Page 2 – 1/3 Stafmn Ad – Publisher’s Letter – Table of Cont
Introduction from the Publisher Marc Parella, Partner - Director of Operations
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Universe is a quarterly magazine featuring the artists of Price Rubin & Partners in addition to related stories about the Concert Music Management Industry. Universe is published by the Price Group LLC Executive and Administrative Staff
Jack Price Managing Director and Founding Partner
Marc Parella Partner and Director of Operations
Rebecca Petersen Executive Administrative
Robert Hart Baker Artist Consultant and Media Development
Chicago Management Group
Karrah Cambry Senior Marketing Manager
Nathan Oakes Senior Marketing Manager
CatieLeigh Laszewski Marketing Manager
Olivia Stanford Marketing Manager
Katherin Dalin Marketing Associate Company Address and Contact Information Price Rubin & Partners 520 Geary St Suite 605 San Francisco CA 94102 Toll Free: 866-PRI-RUBI Email: universe@pricerubin.com Web: http://www.pricerubin.com ©The Price Group LLC – All Rights Reserved
s Price Rubin enters its 32nd year, we continue to offer an outstanding roster of concert soloists, conductors, composers, and leading contributors to the concert music industry. We are privileged to announced a number of artists and Universe is a our quarterly ensembles joining roster magazine who remain featuring the artists of Price Rubin & among the industry's most-celebrated. I in addition to related wouldPartners like to welcome legendary concert the Concert Music flutist,stories author,about and interviewer Eugenia Management Universe isat Zukerman who enjoys a unique place in our industry Industry. as an ambassador publishedand by the Price Group LLC large. She has enjoyed a full career performing recording with major symphony orchestras and has contributed a companion career as one of the and Administrative Staff preeminent journalists and interviewersExecutive in our industry. She is a regular contributor to Musical America and was for many years seen on CBS Sunday Jack Price Morning. She has written on a variety of topics from the side effects of Director and Founding medication to fiction, and of course on Managing music. Her current project,Partner Noted Endeavors offers insightful guidance to emerging young concert artists on a variety of topics relating to building a sustaining career. Marc Parella Joining Ms. Zukerman to the roster is the Eroica of Trio, one of the allPartner and Director Operations time, most in-demand chamber musicians touring today. Violinist Sara Petersen Parkins, cellist Sara Sant'Ambrogio and Rebecca pianist Erika Nickrenz have enjoyed a Assistant truly international career performing onAdministrative major concert series, symphony orchestra programs along with several critically acclaimed recordings on EMI Robert Hart Baker Classics. With a number of varied programs and highly innovative premieres, Consultant and Media Development Price Rubin is pleased to present a chamber ensemble that is defining the future of chamber music. Management Group The St. Petersburg String Quartet (Alla Aranovskaya violin, Luis Angel KarrahShukayev Cambry cello) is another Salazar Avila violin, Boris Vayner viola, Leonid Senior Marketing strong entry to our roster. The quartet is currently inManager residence at Wichita Nathan Oakes State University and has toured extensively worldwide. A solid staple of the Senior Marketing Manager New York chamber music scene, the St. Petersburg String Quartet is actively CatieLeigh Laszewski pursuing new works and offering exciting programming. Adding to the Marketing Manager quartet is the St. Petersburg Piano Quartet and the Suprima Chamber Olivia Stanford, Marketing Manager Orchestra. Katherin Dalin, Marketing Associate In this issue of Price Rubin Universe, we are featuring conductor Jens Company Address Contact Information Georg Bachmann who has served as music director andand associate director for Price Rubin & Partners a number of symphony orchestras including tenure as Associate Music 520 Geary St Suite 605 Director under James Levine at the Boston Symphony. Maestro Bachmann San Francisco CA 94102 reveals a special intensity to his music making how his mentors helped Toll Free:and 866-PRI-RUBI Email: universe@pricerubin.com craft his unique musical message. Web: http://www.pricerubin.com Rounding out our winter 2014/15 issue is a review on Price Rubin's Front Cover: Jens Georg Bachmann Chamber Music roster and a feature article on how entrepreneurial artist Additional Photothe from Shuttershock PriceIndustry. Group LLC – All Rights Reserved is the fulcrum for change in the Concert©The Music And how the early Personal Computer Industry might serve as a guide to how the Concert Music Industry might be able to see new ways. And lastly a personal note wishing our clients and staff a joyous and safe holiday time. December marks my fifth year as co-owner of Price Rubin. I have been blessed to work with an outstanding staff and gifted clients, and a business partner whom I have known for nearly 30 years.
