After Hours: Thursday Edition

Okay, Thursday crowd, your turn to put in your two cents on this week's ItC concerts. We covered an awful lot of ground in the first half of the program, and also created a mashed-up, multi-composer performance for the second half, so tell us whether those elements worked for you, or just seemed overwhelming. (We're also always anxious for feedback on things like the lighting changes that we used to highlight the changing of seasons on the second half...)

If you're interested in reading and hearing more about all the music we featured in the concert, check out our extensive Cutting Room Floor post, which has everything we didn't have time to get into from the stage, including a brilliant performance of Piazzolla, and a video interview with composer Angel Lam.

As always, thanks so much for your continued support of this series. We set an all-time attendance record for the Casual Classics/Inside the Classics franchise this season, and exceeded every goal we set, thanks to all of you in the audience. We're making the big jump to weekends next season, reprising one of our most popular early ItC programs in November, and then featuring some of the greatest repertoire ever written for a symphony orchestra beginning in January 2011. So come on back, and we'll see you next fall!

After Hours: Wednesday Edition

If you were with us at Orchestra Hall on Wednesday evening, here's your chance to tell us what you thought of the concert. We covered an awful lot of ground in the first half of the program, and also created a mashed-up, multi-composer performance for the second half, so tell us whether those elements worked for you, or just seemed overwhelming. (We're also always anxious for feedback on things like the lighting changes that we used to highlight the changing of seasons on the second half...)

If you're interested in reading and hearing more about all the music we featured in the concert, check out our extensive Cutting Room Floor post, which has everything we didn't have time to get into from the stage, including a brilliant performance of Piazzolla, and a video interview with composer Angel Lam.

As always, thanks so much for your continued support of this series. We set an all-time attendance record for the Casual Classics/Inside the Classics franchise this season, and exceeded every goal we set, thanks to all of you in the audience. We're making the big jump to weekends next season, reprising one of our most popular early ItC programs in November, and then featuring some of the greatest repertoire ever written for a symphony orchestra beginning in January 2011. So come on back, and we'll see you next fall!

After Hours: Thursday Edition

Your turn, Thursday audience! Chime in down in the comments to tell us what you thought of tonight's performance, and what you'd like to hear more or less of at future concerts. As always, your feedback helps us shape future seasons of the series - in fact, these Debussy concerts were designed and written to address comments we'd gotten from past shows requesting more music and information that places the featured work(s) in context, and fewer first-half examples that would be repeated on the second half. Let us know if we hit the mark on that one.

As always, thanks so much for your attendance, and your enthusiasm. It's truly a pleasure to be on stage in front of a crowd that's really engaged and excited about what you're doing, and y'all never disappoint. I hope we'll see you all again six weeks from now, when we wind up our ItC season with a mix-'n-match program of music all about the seasons...

(P.S. If you'd like more information on some of the side topics we covered during the first half of the show, check out our Cutting Room Floor post just below Wednesday's After Hours post...)

After Hours: Wednesday Edition

If you were with us at Orchestra Hall tonight for the first of our Inside the Classics concerts featuring music of Debussy, here's the place for you to let us know what you thought of the show! We covered an awful lot of ground in the first half (largely in response to feedback we've gotten at previous concerts requesting more contextual music and information, and a little less of the featured piece,) so tell us whether that approach worked for you, or whether it just made your head spin after a while. Also, we're always interested in hearing your reaction to the video component of the performance - it's not something we do very often, but we hope it made it easier for you to follow all the twists and turns of Debussy's wildly complex music!

Anyway, thanks to everyone who showed up - now have at that Comment button...

(P.S. If you'd like more information on some of the side topics we covered during the first half of the show, check out our Cutting Room Floor post just below this one...)

After Hours: Friday Edition

Well, now. Two shows and one abjectly terrifying live radio broadcast in the books, and here we are at After Hours. Your turn, Friday crowd: whether you attended tonight's concert at Orchestra Hall, or listened in on Minnesota Public Radio, let us hear your reaction down in the comments. (One caveat for you radio listeners - please let us know that you heard the show on MPR rather than in person, just to help us gauge how we did at adapting what is normally a highly visual concert experience for radio.)

We really have been blown away by how strong the support for this series has been, especially this year, when money is tight everywhere and we're all looking for ways to cut back on spending. So whatever you thought of our take on Beethoven, thanks for being a part of it, and I hope we'll see you all back at Orchestra Hall in January...

