Samuel Thompson on Violinist.com

Our Shared Humanity - and the End of an Era

Fri, 01 May 2009 10:19:37 GMT

& quot;A crossroads of maestros and tyros, the venerable Joseph Patelson Music House in Manhattan has been like a living room for the classical music world.

For more than six decades its shelves bulged with the fruit of Mozart and Bach, Stravinsky and Strauss, to be plucked by shoppers who wore its wooden floors black and sought counsel from expert and sometimes cantankerous sales clerks.

Yes, you know it is coming: Goodbye, Patelson & rsquo;s. & quot;
-Daniel J. Wakin, New York Times

Yes, it was from this article in the New York Times that I and many in the world found out that Patelson's Music House was closing its doors.

I have been to Patelson's only twice - an odd thing to many, I'm sure, considering that I AM a classical musician, but I studied at Rice University in Houston and my trips to New York were rare. It was in 1995 that first traveled to the city with violin in hand (for my Mannes College of Music audition - grad school auditions, those were the days, no?) and it was during that trip that I ventured into Patelson's Music House and bought Bartok's Second Violin Concerto.

My second visit to Patelson's was yesterday.

A friend and I went into the city with the intention of filling holes in our respective music collections. This was simple for me: a few orchestral parts and perhaps some chamber music and other things that I absolutely need. Choosing those things was easy - it was deciding which small composer prints to purchase that became difficult!

& quot;At the store the atmosphere is sad and lonely. The holdings are a shadow of what they once were. On the wooden shelves heavy cardboard dividers with composer and work names written neatly in felt-tip pen line up with little music between them. & quot;

Although written two weeks ago, Mr. Wakin's description of the store is more than accurate - the place is bare. Apparently the plan is that the store will remain open until either all or most of the remaining inventory is gone, there is no set final date.

While I was happy to have had the opportunity to replace some things (yes, it's still going on), I had a very strange feeling during the entire visit, and I shared it with one of the salespeople: & quot;I kind of feel like I'm looting, & quot; I said as I placed my small stack of violin parts from Beethoven and Brahms symphonies on the counter.

There were conversations with other patrons as well as the salespeople - the two men working yesterday seemed to be handling this transition with grace, preparing themselves for new ventures as we all have at times. A piano teacher (who looked conspicuously like a long-lost relative) and I spoke about the remaining retail options for buying sheet music and supplies in the city. Nevertheless, while everyone was in good spirits there was a sadness in the air, a reminder of the ephemeral nature of this life and the larger reality that everything can change.

During that first trip to Manhattan in 1995, I found myself feeling oddly protective of a half-eaten bagel while on the subway when, during the ride, a homeless person came into the car asking for assistance. I'm somewhat ashamed to admit this, as well as to share my thoughts from that moment ( & quot;His backpack is in better shape than mine & quot;, I thought as the man moved slowly and desperately through the crowded subway car in 1995).

Fourteen years later - after a few profound changes in my own life, including Hurricane Katrina and these years that have followed - I can only hope that I'm a bit more human and compassionate. While walking back to Grand Central Station my friend and I passed a homeless man on Fifth Avenue. Unlike the man on the subway fourteen years ago, this man sat on the corner, sign in his lap, saying nothing - and the world passed him by, pretending not to see.

I went back to share what I had - I do wish that it could have been more - and took his hand...

...I think he smiled. At least his eyes did...guess we do come full circle after all.

More from the road,
Sam

Painting by Yvonne Rabdau, 2009

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 18:09:15 GMT

In August 2009 I had the pleasure of doing a photo shoot with Yvonne Rabdau, a photographer/visual artist living in the Hudson Valley. & nbsp; & nbsp; Her intention was to take a series of photographs from which a portrait would be painted.

Well, it's done - and I'm amazed. & nbsp; & nbsp; Yvonne is a spectacular painter - this is evidenced by the capturing of many of the violin's details. & nbsp; & nbsp; I have posted both the original photograph and a link to the portrait on my Facebook page, and invite all of you to take a look at some really marvelous work...or if you'd like, simply visit Yvonne's website.

Happy Spring!

...