musical score is after all nothing more than an arcane language of symbols learned from an early age. A score at best only gives an interpreter clues into the intended sound, and even after nearly a hundred years of commercial recordings, an concert artist's career will be measured by their ability to discover something hidden in the code that no one else has yet found. For conductor Jens
the code that no one else has yet found. For conductor Jens Bachmann, his journey of discovery starts in his native Germany where he embarks on a typical young person's career path in music. First, careful study of piano, voice, violin that included a rigorous regiment of practice and preparation. "Conservatory auditions in Germany are difficult and in order to prepare for a career as a Kapellmeister,
which is what I intended to do, it became clear that conservatories in Germany offered the opportunity early in my career to conduct at a very high level." Bachmann adds. After four intense years at study to be a Kapellmeister in Germany, Bachmann quickly advanced in German conducting circles giving his operatic debut with the Berlin State Opera conducting Strauss' comedy Des Esels Schatten (The Donkey's Shadow).
The conducting experience in Germany opened an opportunity to study with legendary conductor OttoWerner Mueller. The chance to mentor with Mueller at Juilliard complemented Bachmann's already voracious personal discipline. Bachmann attended Juilliard for two years where life in New York was the perfect playground for an aspiring young conductor. "If I wasn't conducting, studying, coaching, I was sneaking in to performances at Lincoln Center, and right there I witnessed the best of the best every night. It was amazing to hear not only the consistent quality of the performances, but to hear so many different works and conductors was enlightening." Bachmann attributes much of his early development on Mueller's cool temperament and insistence that conductor's get in to the skin of a score. "Because Juilliard offered so much in the way of practical hands-on training, I had the chance to conduct the Juilliard Training Orchestra two hours a week." Bachmann's academic career at Juilliard proved to be prescient of things to come. He says, "a young conductor's career after all is measured by the company he or she keeps." And Bachmann's first calling card after Juilliard comes from none other than James Levine. "Upon returning to Germany, I get a call from James Levine who was guesting at the Berlin Philharmonic. He asks for my CV and then tells me that he wants to bring me on as an assistant with the Munich
Philharmonic where he was taking over from the late Sergiu Celibidache. Munich turns out to be a proving ground for me as I had an opportunity to see the rebuilding process. My early days working with Maestro Levine filled in a void that was missing in me at the time
about the process of building an orchestra and imparting a unique signature to the sound and makeup of an ensemble." For Bachmann, Levine's legendary attention to tone and musical texture garnered from decades of conducting opera revealed the missing pieces to Bachmann's already copious musical offerings. "Levine's direction to the orchestra was like an unveiling at an art museum. He stressed the importance of the actual sound where the human voice is key to understanding the entire music-making process. You need to first
know what sound you want then you must have the ability to convey that vision precisely to your players. Lyricism, dynamics, phrasing, and formal construction all stem from our vocal traditions, and in this capacity, James Levine presented me with the tools to reach a zenith of perfection." Bachmann undoubtedly struck a chord with Levine as he was invited to audition as an assistant conductor at the Boston Symphony. In the meantime a number of guest conducting opportunities and another associate position at the Fort Worth Symphony were added to his CV along with a short stint as music director of the short-lived Texas Chamber Orchestra. His early guest conducting engagements included Stuttgart State Opera and N端rnberg State Opera. He also conducted the New York Metropolitan Opera where he served as a staff conductor. He made his Met debut conducting The Magic Flute in a nationally live radio broadcast during the 2006- 2007 season. But the symphonic repertoire with its steep interpretive tradition awaited Bachmann's next appointment, Associate Conductor at the Boston Symphony. "When Maestro Levine was offered the position at Boston in 2004, he invited me to audition. After receiving the appointment to join the BSO, I knew from my experience at Munich that he was going to rearchitect the sound of America's oldest orchestra not an easy task. An orchestra's identity is its sound and cajoling players to do things that they may have never done before not only takes the insight to arrive at such a place, but a set of skills
requiring tact, diplomacy and fortitude necessary to get 80 musicians to sound like a single musical unit. A unit of your own design." At Boston, Bachmann took more of an active role conducting a number of subscription concerts and substituting for Levine whenever the elder maestro was ill. His tenure at Boston opened a number of new opportunities with engagements with the NDR Sinfonieorchester Hamburg, NDR Radio Philharmonie Hannover, The Florida Orchestra, Gävle Symfoniorkester in Sweden, and a production of Le Nozze di Figaro at the Royal Swedish Opera Stockholm. Bachmann was appointed music director at the Crested Butte Music Festival in Colorado from 2010 through the 2012 summer seasons, and gave master classes and concerts at New York
