brokaw with an Honorary Doctorate degree. Congratulations Himie!
Thanks to Google Alert, I frequently get the latest news containing the words “tuba” and “music” (otherwise, I end up with anything about Tuba City, AZ or Turkish singers) All of the stories have to do with people, mostly amateurs, enjoying playing the tuba. For example, here is an article from Ottowa about a young man who had a summer job as a tuba player in the Ceremonial Guard band. Equally inspiring are the stories of Aaron Dodd, who faithfully plays tuba on a street corner in downtown Chicago, and Tony Robertson, who has the honor of dotting the “i” for Ohio State. It’s always a kick to read about young kids taking up our unwieldy instrument; play on young Corey!
You have probably seen this incredible footage of a skydiver landing into an Army Band. Not funny, but amazing to see. You may also want to see this article about the last sousaphone standing.
“I just heard the parachuter kind of saying ‘Whoa’ and that’s when I knew ‘Oh crap, something’s happening,’ and I turned my head and saw him and took a step back,” Calabrese said. “That’s all I had time to do before he was right in front of me taking out the trumpet player in front of me.”
Since moving to Iowa from Massachusetts four years ago, my family and I have tried to visit one major midwestern city each summer. Our first trip was to St. Louis, but we have also had brief visits to Minneapolis and Chicago. This week, we visited Kansas City and had a fantastic time. This family-friendly city had a lot to offer, and we took full advantage of it for three and a half days.
I started on Priceline by bidding a ridiculously low rate for three nights, and it was accepted! We ended up with the Holiday Inn Express in the funky/historic neighborhood of Westport. I was a bit concerned after reading a few bad reviews on my favorite travel review site Trip Advisor, including some about leaks, crime, and bad service. Fortunately, our trip was fantastic, and we got a nice hotel for just $65 a night. The only drawback was that it didn’t have a pool – but we made up for that by a visit to the nearby waterpark.
After driving for five hours from Iowa City, about all we had the energy to was to find a nice place for dinner, and the front desk recommended McCoy’s Public House, which indeed was a great choice. After dinner, we stumbled upon World Market, right next to our hotel, which is an import store that carried everything from kites to coffee, and patio furniture to exotic toys and snacks. They were having a clearance sale, so we got a few bargains including a Chinese dragon kite and some Italian coffee.
Our first morning, we got a surprisingly good free hot breakfast at the hotel, bought some beach towels, and headed to Oceans of Fun. We got there early enough so that parking and lines were not much of an issue, and stayed until the early afternoon when a thunderstorm swept in. The pools and rides were great, especially Aruba Tuba (a slide inside a darkened tube which thrilled my 7-year old daughter but terrified me) and Hurricane Falls, which we rode twice.
Country Club Plaza is a chic area in Kansas City full of high end shops and restaurants. We ate at Cheesecake Factory and window shopped along the streets, since most places were closed except for the Sharper Image store, which was having a huge sale.
The Kansas City Zoo is the best zoo I have ever visited, mostly because it sprawls out over acres, and has a very natural feel to it. They had a new baby zebra (with brown stripes) and an impressive array of animals from Africa and Asia. After the zoo, we had a bit of bad luck with an alternator belt, and dropped it off for repairs in downtown Kansas City, while we took a taxi to nearby Crown Center. We ate at the colorul (pun intended) Crayola Cafe, and took in the shops. They have a fantastic youth theatre there, but were sold out, and a traveling exhibit called Moneyville, which is one of several free rotating exhibits for kids. We learned of the history of money, and my daughter got to play pretend at several role-playing educational set ups including a mock bank. You can even print fun money with your child’s own picture on it. We salvaged the evening with a home-run by goint to T-Rex Cafe for dinner. It is actually over the river in Kansas City, Kansas at a huge shopping center called Legends. They had very good food and drinks, but it’s the pre-historic atmosphere and activities for kids that make it special. We once went to a Rainforest Cafe in Massachusetts, which is owned by the same company, that had a tropical theme, jungle decor, a dancing fountain and jungle sounds piped in. The T-Rex cafe takes that idea, and reworks it in a big way. They had two floors, and multiple “rooms” with themes like Ice Cave and Fern Forest, filled with animatronic dinosaurs, huge aquariums, and faux plants and trees. Even the bathrooms had real fossils imbedded in the tiled walls. The best part is that for a modest extra fee, kids can “dig” up fossils in a huge sand pit, pan for gems they get to keep, and sand blast a plastic dinosaur fossil free from its clay brick. They even had a mock mining cave and computer games to fill the time between activities. They say that they are opening up a new one in Orlando soon, so we look forward to this experience again.
