Man with blonde hair wearing a light blue collared shirt is facing leftward. He is painting something on his laptop with his right hand. The silver laptop is on the left side of the photo. The painting covers the area of the screen, and it is of a red-roofed, white-walled singe-story house surrounded by yellow, pink, and green plants, tall green trees, and mountains with a blue sky in the background.

Applicant has a Music Degree? Automatic First-round Interview.

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My friend is a trained classical musician. Her brother, on the other hand, was never a musician. Over the years, he saw what it took for his sister to earn her music degrees. The diligence to self-sufficiently develop her skills in the practice room. Successful collaboration with her peers. The ability to perform in front of an audience. A thorough understanding of technique on her instrument, music history, world cultures, music theory, performance psychology… …and, oh yes, decision-making and expression and creativity. The brother is now involved with the hiring process of a non-arts-related … Continue Reading

Douglas Rosenthal and Randy Hawes standing across the street from the Massachusetts State House's main enterance. Douglas is wearing a light brown scarf, brown jacket, and thick-frame black glasses to the right of Randy, who is wearing a dark brown jacket and thick-framed black glasses as well. The Massachusetts State House has a gold-leaf dome on top of a brown building with white molding and white pillars.

Month 6: On the Hill and On the Streets

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(Pictured L-R: Douglas Rosenthal, Randall Hawes) Cultural Event: Tour of the Massachusetts State House Well friends, I’ve reached the half-way point of this challenge! February brought me to Boston, so I wandered over to Beacon Hill with my friend, former teacher, and fellow trombonist Randy Hawes of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. As readers of this blog might guess, I take a big interest in U.S. politics and history. I also love art and architecture. So once I moved to the Mid-Atlantic, I found myself enjoying my share of state legislature tours. And after my first few, I … Continue Reading

A painting of ship in rough waters in the ocean. The water is dark green, except for the whites of the waves. The sky is a lighter teal except for the white clouds. The ship is on the right, sailing away from us. There is an anchor in front of us and a barrel to the left, both of which appear to have been discarded.

Our Eyes on the Prize: The National Endowment for the Arts

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If like me you sometimes only read an article’s first paragraph, I ask you to please call your elected officials in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate. Demand that they continue to fund the National Endowment for the Arts. Cite the reasons for which arts funding is essential in your community. Call them now. Call them every day. For those of you who continue to read on, I’m glad we’re connecting. But I’m not glad for the reason. It seems that the future is potentially uncertain for the National Endowment for the Arts, the federal … Continue Reading

Woman with red hat and brown hair holding a white sign with colorful lettering that says "Girls Just Want to Have Fun-Damental Rights". Standing outside on a brick sidewalk with a lampost behind her on her right.

Month 5: Steps Backward and Steps Forward

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Cultural Event: As You Like It Last month took me to another theater. I finally paid a visit to the Folger Shakespeare Library which, in addition to having the world’s largest Shakespeare Collection, presents month-long productions of numerous Shakespeare works every season. My exposure to Shakespeare has been limited to the works I studied in high school.  While enjoyed learning about them, I still would consider myself a newcomer. And incidentally, seeing As You Like It brought me into the same world that so many classical music patrons experience. This was a good reminder for … Continue Reading

IntoNation: New Tunes for America

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Happy Blog-iversary, friends! This post begins a second year of sharing thoughts, asking questions, and making terrible puns. The United States is a different place than it was a year ago. Or at least, the government is. There is a new administration in the White House, and as promised on the campaign trail, it seeks to steer the ship in a different direction for many facets of the country. These changes bring many questions for the Classical Music Industry. As such, I’ve decided for the time being to alter the course of this blog. … Continue Reading

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