University’s Steinhardt School of Music and Performing Arts Profession and the Manhattan School of Music. He has recently returned to the Fort Worth Symphony after a n absence of ten years to guest conduct. Bachmann attributes his passion to that of his mentors. In addition to his formal training with Mueller and his apprenticeship with Levine, Bachmann has also worked with Christoph von Dohnanyi during his tenure with the NDR Sinfonieorchester Hamburg. "Mentoring with von Dohnanyi gave me an insight into the communication process of working with musicians. He is obsessed with clarity and precision." Bachmann believes that the concert experience is special, and the modern concert hall is hallow ground. He dismisses wonted programming but stresses
that experimental deviations can be reckless - with no guarantee of any innovation the concert industry needs. "Programming must make sense. Just as there are relationships between sections of a piece, there are relationships among different works, composers, periods." In addition to the challenges of programming, Bachmann sees the missing element in the symphony experience as the need for inclusion. He says that modern audiences need to be treated more holistically. He calls for greater inclusion through pre/post concert conversations and greater community involvement. "The modern music director must be a master communicator. Someone who can take a vision and convey that not only to musicians but the very audience all of our work is intended to enrich. These values were instilled by exceptional opportunities in the orchestras I have directed and with mentors who revealed great insights to me." For Jens Georg Bachmann the journey continues to reach that zenith, a plane where the confluence of perfection and dedication is matched with equal appreciation from a growing and increasingly involved audience base. Somewhere in the code of music this perfect equation exists. â–ˆ
Manager's Report: Jack Price, Founding Partner he last quarter of 2014 has been quite productive. A number of our artists are touring and the roster is enjoying strong support in many quarters of the industry. I am finalizing contracts with the Fresno Philharmonic, Reno Chamber, Las Cruces New Mexico Symphony, Pueblo Symphony, Abilene Philharmonic, and the Cleveland Orchestra. I am working on a US tour for Italian/America violinist Francesca Dego with tour stops at Fresno Philharmonic, Reno Chamber and Las Cruces New Mexico Symphony. She is enjoying a well-deserved wave of strong interest from symphony presenters as a result of her recent Deutsche Grammophon recording of the 24 Paganini Caprices. Pianist Elena Ulyanova who joined the roster in August has generated strong immediate interest, and is a pianist known for a commanding and authoritative technique. She has been engaged to perform with the Lonnie Klein and the Las Cruses Symphony next December. I will be heading to Dallas for New Years Eve to attend the US debut of soprano Laura Alonso with the Dallas Symphony with guest conductor Oliver von Dohnanyi. And speaking of Texas, I had a chance to visit my good friend Dan Strait in Austin whom you may know owns the Strait Music Company, one of the largest independent music retailers in the US. I had Dan on my radio show recently who talked about his relationships with legendary concert artists, some of whom have performed at Strait's own concert venue adjacent to his anchor store in Austin. Dan's legacy in the retail music industry cannot be understated. He is one of the titans. Karrah Cambry, Senior Marketing Manager has been busy working on guest conducting engagements for conductor David Handel who is attracting a great deal of interest. She has an upcoming engagement for David with the Omsk Siberian Symphony Orchestra in 2016. MezzoSoprano Marina Serpagli traveled to New York from Italy this past October where she auditioned for the Center for Contemporary Opera. This was Marina's first New York audition. Former New York
Metropolitan Mezzo Isola Jones recently joined the roster. Isola has enjoyed a truly internationally renowned career having performed over 500 Met performances. Price Rubin is working to secure master class and workshop opportunities along with special vocal engagements. Karrah has also been working on Ronald Foster's An Evening at the Ballet which has interest from several regional orchestras. This innovative symphonic ballet program features a full-length concert of ballet music performed by members of the Joffrey Ballet as is scheduled to perform with the Anchorage Symphony next February. Baritone John Davies will be among the soloists for Symphony Irvine's performance of Verdi's Requiem this March arranged by Price Rubin. I am also pleased to announce Price Rubin's collaboration with the Eroica Trio, certainly one of the all-time top performing chamber groups touring today. Their EMI recordings have garnered worldwide praise and we are receiving strong immediate interest for them in 2015-2016. In addition to the Eroica Trio, Price Rubin has signed the St. Petersburg String Quartet representing them in sundry territories and their companion ensembles, the St. Petersburg Piano Quartet and the Suprima Chamber Orchestra. The chamber orchestra is available worldwide through Price Rubin. CatieLeigh Laszewski who works on the campaign for the Texas Guitar Quartet has found considerable interest in this unique and highly talented group. Price Rubin has secured the quartet with the Abilene Texas Philharmonic for a concert next season along with a residency at the Guitar Foundation of America annual conference in Oklahoma City next year. Katherine Dalin who joined the marketing staff back in October provided marketing support in an joint marketing endeavor between Price Rubin and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. She recently handled the campaign for the Rubin Institute for Music Criticism, a week-long symposium featuring music critics from the major newspapers and periodicals. As we enter 2015, the quality of the roster has steadily improved with the addition of artists, music directors and ensembles who are among the mostesteemed and recognized in the industry. It is going to a very good year indeed.