On the final day of our trip we checked out Union Station, which is still a functioning train terminal and is filled with shops, restauraunts, and museums. We bought our tickets for the 3-D movie, never even got to Science City, because we went back to the Crown Center, owned by Hallmark, and our daughter enjoyed an hour of craft activities utilizing Hallmark greeting card remnants at Kaleidoscope. They also have an excellent visitors center displaying the history and products of Hallmark. Kids can push the button on a bow making machine, interact with live workers operating printing presses and preparing dies, and get a free cardboard crown.
If you get the chance to enjoy Kansas City with kids, don’t miss these places. We are already talking about returning soon.
Last week I attended a week of master classes at Northwestern University presented by Rex Martin, Professor of Tuba at NU, and Gene Pokorny, principal tubaist with the Chicago Symphony (you may have heard of them
I arrived with my student Jeremy Crawford Sunday afternoon, after a full day of driving from Cincinnati for ITEC. The first session was led by Rex Martin, and he introduced a fantastic work; the 20-Minute Warm Up Routine, by Michael Davis. Davis, who among other things is the trombonist for the Rolling Stones, has designed a fantastic daily routine to be done along with a CD of synthesized but motivating music. You get so involved in these challenging exercises, you forget you are improving, It’s like Tai-Bo for tuba! I strongly recommend it and will be utilizing it a lot this summer and with my students in the fall.
The view of Chicago from the NU campus
Northwestern has a beautiful campus, nestled along Lake Michigan, it’s gorgeous facilities are close together, and a new multi-million-dollar music building is in the works. Each morning Jeremy and I had one of the dozens of crepes available at the Crepe Bistro at the Norris Student Center, including a Nutella crepe!
Speaking of food, each night we went out to a different pizzaria to try some of Chicago’s (actually Evanston’s) famous pizza. The first night we punched in “pizza” into my TomTom GPS and got lucky on our first try. La Rosa’s is a hole-in-the-wall type of place that has been around for ever and offers no-frills, but superior-tasting pies. This place had the best pizza I have ever had in my LIFE! The website shows a different location, but we went to the one on Golf Road (map) in Skokie, IL. Next was Giordanos, which had a fantastic deep-dish style. We made the mistake the third night of going to a very average place in Evanston called Gigio’s. Even Iowa City has better pizza. On our last night, we went to Lou Malnati’s in Evanston. It was very good – took a bit longer than it should have, but I’d have to say La Rosa’s on Golf was far superior. Everything about it; the thin crispy crust had a lot of savory flavor, the sauce was flavorful with a hint of wine, and the cheese was perfect, layered on top in thins slices, not grated.
But, back to the master classes. Both Rex and Gene gave solo recitals and the twenty students enjoyed 27 hours of education in the form of master class, public lessons, lectures and informal stories. It was very important to not only learn practical advice, such as tips on alternate fingerings, phrasing, useful tools and texts but to hear much about their personal and professional experiences. Gene Pokorny has a very humble, down-to-earth approach, but his information is highly insightful and his intelligence and artistry shines through. Rex always seemed to get right to the root of the matter, and was never at a loss for words. He emphasised that their advice was only their opinion, and recognized that everyone works differently. Being self-taught, and then studying with Arnold Jacobs, Rex is a wealth of information on all things musical, and just happens to also be just as knowledgeable of the tuba.
Despite their expertise, each frequently recognized their own teachers and mentors, and emphasized the importance of mental will on a musician’s progress. It was a very inspiring week, and I hope that they offer this seminar next year. I took pages of notes, and will sort through them for a more complete essay on this week for the ITEA journal.
