Cover Models
So, the new issue of Symphony Magazine is out! (Yeah, I know - you had no idea there was such a magazine. Marketing isn't exactly their strong suit, and besides, it's put out by the League of American Orchestras, so it's sort of a trade publication in any case.)
Anyway, the first issue of 2010 is out, and I bring it up because their lead story is all about classical musicians who blog, and, um, well...
Yah. So that happened. Which is interesting, because Sarah and I are not even remotely the sole focus of the article, which also features the fantastic online work of Nico Muhly, Stephen Hough, Tim Munro, and others. I suspect that we're on the cover because the orchestra happened to have professionally shot photos of the two of us pretending to type on a computer, and I'm guessing that none of the other bloggers in the article had such shots readily available.
Anyway, the article is interesting in that it reveals how the most popular classical bloggers seem to be the ones who realize that they should write about a lot more than just how Beethoven used deceptive cadences and how much they practice. Nico writes about exotic dining experiences as often as he writes about music, and Tim gets into all sorts of logistical stuff about the difficulty of being a touring ensemble.
I don't know what it is about blogging that makes the content more entertaining when the author is writing outside his/her actual area of expertise, but it does seem to be a genuine thing. My friend Kate, a violist in the Buffalo Philharmonic, writes a hilarious and comprehensive blog about (wait for it) the Buffalo Sabres hockey team. Seriously, she does, and guess which activity - viola playing or blogging about hockey while giving her favorite players nicknames like "Pommerdoodle" - has landed her in the pages of the New York Times?
Anyway, thanks to Symphony Mag for including us, and to anyone who's just come to our little corner of the interwebs via their link, welcome, and you should probably just go over to the right and click on the "fun" tab if you want to get a basic idea of what we do here. Unless you're one of those serious musical types, in which case, you want "stirring the pot," or maybe "elitism." Your call...
Anyway, the first issue of 2010 is out, and I bring it up because their lead story is all about classical musicians who blog, and, um, well...
Yah. So that happened. Which is interesting, because Sarah and I are not even remotely the sole focus of the article, which also features the fantastic online work of Nico Muhly, Stephen Hough, Tim Munro, and others. I suspect that we're on the cover because the orchestra happened to have professionally shot photos of the two of us pretending to type on a computer, and I'm guessing that none of the other bloggers in the article had such shots readily available.Anyway, the article is interesting in that it reveals how the most popular classical bloggers seem to be the ones who realize that they should write about a lot more than just how Beethoven used deceptive cadences and how much they practice. Nico writes about exotic dining experiences as often as he writes about music, and Tim gets into all sorts of logistical stuff about the difficulty of being a touring ensemble.
I don't know what it is about blogging that makes the content more entertaining when the author is writing outside his/her actual area of expertise, but it does seem to be a genuine thing. My friend Kate, a violist in the Buffalo Philharmonic, writes a hilarious and comprehensive blog about (wait for it) the Buffalo Sabres hockey team. Seriously, she does, and guess which activity - viola playing or blogging about hockey while giving her favorite players nicknames like "Pommerdoodle" - has landed her in the pages of the New York Times?
Anyway, thanks to Symphony Mag for including us, and to anyone who's just come to our little corner of the interwebs via their link, welcome, and you should probably just go over to the right and click on the "fun" tab if you want to get a basic idea of what we do here. Unless you're one of those serious musical types, in which case, you want "stirring the pot," or maybe "elitism." Your call...
posted by Sam at
11:25 AM
5 Comments:
I don't know of any other organization that encourages freewheeling commentary such as you both do on this site. Most large arts organizations want to tightly control 'the message'. Compliments to the Minnesota Orchestra for bucking the trend. You have different things at stake than the others profiled who are primarily soloists.
Very cool! Congratulations!
Oooh, look at you two all fancy and famous! Congratulations! I agree with RN, this blog is atypical when it comes to organization-endorsed blogs. It's MUCH more fun, and MUCH braver about how it pulls back the curtain on the orchestra world. You're the best in the biz, Sam and Sarah!
And thanks for the link and the kind words. The New York Times has failed for YEARS to recognize my viola-playing genius. I had no choice but to turn to hockey in order to catch their eye.
And thanks for the link and the kind words.
Seemed only fair - you did the same for us a while back. And the NY Times is just awful in its lack of recognition of viola genius. In all the years MN Orch's been playing Carnegie Hall, I don't think the viola section's been mentioned even once in their reviews! The nerve...
Congratulations on the well-deserved recognition, and thanks for the always enjoyable blog!
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