Toll Free 866-PRI-RUBI ext. 1
Accordion
Email: jp@pricerubin.com Fabio Antonelli
Conductor Aldo Bernardi
Gonzales-Hamilton
Hummie Mann
Martin Akerwall
Jens Georg Bachmann
Lalo Schifrin
Antonino Artino Innaria
John Devlin
Bas Jongen
Lars Graugaard
Bradley Bosenbeck
Leon Burke
Kalin Ivanov
Larry GroupĂŠ
Carmelo Caruso
Alejandro Sanchez-Navarro
Kate Dillingham
Luis Jorge Gonzalez
David Benoit
Massimiliano Donninelli
Sara Sant'Ambrogio
Mark Snow
David Handel
Robert Hart Baker
Cimbalom
Matthew H Fields
Lalo Schifrin
Hideaki Hirai
Maycown Reichembach
Garo Avessian
Rolf Bertsch
Anthony Newman
Michael Sydney Jones
Grzegorz Nowak
Ronald Foster
Alejandro Sanchez-Navarro
Pamela Illanes Tatsuoka
Nicolas Couton
Steven Byess
Christopher Boscole
Ronald Foster
Jacob Chi
Toufic Maatouk
Donald Yu
Yaron Gottfried
James Richards
Walter Proost
Heli Siekkinen
Bassoon CĂŠleste-Marie Roy
Cello Allison Eldredge
Jean-Francois
Mykhaylo Zakhariya
Composer Alain Feron
Yaron Gottfried
St. Petersburg Piano Quartet
Burning Gums
Alex Slobodyanik
Outside North America/UK
Alexander Vikulov
Andrea Licata
Matthew Savery
Derek Gleeson
St. Petersburg String Quartet
Piano
Conrad Herwig
Alexander Kobrin
Valerio Fasoli
Edgar Gabriel
Beatriz Boizan
Eugenia Zukerman
Peggy Duquesnel
Blandine Waldmann
Guitar
Sarah Jane Cion
Bobby Chen
Outside North America/UK
Flute
Alvaro Henrique
Theodore Kuchar
Lito Romero
David Benoit
Chiu Yu Chen
Robert Ryker
Robert Phillips
Uli Geissendoerfer
Christopher Boscole
Edward Benyas
Roberto Capocchi
Yaron Gottfried
Elena Ulyanova
Lonnie Klein
Guitar Quartet The Romeros
Christopher Boscole
Enrico Padovani
Gabriel Arnold
Outside US/Germany
Anthony Newman
Texas Guitar Quartet
Maycown Reichembach
Contra Bassoon
Harmonica
Orchestra
Jia-Yi He
Suprima Chamber Orchestra
Harp
New York
PEN Trio
Melinda Zak
Chamber Orchestra
Eroica Trio
Harpsichord
Sinfonia Varsovia
Anthony Newman
US Only
Jazz/Pop
Organ
Al Chez
Anthony Newman
Susan Nigro
Ensemble
N2K Katherine Cash Violin Norm Freeman Percussion
Ian Gindes
Julia Zilberquit
Katie Mahan
Leslie Howard
Mario Galeani
Roger Myers
Michael Sellers
Viola da gamba
Michelle Kim
Violin
Mikhail Korzhev
Christian Vachon
Diana Jacklin
Pervez Mody
Cyrus Forough
Juliet Petrus
Rika Zayasu
Katherine Cash
Laura Alonso
Sandra Shen
Florin Croitoru
Isola Jones
Yaron Gottfried
Francisca Mendoza
Yoshie Akimoto
Garry Ianco
Piano Duo
Salvatore Accardo
Firenze Piano Duo TrevisanZaccaria Piano Duo
Viola
Vered Forbes
Chloe Trevor
Marina Serpagli
Paul Williamson
Special Attractions Janice Martin Shows
Francesca Dego
Naoko Matsui
Hong-Mei Xiao
Oleg Larionov
Lu Ye
Vocal Davies & Campbell Duo
Visit www.pricerubin.com for complete artist information including audio and video media, links to CD and upcoming events.