The worst of the flooding may be over for now, but not before sinking a dozen or so buildings on the University of Iowa campus. Despite the Herculean effort by hundreds of volunteers sandbagging, much of the Arts Campus flooded, including the Voxman Music Building. Above is a before and after shot and fortunately my studio is on the second floor. Thanks especially to Chris Dickey for helping out during this crisis. My heart goes out to my friends and colleagues in the area who are victims of the flood, and especially the thousands of people across the state who have lost everything or have been evacuated. Below are links covering the flood:
James Gourlay, the famous tubaist, has resigned his post at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. I have no idea what happened – the term “reorganization” makes me nervous – but I am sure Mr. Gourlay will move on to something great.
James Gourlay, who joined the RSAMD in 2006, is a renowned tuba player and conductor, and has led the school’s music teaching as the RSAMD’s deputy principal of music. However, the academy, which is in the midst of a controversial staff reorganisation, last night confirmed in a statement that Mr Gourlay has left his post.
I leave tomorrow for the first of several trips this summer (see last post) and I was thinking about my favorite travel gear – the items that I don’t go on a trip without. First up is a flashlight. You don’t always need one, but when you do, you’re glad you brought one. Last summer in Italy, this little flashlight saved my life – litereally. Besides being handy on the plane, or hotel room, it was great to have it the night we were stuck without a cab a few miles from town and walked a mountain road in pitch dark. I got mine at Walgreens. It’s so small, I can keep it on my key chain, and although it doesn’t have batteries because it’s disposable, it has a surprisingly bright LED beam.
In an effort to lighten my load, I thought that I would try a money clip. The Slim Clip is one of the “As seen on TV” items I also got at Walgreens. It holds up to six cards and a wad of bills.
For my laptop and carry-on items, I prefer a backpack since I have both hands full with a tuba case and a suitcase to maneuver. It’s made of rugged material and hardware, and features a clamshell-style design with schock-absorbing straps and back padding.
The essential that I seem to forget more often than not are earplugs. Flying is bad enough without the noise. On long flights, or in other loud places, they can be critical.
Hearos Xtreme Protection Series Earplugs from Walgreens
The latest addition to my gear is an aluminum water bottle. With all this talk about dangerous plastics, I thought it would be wise to buy one of these babies (besides, it matches my luggage!)
For booking, I swear by Expedia and and occasionally get a great deal on Priceline, and this year I discovered TripIt. TripIt consolidates all of the details for my itineraries. Because I make the travel arrangements for the Atlantic Brass Quintet, and always need to fly five people from three cities, I find this site extremely valuable. All you have to do is forward emails directly to TripIt, clips from the web, and add notes, pictures and other details to create a master itinerary with everyone’s information on the same page. For exploring an area, or checking hotel review, I like Trip Advisor.
My favorite travel writer lately is Matt Gross, the New York Times Frugal Traveler. He is currently posting articles and videos about his travels throughout Europe, retracing the the path of the Grand Tour.
I’ve been utilizing lots of very useful Google applications lately, including Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, and Google Maps. I put together a cartographic plan of my travels this summer. Explore the interactive map and schedule below:
June 6 – Last day of Great Musicians summer session class
June 7 – Iowa City Arts Festival
June 8 – Fly to California
June 8-12 – Atlantic Brass Quintet Seminar @ Sonoma State University
June 12/13 – Fly home
June 15th – Father’s Day/Mom’s Birthday!
June 16-20 – Rest, practice, prepare for ITEC and Northwestern Master Classes
June 22 – Drive to Cincinnati College Conservatory for International Tuba Euphonium Conference
June 23-28 – ITEC
June 29 – To Chicago for Northwestern Master Classes
June 29 – July 4 – Northwestern Master Classes with Gene Pokorny and Rex Martin
July 4 – Iowa City Jazz Festival with Spontaneous Combustion
July 7-10 – Family Vacation, Kansas City
July 22 – 26 – Drive from Iowa City to Boston
July 27-August 8 – Atlantic Brass Quintet Seminar, Boston University
August 8-14 – Cape Cod vist
August 14 – Drive to Iowa
August 25 – First Day of Fall 2008 Classes
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Although it was tiring, it was a rewarding and enjoyable week, and I got a chance to explore the area a bit more. There were a lot of things going on, including the 
