My first blog
This is my first blog, and today is the birthday of my website. I have very high hopes for this website, including video podcasts about upcoming concerts; video of selected performances; forums for...
View ArticleReviews
I just added to this site a page devoted to a laundry list of positive reviews of my work. I've left out the bad ones. One of those, from Charleston, SC, said I had no idea how to perform Mozart....
View ArticleMath, Science and Music
When I exercise at home on the NordicTrack, I generally watch videos from the Teaching Company. The Teaching Company publishes series of university lectures on a variety of subjects, given by eminent...
View ArticleReading the Torah
On Saturday morning, I read the Torah at my synagogue. This is something I learned how to do in the years before my Bar Mitzvah at age 13, and then did not do again until this past year, 30 years...
View ArticleChamber Music
One of my greatest joys in music is the ability to sight-read. I don't consider myself a boastful person, but I am an excellent sight-reader at the piano. I can almost read at the level that I can...
View ArticleConcertante's Opening Concert
I'm back from a lovely family vacation with my parents on Cape Cod, the children are in school, and it's back to blogging!I had the pleasurable experience of attending the opening concert of...
View ArticleGreensboro Trip
I've returned from a week-long trip to my old stomping ground, Greensboro, NC. I was their soloist for their season opener, playing "Rhapsody in Blue" under the baton of my successor as music director,...
View ArticleOpening Night at the HSO
Well, another opening weekend is over, and I have to say I am very pleased with the outcome.First of all, I thought the orchestra played beautifully. I cannot remember an opening concert that went as...
View ArticleThe Mets - A Post-Mortem
What a disappointment.... and yet, what a great game.My Dad said yesterday that there is nothing like watching baseball if it's a close game and you care about who wins. I think it's the sheer length...
View ArticleHSO Masterworks #2
It was a very good weekend for the Harrisburg Symphony.I came into the weekend with some nervousness. Nielsen's 4th Symphony - "Inextinguishable" - is a very difficult piece, to play and to conduct. It...
View ArticleScarsdale High School
This past weekend I went back to Scarsdale High School. 12 graduates, myself included, were being honored as distinguished alumni.It was quite an honor. The list of alumni from SHS is long and...
View ArticleA Note to my readers/listeners
First of all, thank you for your visits. I hope you are enjoying the blogs and podcasts.Which brings me to the next point...I very much want your feedback. If you prefer, leave it anonymously. This is...
View ArticleSome Questions and Answers, Part 1
It's Monday, and I'm having my typical post-concert weekend down day. I was extremely happy with the concerts this past weekend. The orchestra, as always, played their hearts out. Last night, after a...
View ArticleSome Questions and Answers, Part 2 - Planning a Season
Sean Schultz asks: "How and when do you decide what pieces are going to be played for the performances?"Well, when is a lot easier to answer, so I'll do that first. We generally begin planning our...
View ArticleSorry for the Inactivity
Just a short posting to say I'm sorry I've been so lax in my blogging. It's been a busy time, between preparations for HMS Pinafore (which, if I may say so myself, was a tremendous success) and...
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So Much To Discuss, So Little Time
Dick Strawser, friend, radio personality, and avid blogger (I happily admit, I read "Dr. Dick's Blog" every day) emailed me today. The bulk of the letter was in reference to the passing of our mutual...
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Summer Update, Part 1
How time flies....It's summer, and I'm at Barnes and Noble Bookstore with a venti coffee of the day, a spinach and artichoke strata, and my laptop. My daughter Sara is doing a one-week tennis camp...
View ArticleSummer Update, Part 2
So...I was home from China for a day. It was supposed to be two days, but as I said earlier, we had to spend the night in Chicago because United Airlines would not hold our flight for 10 minutes (!) -...
View ArticleIn Memorium: Earl Mays and Marjorie Katzman
It's been a sad week. Two friends died this week, both of complications from cancer. In a two day stretch Earl Mays and Marjorie were gone.I met Earl Mays in 1991, when I went to Charleston, SC to be...
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World-Famous in Harrisburg
I was looking through my photos today and thought I should post these two.The first is my billboard, up this entire past season in various well-traveled locations, and the subject of much teasing from...
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