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hamber music is set to see a revival and 2015-16 could be one of the best seasons for chamber music groups in years. The genre is teaming with ensembles of all kinds offering exciting and innovative programming. It is now becoming chic to attend a chamber music concert, and one presenter tells Universe Magazine that they are seeing younger and more diverse audiences. One reason for the upward trend is that the genre is successfully breaking away from its stereotypical image undoubtedly portrayed by a laughable quartet of near-dead string players sawing away at a slow movement. Instead today's chamber music image is alive with younger, more energetic performers programming adventurous and entertaining repertoire. Arrangements of Beatles and Rolling Stones classics have been known to find their way on a chamber music concert with concert attendees guaranteed plenty of "satisfaction". Above: The St. Petersburg String Quartet
The chamber music ensemble is classical music's rock band image complete with stoiclooking group photos and trendy-sounding group names. Programming is now attracting the services of A-listed composers and arrangers who are adding new repertoire, and chamber music is quickly emerging as the most-evolving genre in serious concert music. Works for narrator and string quartet are no longer oddities and programming today draws on imaginative
set designs, multi-media presentations that incorporate dance, video, and other visual accompaniments. However traditional programming has not been left on the side of the road, and the chamber music heritage is indeed rich and varied, drawing on a 500 year reservoir of standard repertoire. Why all the appeal? It could be attributed to the fact that each musician of an ensemble is treated equally serving as both soloist and accompanist.
Price Rubin's chamber music roster offers a variety of seasoned and veteran chamber groups along with new ensembles attracting the attention of regional chamber music presenters. The 2015-2016 chamber music season promises to offer audiences a selection of artists and programs of uncompromising quality and originality. a Price Rubin is pleased to present chamber music ensembles for 2015-2016 season.
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Among the premiere chamber ensembles performing today with the San Francisco Examiner proclaiming: "It's been decades since this country has produced a chamber music organization with this much passion." Programs include arrangements of Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, Bernstein's Westside Story and works by Mark O'Connor, Lowell Liebermann, and Astor Piazzolla.
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The highly-acclaimed and multi award-winning St. Petersburg String Quartet continues to enthrall audiences with superbly crafted performances. The quartet has performed worldwide including a sixconcert series at New York's BargeMusic Series, the Chamber Music Series at Lincoln Center, and residencies at Oberlin and Wichita State University.
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Adding to the chamber music prowess of the St. Petersburg String Quartet, the Piano Quartet provides audiences with fresh and energetic interpretations of standard and innovative repertoire. Having performed at the New York BargeMusic Series and the famed Da Camera Society series in Los Angeles, the St. Petersburg Piano Quartet ranks as one of the top, in-demand piano quartets touring today.
S Su up prriim ma aC Ch ha am mb be err O Orrcch he essttrra a The Suprima Chamber Orchestra (SCO) was established in 2011 as a professional ensemble at Wichita State University by the members of St. Petersburg String Quartet. Students play with the members of the Quartet. Another mission is to find and present young talented musicians to play with the SCO as soloists. Among its many successful concerts, one of the soloists was a 5-year old-Jonathan Okseniuk of YouTube fame who played violin and conducted the CSO.
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The original quartet that invented the guitar quartet genre. Aptly named: "The Royal Family of the Guitar", the Romero's are probably the mostidentified name in the world of classical guitar.