& nbsp;

Violinist Tai Murray in MUSO Magazine

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 10:01:40 GMT

Dear all: & nbsp; & nbsp; Please feel free to take a look at this article about violinist Tai Murray that appears in the most recent issue of MUSO & nbsp;Magazine:

http://www.opus3artists.com/news/?id=999

Post-Script on Music and Meaning

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 09:40:13 GMT

Thank you all for the commentary on my most recent entry.

In the days since the publication of the Philadelphia Inquirer article, there have been at least TWO & nbsp;commentaries posted by well-known and extremely knowledgeable men in the orchestral world. & nbsp; & nbsp; The first is by Drew McManus & nbsp;- orchestral consultant and author of Adaptistration.com - and the second, which I & nbsp;have to quote here, is by violist & nbsp;Sam Bergman of the Minnesota Orchestra:

& quot;Such articles usually contain a lot of scary but isolated numbers (an orchestra CEO who makes $1 million a year!! a stagehand who makes north of $400K!!! a newly minted orchestra musician right out of school making $130K!!!!) designed to drive home the idea that orchestral finance is completely out of control, thus relieving the author of actually having to prove his thesis with real economic data that applies across the broader industry. & quot;

& quot;So taken in a broader context, pronouncements of the unsustainability of our business model (and if history is any guide, there will be many more of these in the coming months) are more or less entirely contradicted by the self-evident ability of most orchestras to adapt to changes in our specific economies. The headlines trumpeting layoffs and salary givebacks aren't evidence of the failure of a business model. They're a demonstration of how the model bends without breaking. & quot;
& nbsp;

Mr. Bergman's entire article can be found through this link. & nbsp; & nbsp; Enjoy, and please share your thoughts.

On Music, Meaning, and Value

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 14:48:00 GMT

Hello, all - I'm back. The past few weeks have consisted of much practicing and much WRITING, but not writing of this sort: it's both tax time and grantwriting time, and while I am one of the many that is still working on his 2008 IRS 1040s I did, after a forty-eight hour lockdown (that consisted of slaying some personal dragons as well as many takes of Bach and Ysaye), get a grant application out before the deadline. While I have done this before, I have to say that I now have an even deeper respect for those who work in Development and fundraising for our arts organizations. Thank you all so much for doing what you do!

In a recent article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Peter Dobrin speaks of the state of America's orchestras and the (if I may) draconian measures being taken to survive the economic downturn. For those who are unaware, many orchestras are cancelling tours, laying off employees in administrative positions, freezing salaries, shortening both summer seasons and the number of concerts to be given during the 2009-2010 season - and many music directors are taking salary cuts. While this has happened before (in an earlier blog I mentioned the cataclysmic period between 2001-2003), this round of & quot;chopping & quot; is sounding greater alarms due to the fact that these measures are being taken by large cultural institutions including the Cleveland Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony, Atlanta Symphony and the Metropolitan Opera.

In his article, Mr. Dobrin does make a very valid point, that being that both business and artistic plans across the nation were based on market speculation - we can all look at the years between 1996-2008 to see some of the amazing growth and expansion that has taken place in the United States. However, with the stock market shrinking, many endowments have lost up to half of their value, which of course creates problems when interest from those endowments is allocated for operations costs.

However, Mr. Dobrin takes a very disturbing turn in his article when he begins to speak of some of the salaries earned by top orchestral executives and the musicians who make up the membership of these orchestras. & quot;Is it really a good thing that Deborah Borda, president of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, made well over $1 million for the year that ended in September 2007? Or that a hornist in the New York Philharmonic made $300,000, an oboe player in the Philadelphia Orchestra $249,000? & quot; he asks.

He then speaks of the fees commanded by international soloists and follows with: & quot;Then there's the regular payroll. When a hundred or more applicants audition for a section violin spot, is it necessary to offer a starting salary of $130,000 for a player just out of school? Would the same audition draw less stellar talent if the job were offering, say, $80,000 the first year on a multiyear schedule to reach $130,000 in some year thereafter? & quot;

My first argument with Mr. Dobrin is that in listing these salaries he is in effect ignoring the reality of most musicians and most orchestral musicians in the United States, as very few orchestras in this country provide those salaries. Secondly, speaking of these salaries does a great disservice to the public's perception of all musicians, particularly those who perform in two or more groups on a freelance basis - which is, I think, the case with the majority of musicians in America's major cities (if not the nation).