After Hours: Thursday Edition

Okay, Thursday crowd, here's the place for you to let us know what you thought of tonight's Beethoven Pastoral show. This concert was a bit of a departure for us - fewer visual gags (mainly because of the radio thing,) a bit more of the in-depth music stuff - but we hope it was a fun night out for all of you that joined us.

We really do want every kind of feedback to help us plan future shows, so let fly in the comments, and tell us what you loved, what left you cold, what flew a mile over your head, and what hit you square in the solar plexus. And as always, thanks for buying the ticket - in times like these, that simple act means more to those of us on stage than you can possibly imagine.

After Hours: Thursday Edition

I don't know what it is about our Thursday crowds, but you guys always have the most incredible energy! Thanks so much for coming out, and now here's your chance to weigh in. Did you like the video component? Was the balance between interview and our usual format successful on the first half? What did you think of the symphony itself? (Remember, we really do use your feedback to shape future shows.)

Most importantly, we're interested in knowing how you feel about our occasionally programming new music on this series. It's something we'd like to do more of in the future if our audience shows an interest, but we also want to hear if you'd prefer that we just stick to the core orchestral repertoire. Chime in below in the comments, and be as detailed as you'd like...

After Hours: Wednesday Edition

If you were with us at Orchestra Hall tonight for the Jay Greenberg symphony, here's your chance to tell us what you thought of the show. Did you like the video component? Was the balance between interview and our usual format successful on the first half? What did you think of the symphony itself? (Remember, we really do use your feedback to shape future shows.)

Most importantly, we're interested in knowing how you feel about our occasionally programming new music on this series. It's something we'd like to do more of in the future if our audience shows an interest, but we also want to hear if you'd prefer that we just stick to the core orchestral repertoire. Chime in below in the comments, and be as detailed as you'd like...

After Hours: Thursday Edition

Your turn, Thursday crowd. Here's the place to let us know what you liked or disliked about the Mendelssohn concert, and really, about your whole Orchestra Hall experience.

In particular, we're interested in hearing what you thought of the pacing of the first half of the show. We made a conscious decision (based largely on audience feedback from past ItC shows) to jump around more in the first half than we have in the past, spending less time than usual on the featured piece specifically and more time exploring the composer's life and music as a whole, and the way the orchestra approaches the music in rehearsal and performance. So if that worked for you, let us know, and if it didn't, tell us why, as well as any ideas you might have for future concerts.

In any case, thanks for being there - you Thursday people always have fantastic energy, and we're looking forward to seeing you again in March...

After Hours: Wednesday Edition

Well, our first Mendelssohn concert is in the books, and as usual, we're eager to hear what you thought about it! If you were in the house on Wednesday night, chime in down in the comments and tell us what you liked, what you thought needed a different angle, and what you would have liked to hear more or less of.

In particular, we're interested in hearing what you thought of the pacing of the first half of the show. We made a conscious decision (based largely on audience feedback from past ItC shows) to jump around more in the first half than we have in the past, spending less time than usual on the featured piece specifically and more time exploring the composer's life and music as a whole, and the way the orchestra approaches the music in rehearsal and performance. So if that worked for you, let us know, and if it didn't, tell us why, as well as any ideas you might have for future concerts.

As always, thanks so much for taking the time to come out and support live music, and I hope we'll see you all again for our March concerts...

After Hours: Thursday Edition

Your turn, Thursday crowd. Let us hear your thoughts on the show, the series, the orchestra, and anything else that's on your mind in the comments, and don't forget to check out the Cutting Room Floor for more on Mozart, the other Mozart, and prodigies in general. Also, keep on coming back to the blog throughout the year - Sarah and I are pretty much always writing...

Our next Inside the Classics shows come up at the end of January, and I can tell you without hesitation that this is a program I've been looking forward to writing and performing for well over a year now. Felix Mendelssohn have been the greatest musical prodigy of all time, and his music, whether written at age 15 or 30, is full of childlike energy and the kind of inner drive that you can't help but get caught up in. It certainly ought to be enough to make you forget momentarily about the long, dark winter we'll undoubtedly be slogging through at that point. I hope you'll be with us, and as always, bring a friend along!

After Hours: Wednesday Edition

If you were with us tonight at Orchestra Hall, here's your chance to let us know what you thought of the show! We really do pay attention to what you tell us when we plan these concerts, so be as specific as you care to be about what parts you thought worked, what you think could use some tweaking, and any big ideas you might have for the future of Inside the Classics.