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The PEN Trio offers concert presenters exciting repertoire from established composers along with captivative arrangements and insightful interpretations of standard repertoire. A venerable fixture performing at college series and academic conferences, the PEN Trio delivers a stunning concert performance experience. "They brought all of their considerable personality and ability into our concert to create a wonderfully moving and uplifting performance." M. Ross Baldwin, Cranbrook Music Guild
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The Texas Guitar Quartet has emerged as one of the preeminent quartets in the US having performed on a number of major series including the New York City Classical Guitar Society, Victoria Bach Festival, Austin Classical Guitar Society, Guitar Houston, Texas Music Festival, Troubadour Series at Wofford College, UT at Brownsville and Austin Chamber success Festival, and artists need to Music. 2014-16 Touring Artists of the Texas Commission On The Arts with connect to the very people applicable grant funding available.who should know them and
consider them for public performance. had the N rr O Ne ew wY Yo orrk kC Ch ha am mb be e Orrcch he essttrrIa a luxury of York's worldwide publicity An all-star ensemble made up of some of New most-gifted chamber and a major recording players. A regular staple at New York's Merkin Hall and other chamber music series, the NYCO premieres contract and recordsin new the works late written 70s and especially for them. An ideal chamber-size orchestra foran tours, that was what available created workshops, academic conferences,immediate and special hire. brand – and attracted managers like Bill Judd. But had I had the kind
The Hurtles Facing the Entrepreneurial Artist This is a tale of two industries. One thriving, creating 10,000 jobs a month, where the talent is in such hyper demand, labor recruiters attempt to poach workers from other companies at transit stops. The other anemic, unable to recover from economic and cultural erosion, where innovation threatens its traditions and any new talent is met with hostile indifference. One industry that started in garages and upstairs attics, appealing at first to enthusiasts, grew to become a $450 billion a year industry worldwide. The other unable to pay its workers a living salary and 90% of its college and conservatory graduates eventually go in to other fields. The year is 1977 and at a PC conference in Seattle, a group of approximately 150 computer hobbyists gather at an early industry convention to meet fellow software programmers and hardware designers. One of the top concerns on everyone's mind is whether a standard operating system is going to be adopted among PC manufacturers. Without a standard OS, computer programs would only work on one type of computer. The other hot topic among
the conference attendees was the prevailing attitude that personal computers would not sell well to the general public because it seems most people had no idea why they would even need a PC. Unless a standard OS could be adopted, software developers would have to create software that would work on different platforms. Was the PC industry destined to stay as an Enthusiasts' Industry - where those who produced software would be the only ones who would use it? As it turns out the Classical Music Industry can learn a lot from the early Personal Computer Industry. In fact a very important answer is found in that the PC industry grew from enthusiasts who became entrepreneurs. The intellectual investment necessary to solve the insurmountable technical problems also had to sell the public on the useful applications of a PC. When the cost of an average PC in the late 1980s equaled four to six weeks wages, and some software costing more than the PC itself, the early PC industry knew it had to rely on mass marketing and a
How cultureisiskeeping keepingour ourbest bestfrom fromshining. shining. Howan anindustry's industry cultural little known concept called culture shaping - the idea that a product can affect changes in cultural attitudes and behavior. The early PC industry, like the current Classical Music Industry faced strong resistance from new consumers. Learning to use a computer in 1979 was about as difficult as learning to appreciate Stravinsky. Older computer users who were originally weaned on mainframe systems resisted new technologies such as the Graphical User Interface and application multitasking. Terms like User Friendly can be compared to concert music's Accessible Programming, and were used similarly to entice new consumers. But for the computer industry to have evolved, software companies needed to address those issues early on, and those that were successful rightly identified them as cultural problems. People change only when they see the change around them, and how the change benefits them. Software manufacturers invested heavily in support and training where a personal relationship was developed between the software maker and the end user.
TheThe ideaidea of making of making the the concert concert experience experience personal personal is not is not necessarily necessarily a new a new ideaidea but but presenters havepresenters either resisted have either the idea resisted of engaging the idea directly of engaging with theirdirectly audience withortheir simply audience did notor have simply the did resources not have to reach thethem. resources Overto the reach years, them. and especially Over the years, since the and 2008 especially economic since crash, thethis 2008 lack economic of engagement crash, this hashas contributed contributed substantially more thantoanything decliningtoaudience declining attendance. audience Add attendance. to this hardship Add to this the advent hardship ofthe free content advent on of thefree internet, content a classical on the internet, traditionathat tradition is highly that resistant is highlytoresistant change,to and change, an industry and anculture industry thatculture works harder that works to keep harder newtotalent keep out newthan talent out attracts thannew attracts audiences, new audiences, and the concert and theindustry industryisis destined destined to become to become the the veryvery thing thing the the PC industry PC industry waswas in 1977 in 1977 -- an--industry an industry where where those those whowho write write and perform and perform serious concert serious concert music are music the ones are those who end who up listening listen to to it. it. In the late 1950s with the emergence of television and high-fidelity stereo records, classical music enjoyed increased popularity, and personalities like Leonard Bernstein were a household name. Opera stars held real status in western cultural, and pop culture freely embraced classical music idioms.