Is it not safe to say that the aforementioned & quot;philosophies & quot; are moot, considering what we have seen take place in the & quot;productive & quot; business sector since 2001 (Tyco, WorldCom, Enron, AIG, Merrill-Lynch, Bank of America, Countrywide, et cetera ad nauseum)?

*sigh* *exhale*

I must ask your forgiveness - believe you me, I am WELL aware (painfully aware) of what's happening in this country and how arts organizations and artists are being affected. It's almost frightening. However, if the conversations continue to consist of questioning the cost of what we do, the VALUE of what we produce will continue to be maligned and that could result in great loss - particularly if the world's economic situation takes an even sharper nose dive.
And what IS the value of a symphony orchestra, a soloist, an art museum, a ballet company, a theatre company? How do you measure that?

That value is something that cannot be measured in dollars and cents: it can only be measured by the soul and the senses - and with that, I share with you a clip from the 1939 movie They Shall Have Music, during which an audience (including a young man who would for all purposes be called a & quot;troubled child & quot;) listens intently to a performance of Saint-Saens' Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso played by Jascha Heifetz:

& quot;It's a MOVIE! They're ACTING! & quot; you may say. Regardless - we as artists and everyone who has attended a concert has had the experience that makes itself visible on the faces of those in that audience - and the value of those transcendent experiences should NEVER be questioned in terms of & quot;pocket change & quot;.

Never Mind The Politics?

Sat, 01 Nov 2008 17:17:05 GMT

While this is not about "all things strings", both the comments posted in response to Laurie's recent post (about being seen in and praised for wearing an Obama t-shirt) and a recent event involving someone that I consider to be a dear friend have compelled me to write this one. Hold on, enjoy, and please share your thoughts.

Understanding that what follows may seem incendiary, I feel that I must ask your forgiveness as well as add the disclaimer that the thoughts written here are solely shared to address a human problem from an intellectual perspective.

In the essay �The Education of a Storyteller� (which can be found in Deep Sightings and Rescue Missions, a posthumously published collection of short stories and essays by Ms. Bambara that was edited by Toni Morrison), the late Toni Cade Bambara chronicled her growth as a writer and, yes, a storyteller, beginning with lessons from school and including the responsibilities necessary for one to take on the role of speaker that were instilled by her ancestors and her community. There are two things that stand out in this essay, the first being a quote from philosopher Frantz Fanon: �To speak is to assume a culture and bear responsibility for a civilization.� The second quote � perhaps not as eloquently articulated to some � comes from one of her relatives: �Yeah, speak yo� speak, child. For every silence you maintain will first become a lump in your throat and later become a lump in your lymphatic system.�

I mention this because I have, like many in recent weeks, been watching the details of this year�s presidential election and found myself surprised, humbled, grateful, and indeed outraged at what I have read. Of course, I have been incredibly pleased to read much of the commentary, including that by both Representative John Lewis and New York Times commentator Frank Rich (note: there is a second and equally insightful yet somewhat incendiary column by Mr. Rich in a recent issue of the New York Times), as well as both Colin Powell�s endorsement of Barack Obama and his reasons for doing so. Nevertheless, I have also been deeply disturbed by much of be unchallenged behavior going on across the land and was quite frightened � to say the least � upon hearing about the two young men who had hatched what can only be called the Election Day Massacre.

However, a recent conversation that I had with a friend � a dear friend whom I have known since starting my undergraduate studies in 1987 - has compelled me to organize my thoughts as well as possible and share them. I can only hope that both the situation and my thoughts surrounding said situation have been presented in a manner that all can understand.

During said conversation, my friend mentioned that he had recently had a conversation with a coworker who, upon speaking about the upcoming election, said �I�m still grappling with the idea of voting for a Black man.� My friend�s response to his colleague: �I disagree with you.� Their conversation of course continued, and during the course of the conversation my friend�s coworker made the point that many were still processing this �idea� by taking a random "street poll" - asking those passing by if they indeed shared his feelings.

