culture
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The gender question, part 1
Early on in my career I was asked the gender question a lot. I mean, A LOT. It seemed to be the focus of most of my interviews in the early aughts – what’s it like to be a female conductor in a male-dominated field? Given the increasing numbers of women on the podium, lately that questions has become less prevalent, and I suppose in a way that’s a huge positive. Women conductors are becoming more normalized and pointing out our unique experiences might act as a disservice to that process. Which is not to say that the challenges of being a woman in what is still a man’s world…
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The most wonderful time of the year
The holidays are upon us, a season of unity, of bringing together friends and family, a time when it almost seems as if our shared humanity might overcome those things that conspire to divide us. I try to approach this “most wonderful time of the year” (to paraphrase Andy Williams) with a certain openness. And sometimes I’m able to enjoy the celebrations and the music and the gift giving and the time spent together. But let’s face it – the holidays can be a challenge. Even more so when we’ve lost a loved one. And yet more when we’ve lost someone to suicide. I’ve written about my father’s suicide on…
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Please excuse my soapbox
I was sitting in my hotel room this afternoon and relaxing post-rehearsal, idly going through my newsfeed on my phone when I came across this headline: Michelle Williams Was ‘Paralyzed’ After Learning Costar Mark Wahlberg Was Paid More Than Her Yes, it’s from People magazine, and yes, I read Hollywood gossip because, frankly, I feel like it’s a fascinating insight into an industry that has quite a few parallels to the music industry. You can read the whole article here. In a nutshell, the story is this: Michelle Williams was paid less than $1,000 for reshoots in a movie co-starring Mark Wahlberg, who was paid $1.5 million, even though they…
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Tick Tock
I was in Dublin a few weeks back working with the RTE National Symphony Orchestra. An afternoon off afforded me a few hours to take in St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Trinity College and a handful of other highlights. Although the major sights were nice, it was a chance encounter that ended up being the most meaningful visit of the day. Searching for a caffeine hit I turned down a promising road but instead of a coffee shop I found the National Library; a sign told me that it housed a free W.B Yeats exhibit. I love Yeats and I love free stuff, so I wandered in. It was a beautifully…
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Daily smile
Just something that made me happy this cloudy morning. It’s not often that I’m able to see the reaction of an audience as music is being played. The sense of delight is visceral, and it reminds me of why I love (most of the time!) what I do…
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Small gestures
Pinkerton and I see a lot of Starbucks. It’s a reliable place for a cup of caffeination and a portable breakfast, and if there’s one close by wherever I’m staying (and there always is) we’ll be there every morning, pre-rehearsal. The Starbucks we frequent the most is one attached to a hotel in downtown Minneapolis, where I conduct monthly. Your typical hotel Starbucks is usually a scene – long lines of customers with their complicated custom orders (“sugar-free no-whip half-caff mocha with soy milk”) and harried baristas with barely a moment to look up from the register. This one is different. A few years ago, a new barista started working…
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The glamorous life
I was in Belgium a month ago conducting concerts with the Antwerp Symphony. I’d never been to Antwerp before, and was delighted to discover a city of beautiful architecture (Central Station), exquisite art (Rubens) and delectable food (moules frites and waffles). The orchestra was great, and their schedule was such that I had enough time to make the hour long trip to Bruges, which was utterly charming, if overrun by tourists. On a sunny Saturday morning I set out for a run in the brisk autumn air of Stadtpark. And on the afternoon before my last concert I had time to troll the city for the best chocolate boutiques to…
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A continent, a people
Apologies for the extended hiatus, I had an unusually busy end-of-summer season that was followed immediately with back to back mini-vacations. (A view from one of the countless switchbacks on a trail up the side of a peak in Yosemite. It. Was. Amazing.) Spending my time communing with nature means I haven’t been indulging in slightly more civilized pleasures like movie-going, which is really the only reason I have yet to see “Crazy Rich Asians”. For those of you who haven’t heard about this cinematic juggernaut-cum-cultural phenomenon, it’s based on Kevin Kwan’s 2013 bestseller by the same name. I read it – no, devoured it – over the course of…