Television became an medium in which artists could engage directly with audiences and do so on a scale never before seen. Bernstein saw this potential and exploited it for all it was worth. Certainly as one of the most telegenic personalities, Bernstein introduced millions to the symphony orchestra repertoire and such heady concepts as orchestration, counterpoint, development, and the greater meaning of classical music through his Young Peoples Concerts broadcast on CBS from 1958 through 1972. These concerts were proof that audience engagement created interest, and interest ultimately created demand. Today there have been other attempts to revive the Young Peoples Concerts concept. Most recently Gerard Schwarz and the All Star Orchestra, an orchestra made up of top-level players from major orchestras throughout the US, have developed free, downloadable programming on YouTube with each episode addressing a single subject. Schwarz presents a short introduction to works with additional commentary coming from orchestra members. Unfortunately the view counts are low and there have only been eight episodes produced but it is indeed a step in the right direction as it addresses the need for musicians to start talking about music. Listen to Gerard Schwarz's interview on the Jack Price Radio Show: http://www.pricerubin.com/jprs/archive But pre-concert talks only address the faithful - those who get it. Get this in front a group of 30-something tech workers in Corporate America, and they'll be lost before the end of the exposition section. There needs to be a new, radically different departure to the world of serious music , yet artists and administrators are stuck trying to start their 1972 Lincoln Continental and get it out of reverse. Serious music must come to terms that its traditions are killing it and new paradigms are needed now. This is indeed a very scary prospect but to tech workers this is a day at the office. The computer industry cannot live without constant innovation and the threat to someone's job comes not only from a restructuring of the company or a cancellation of a project, but more from new software technology that makes a tech worker's years of experience instantly outdated. No one in classical music is designing a new instrument that puts principle orchestra players out of work, but in some small way, this is indeed what needs to happen. The industry's survival will not come from evolution or revolution, but from convulsion. After all every great milestone in human artistic development came from the need to change the status quo, and so-called contemporary music does little to further this process. A new work may get a thunderous reception but often new works generate a polite yawn. There is not only a lack of innovation in the concert industry, there is a lack of invention, and the industry has been playing safe for too long. It is time for a major upgrade to its thinking and direction.
A Young Person's Guide to Fixing the Orchestra. What music graduates and mid-career artists can do right now to help their cause. 1) Invite people to your rehearsals instead of your concerts. Seeing the process of making music is something new to most people who may never have been exposed to a concert event. And if possible seat people right on stage. 2) Learn to speak in public. If music students develop the confidence needed to speak publicly and engage with people one-on-one, this one improvement will help to generate interest and possible collaboration from their communities. This is not only something music students need to develop, it is something that every professional musician must now master. 3) Avoid a career in teaching, especially college-level teaching unless that is your passion. There are far too many people teaching today and new teachers are not needed. And there is also something disingenuous about teachers teaching students a profession that most can't make a living at. Instead pursue a good plan B where a steady high-income job can do more to help a music career than all the academic honors one could possibly earn. Plus having additional skills will come in handy when it is time to run an orchestra or a festival. 4) Separate your career into two main areas. The business of your career should be treated as a business. Your artistry should be something completely different. Develop a sensible marketing plan that incorporates a well-developed internet and social media presence. Make sure the people in the industry who should know you are aware of what you do and why they should engage you. 5) Don't participate in puerile grudge matches. The industry right now needs collaboration, and petty fighting takes away constructive time and energy needed to solve problems. Advancement in a career should not be built discrediting others. Instead solicit and offer constructive criticism that is intended to make improvements. 6)Volunteer your time working for arts groups. Every organization needs volunteers, and there is no better way to get in to the thick of the industry than working for a local symphony, ballet or opera company. Helping others discover their appreciation for music is job one for all artists today. Music students should worry more about how to help their industry than finding their first job. That in time will come, but it won't come unless there is a growing audience base capable of supporting a young person's music career goals and an industry capable of giving that person a job. Marc Parella is a Partner and Director of Operations for Price Rubin and Partners.