As I write this, I think of Mr. Fanon�s words and realize that I as a human being must do what I ask of others, that being that I must fully understand � something that can only happen through asking questions � before making a pronouncement or an argument. Nevertheless, being an �African-American� (with my family having been in the United States for longer than a generation, I take some pause with using this category to describe my people) I immediately bristled � and found myself even more incensed when my friend added �I so wish that you could have been there so that you could have taken him to task.�

My response: �Did YOU take him to task?�

�No � I wouldn�t want him to speak ill of me to my coworkers.�

Before I go on, I must say that my friend � a dear friend � has not only discriminatory bone in his body. However, as OUR conversation continued I found myself becoming increasingly angered, and after a solid hour of back and forth - during which I hammered the question "Why did you not take the opportunity to speak to this man about his views, which were obviously NOT political, but based in the ignorance of prejudice?" my friend answered: �I wouldn�t want to open the can of worms and have that kind of hatred floating around.�

When pressed, my friend also asserted that �Laying into this man at that particular time would be inappropriate� and asked why I felt that it was necessary for him to do so.

It is both daring and safe to say that we in the United States have, in regards to both human rights and the eradication of prejudice, come quite far. Nevertheless, it was incredibly disheartening to see this double standard still in existence, that being the maintenance of a personal status quo while feeling somewhat hopeless about both the issues of true racial equality and the challenge of eradicating the ignorant notions of superiority and inferiority that still plague our nation surrounding the topic of ethnic relations.

I did of course press my friend about his level of commitment and accountability and of course, upon hearing the �usual arguments� (�This man has the right to think and believe what he wants�, etc. ad nauseum) my stance changed from �explain yourself� to �fire-and-be-damned-to-you.� Not only is it inappropriate to say that someone has the right to think of any group of people with disdain, as doing so shows not only a great deal of ignorance and spiritual bankruptcy � it is safe to say that the word �inappropriate� is not strong enough to describe such dark thoughts.

By now you may all be asking the question �And your point, Sam?�

During the early 1960s James Baldwin organized a meeting with then Attorney General Robert Kennedy and a group of national and international figures including Lena Horne, Harry Belafonte, Lorraine Hansberry, and Jerome Smith � the latter who had been injured in the Freedom Rides. This meeting, held to discuss how the issues of race should be handled during that time, was not an initial success, as it �crystallized a problem that was basic to the civil rights movement of the sixties,� that problem being that �the white liberals were�pledged to reform the existing system� while �the black at the meeting saw the race problem as having moral dimensions that transcended the particular concerns of the day and went to the heart of what it was to be American.�

Those who met with Attorney General Kennedy wanted to see a great moral commitment from those who supported the cause of civil rights, as opposed to talk alone.

Almost fifty years later, as we stand on the precipice of what could indeed be a great moment in our nation�s history, that being the election of our nation�s first black president, it may be safe to say that what we � �we� referring to the entire population of this country � ask for is a great moral commitment from our leaders and our peers as opposed to the status quo talk, judgmental disdain and political posturing that plagues and frustrates us on all levels, from employment problems to issues as still divisive as race relations and gay marriage.

THIS is the type of commitment that I was seeking from my friend � and I shared that with him. To take a stand, not share with me his feelings of hopelessness, and not to expect me (as "the black man") to take up the conversation with �the other�.

After having visited Africa, during which his views on the teachings of Islam changed, Malcolm X came back to the United States applauding the sincerity of all people in their quest to understand and perhaps solve the racial problems that were destroying the United States during the very turbulent 1960s: �I said that on the American racial level, we had to approach the black man�s struggle against the white man�s racism as a human problem, that we had to forget hypocritical politics and propaganda�both races, as human beings, had the obligation, the responsibility, of helping to correct America�s human problem. The well-meaning white people�had to combat, actively and directly, the racism in other white people. And the black people had to build within themselves much greater awareness that along with equal rights there had to be the bearing of equal responsibilities.�

Understanding that we as a society have indeed progressed quite far in healing the wounds of the greater part of the twentieth century, I also understand that there are still personal wounds and memories that must be excavated and healed. Having watched and listened to men like Colin Powell and Barack Obama, I do also understand that we as a people must be incredibly careful when speaking about anything � as well as the importance of bringing these issues to a human level, as it is only through that kind of understanding that dialogue and both inner and outer change can take place.