Also, if you're reading the blog for the first time, click on the Cutting Room Floor tag to see a whole bunch of stuff we didn't have time for in the show. Thanks to everyone for showing up tonight, and I hope we'll see you all again in January!

After Hours: Thursday Edition

Annnnd let's hear from the Thursday crowd. If you were with us tonight, let us know in the comments, along with any suggestions for future shows. Thanks so much to everyone who's showed up to any or all of our concerts this year - Sarah and I have had a blast, and we're already looking forward to next season! We'll keep updating the blog all summer long, so be sure to come back regularly...

After Hours: Wednesday Edition

Here's your chance to let us know what you thought of Wednesday night's Inside the Classics concert! We had a nearly full house, which was great to see, and as always, you guys are a fantastically responsive audience! So chime in down in the comments, and let us know what you liked, what you thought we could have done better, and what you'd like to see more of in future shows...

(Also, if you'd like to learn more about Copland and Appalachian Spring, you can read all the stuff we didn't have room for in the show in our Cutting Room Floor posts...)

A second to reflect

Many thanks to all of you who attended our "Inside the Classics" concerts last week. I didn't really have a chance to reflect on those performances until tonight (in a hotel room in Fargo, ND, no less!), but wanted a chance to express my thanks to all.

Peter was a wonderful soloist to work with; for those of you who attended, when we rehearsed the "blindfolded conductor" bit, I told him to be ridiculous and unmusical and try to throw me off. Of course he just can't play unmusically, which made blindfolded conducting much easier than it should have been! And Sam, as always is the best cohost (and cohort) one could ask for. The orchestra, at this point, doesn't even blink an eye when we put a list of 18 excerpts in front of them, which speaks to their willingness to think outside of the usual symphonic box and go along with us on this grand experiment.

It was thrilling to see our houses fuller on both nights (particularly Thursday) than they were in November, and to see the number of people who stayed for the post-concert Q and A sessions. We hope we are creating something unique in this new series and appreciate both your feedback and support.

We just had a meeting this morning about our last "ItC" concert, featuring "Appalachian Spring" and are making initial plans for next season - look forward to seeing everyone at the next show!

After Hours: Thursday Edition

We had a nearly full house for the Thursday concert, which was an incredible thing to see for such a new concert series! Thanks to everyone who showed up, and I hope we'll see you all (and a few of your friends, maybe?) at our spring concerts. For now, though, this is the place for those of you in the audience Thursday to chime in and tell us what you thought of the show, and what you'd like to see more (or less) of in future concerts. Just click the Comments button below, and have at it...

After Hours: Wednesday Edition

If you were at Wednesday night's Inside the Classics concert at Orchestra Hall, here's your chance to weigh in as we continue to develop the series with your help! In the comments section below, tell us what you liked (or didn't like,) what else you wish we'd covered, what questions you still have about the Tchaikovsky, or the orchestra, or soloist Peter McGuire, and/or anything else you can think of. As always, thanks so much for supporting live music, and for giving Sarah and me a chance to test out all these new ideas in front of such a supportive crowd. You guys rule.

After Hours: Thursday Edition

Okay, Thursday audience, your turn. You packed the place, and your energy was palpable all night from the stage! Sarah and I had a great time, and we're already chomping at the bit to get started on January's concert. So if you were with us Thursday night, chime in below in the comments: what did you like about the show, what would you like to see more of, and what could we be doing better?

After Hours: Wednesday Edition

So, our first concert is in the books, and from the stage, it looked like we had an excellent turnout! Thanks to everyone who attended, and if you missed it, we're doing it again Thursday night. (Tickets available here, or at the Orchestra Hall box office.)

As soon as I make it home after each of our shows this year, I'll be throwing up a post like this, designed to solicit your comments. (This may or may not garner much response initially - our tech people haven't told us yet whether anyone's actually discovered this blog...) Sarah and I spent a lot of time thinking, talking, and planning what we wanted to do with this series, and one thing we agreed on immediately was that we wanted to hear some backtalk from the audience, and not just assume that we know what's best for you.

So if you were with us Wednesday night at Orchestra Hall, click the comments link below and tell us what you liked, what you didn't like, or what you think we ought to do in the future. And again, thanks to everyone who showed up - we hope you'll be a repeat customer!