PRPRadioOne Program Guide
Listen to 24-hour PRPRadioOne at www.pricerubin.com/radio featuring commercial recordings and selective live performances by PRP artists along with industry talk radio. All Times Eastern and approximate
8am Morning Programming 11am Today in Music Education with Anthony Masiello(Sat) 11:55 Musical Moment with Eugenia Zukerman 12pm The Jack Price Radio Show* 1pm Today in Music Education with Anthony Masiello(Thur)* 2pm General Programming 6pm Repeat: The Jack Price Radio Show 7pm General Programming 9pm Repeat: The Jack Price Radio Show 10pm Jazz Tonight 12pm Repeat: The Jack Price Radio Show 1am Overnight *Premium programming
Chicago area jazz violinist and member of the String Fusion Jazz Ensemble Edgar Gabriel is heard on Jazz Tonight 10pm featuring singles She's a Duesy and Fat Chance on a Friday Afternoon
Legendary Concert Bassist Gary Karr is a regular contributor on the Jack Price Radio Show 12Noon Daily
Each Thursday at 1pm Anthony Masiello engages in lively talk with today’s most intriguing movers and shakers on Today in Music Education Starting in January Eugenia Zukerman's Musical Moment features past interviews of industry insiders and special guests. Prior to the Jack Price Radio Show each weekday.
Violist and composer Oleg Larionov is heard on PRPRadioOne Overnight 1am
Winter 2014/2015 Roster News Composer/Conductor Hideaki Hirai has been appointed Music Director of the New York Festival Orchestra with his first concert this March at Merkin Hall. He has also had a number of successful performances of his opera Princess from the Moon and is a regular guest conductor with the Czech Virtuosi Orchestra. Violinist Francesca Dego has three upcoming engagements for 2015-2016. Price Rubin has procured dates with the Fresno Philharmonic, Reno Chamber Orchestra, and the Las Cruces (NM) Symphony Orchestra.
Concert Harmonica virtuoso Jia-Yi He has been invited to performed at a New Year's concert at Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall as part of the China Arts Foundation New Year's Concert. Mr. He is also scheduled to performed with the Orchestra Society of Philadelphia next November. Italian mezzo-soprano Marina Serpaglia auditioned with the Contemporary Center for Opera in New York last November in an audition arranged by Price Rubin. This was Ms. Serpaglia's first audition in the United States.
Price Rubin has secured two engagements for the Texas Guitar Quartet. A January 30 2016 concert with the Abilene Philharmonic and a residence at the Guitar Foundation of America's annual conference next year in Oklahoma City next year.
Jazz pianist, composer and vocalist Peggy Duquesnel has a new pops orchestra program featuring standards by Antonio Carolos Jobim, Barbara Streisand, and Nat King and Natalia Cole. Peggy is appearing at the Steamers Jazz Club and Cafe in Fullerton CA this January.
Two-time Emmy速 Award-Winning composer Hummie Mann has been invited to give master classes at the University of Southern California, University of Northern Colorado and the California Institute of the Arts. All three events have been arranged by Price Rubin.
Pianist Elena Ulyanova has been engaged to perform with the Las Cruces New Mexico Symphony next season in an appearance arranged by Price Rubin.
Price Rubin is working on a tour for cellist Allison Eldredge and the European Philharmonia for 2015-2016 with concerts in Ireland and Belgium.
Conductor David Handel has been invited to conduct the Omsk Siberian Symphony in 2016 in an engagement arranged by Price Rubin.
Conductor Jens Georg Bachmann has been invited to conduct The State University of New York at Stony Brook University orchestra in a concert contracted by Price Rubin.
Pianist and composer Christopher Boscole recent US tour included stops in Seattle, Portland and Sedona Arizona where he performed at the Sedona Creative Life Center. Price Rubin handled the publicity for Mr. Boscole's tour.
Violist Hong-Mei Xiao is scheduled to perform with the Southern Arizona Symphony in Tucson next May. She will performing Bohuslav Martinu's Rhapsody-Concerto .
Organist Anthony Newman has a busy winter performing at the Disney Hall as part of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Guest Artist Series and then to San Francisco where he will performed on the American Bach Soloists series in March.
Baritone John Davies will be among the soloists with Symphony Irvine in a performance of the Verdi Requiem arranged by Price Rubin later next spring.
Conductor Martin Akerwall will be a guest lecturer/performer at Bemidji State University in the fall of 2015 for the Nielsen/Sibelius 150 Anniversary.