Nevertheless, in whatever direction this election goes, we will still have the day after�and I can only hope that we as a people can continue to look inside of ourselves and summon the courage to truly take the stands of which both James Baldwin and Malcolm X spoke. The responsibility to change all notions and prejudices belongs to all of us � and neither maintaining the status quo nor shrugging one�s shoulders and saying �That�s horrible� are acceptable. If this campaign has shown us anything, it has most definitely shown us that there�s no �going back to normal� if normal means being silent in the midst of divisive and hate-loaded action.

...and if I may honor the ancestors of Ms. Bambara, the lump in my throat seems to have disappeared...

Notes are taken from David Leeming's James Baldwin and The Autobiography of Malcolm X.

Inquisitive Children - an Update

Sun, 28 Sep 2008 21:43:55 GMT

I'm amazed, and humbled - yesterday I came home to receive an envelope filled with thank you cards made by the sixty or so children in the Thurgood Marshall Elementary School after school program! WOW!

Traveling - and Inquisitive Children

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 00:47:42 GMT

Photographer Peter Lindbergh, in a 1998 interview during which he speaks about his life, says "I experience so many different sensations every day that it has become like a drug. Every day, something new happens to me." Of course, if one is open to life every day, this is most definitely true, but the statement speaks of a heightened reality - that of those who travel constantly for their work. While I am not comparing myself to Peter Lindbergh in terms of "career" - Lindbergh being a much in-demand and globally respected fashion photographer - I found myself agreeing with his statement on Friday, September 19, 2008 when, upon landing in the Thurgood Marshall Baltimore-Washington International Airport I heard cheering. Following my curiosity, I followed the sounds�and was delighted to chance upon a crowd standing at the international terminal cheering for our servicemen who were, on that day, coming home from Iraq.

How easy it is for all of us in these days of working, traveling, going to and fro � being focused solely on the �self� � to forget to stop and step out of ourselves for a moment. I was reminded of this on Thursday � concert day � when I went to visit an afterschool program at Thurgood Marshall Elementary School. This was not a part of the �official schedule�: I was asked by the music professor at Kent State- Ashtabula. With the program that I was scheduled to play being the most formidable in my career to-date, I almost declined � is our natural tendency to hide away, somewhat panicked, as opposed to opening and sharing ourselves � but realized that I would, by being the guest, be recreating the many visits by members of the Charleston Symphony that I witnessed at the same age of many of the participants in the program, most of whom had not been truly �exposed� to classical music. With that, it would have also been incredibly selfish of me, with a day free save for playing a concert, to say �no� to a group of children who were slowly stepping into the waters just as I did at their age � just as many of us, perhaps?

So, I went...and I have to say that I was amazed at the level of inquisitiveness that I found in this group of children, aged nine to twelve, some of whom will be starting in a new strings program later in the school year! While I cannot remember all of the questions, it is safe to say that of course, children are always watching, always curious � and it is our responsibility to keep that sense of openness, not only for ourselves but also FOR them, particularly when we participate in �educational and community engagement� activities.

As far as the recital later that evening � well, I�m glad that I took the time out of myself and away from the music stand to answer some questions. Incidentally, while I was incredibly anxious about this one, I have to say that it went went well...despite my angst-farming about performing an entirely new program as a season opener!

More From The Road Later - but first, a great moment in time...

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 09:39:08 GMT

I will, after I get home, write more about this trip to Ashtabula, Ohio, which has been wonderful and enlightening. However, while I take a break from packing I am also taking the time to share a video with you all - of course, this is readily available via YouTube: Kyung Wha Chung, the fiddler's fiddler, playing the Third Movement of the Bruch Concerto, Op. 26.

Sonata for Clavier and Violin, K. 526

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 19:41:38 GMT

The day of playing
with Mr. G.'s transitional bow -
yes, the one that they used in Mozart's time,
neither Baroque nor Tourte -
is fresh in my psyche
as I work
to taper and bloom...