A former colleague of mine once said, "I would like to have
just one boring day around here."
Not today. We welcomed the busloads of students and teachers
and chaperones for the morning LinkUp concert, as well as Marella Briones, who
sang a Haydn tune as part of the program. Marella is a member of the Saint Louis
Symphony Chorus and serves as the model for the Verdi Requiem in the 0809
brochure. She was looking for a place to park.
One of the chaperones said to me, "This certainly is well
organized." Hooray for our side.
Following the full-house LinkUp concert the orchestra
regrouped for another round of Resident Conductor auditions. The finalists led
the musicians in works by John Adams and Beethoven - a nice mix - and whoever
was the very best one (as selected by a committee) may join the SLSO next
season and be the new Youth Orchestra leader as well.
I've been watching many Marx Brothers movies lately, which
explains why I kept insisting on being handed an instrument -- any instrument, any
section - to test the aspiring conductors' one-of-these-things-is-not-like-the-other
instincts. Alas, I was told to go elsewhere, which makes sense since there
really is no need to manufacture mayhem here.
And the orchestra regrouped again for Elliott Carter
rehearsal in the afternoon. Meanwhile, I returned from a walk in the sunshine
to hear Michelle DeYoung rehearsing in the Green Room. She sounded as though
the mayhem of Tristan und Isolde at
the Met hadn't affected her in the least.
