I still want Josh on Oprah!
This is a continuation of the discussion previous. If you e-mailed her before, you can do it again. Thanks!
I need you NOW to e-mail Oprah. If you have forgotten what this is about, it's the lack of knowledge of classical music. I am pulling for Joshua Bell to be on the show.
This is it.
I do it 5 times a day.
I need your help.
Even if you don't like Oprah.
Even if you don't like Joshua Bell.
Even if you don't like me.
I've another discussion forum on my side too.
Please. Give any reason you can:
-Mozart's 250th
-Children that hear classical at a young age are smarter than those who do not.
-The classical music stereotypes are wrong.
Any information about Joshua Bell:
-He has recorded about 30 CDs.
-Recorded soundtracks for 4 movies.
-Won a Grammy
-Done numerous TV and radio interviews
ANYTHING YOU CAN THINK OF!
If you are looking at this discussion topic right now, I would ask you to post something. "I e-mailed Oprah!" Or why did you not e-mail Oprah - "I have no time right now." "You are stupid."
Replies (100)
Quotes from previous discussion (so you know what's going on):
----------------
From Laurie Niles
Posted on February 28, 2006 at 7:47 PM (MST)
Does Josh want to be on Oprah? I mean he's a fantastic spokesperson for the cause of classical music, but is he interested in this gig you are proposing? Just wondering!
From Gennady Filimonov
Posted on February 28, 2006 at 9:40 PM (MST)
why don't you email him via his website and find out.
I second your proposal, and agree that he makes for a fantastic spokesperson for classical music today.
http://www.joshuabell.com/
email: jb@joshuabell.com
From Patrick Hu
Posted on March 1, 2006 at 12:04 AM (MST)
I also second your idea..but I would also like to see Sarah Chang and Hilary Hahn on there as well...Oprah does not usually have just ONE guest per show...she has about 2..even three.
I think Chang is great because she was one of the most mesmorizing prodigies ever to have live (well...everyone including menuhin, the greatest prodigy of them all arguably, thought so) so She knows what it's like to be a kid/prodigy. And she is very articulate and sparkly.
From Sydney Menees
Posted on March 1, 2006 at 8:47 AM (MST)
Mattias - Love classical, hate trying to explain it. I think that Oprah (and Joshua Bell) would make people understand classical. A performance (on Oprah) is worth more that 1000 words.
I just e-mailed Joshua's assistant, Leah. So, if I get a response from her I'll let you all know what it is.
Thanks for your support!
From Peter Wilson
Posted on March 2, 2006 at 3:29 PM (MST)
BTW, who is Leah?
Are we talking about LEILA, as in Josefowicz?
-P
From Karin Lin
Posted on March 2, 2006 at 4:09 PM (MST)
Leah is Joshua Bell's personal assistant, who answers his email (sometimes).
From Jim W. Miller
Posted on March 2, 2006 at 4:16 PM (MST)
Nobody can talk to him directly. He's like the Great and Powerful Oz.
From Karin Lin
Posted on March 2, 2006 at 4:28 PM (MST)
Very funny, Jim. Except he actually IS great, unlike Oz who was a big fake.
And you can talk to him. You just have to go to a concert and stick around afterwards. With the amount of fan mail the guy gets, I certainly don't blame him for not being able to respond individually.
From Jim W. Miller
Posted on March 2, 2006 at 4:31 PM (MST)
Leah is like that soldier with the horse of a different color guarding the door with a spear.
------------------
you're funny :)
I just read that I was supposed to post something. So I will share my raw thoughts on the subject.
I don't watch Oprah. I am Oprahphobic. She frightens me because of the power her voice has over the minds of the American people. I never forgave her after the beef incident, when she claimed beef was bad, and beef sales immediately plummeted. At least that's how I remember it. Ever since then, I've thought, if Oprah says it, I'm not going to follow it, simply to keep some balance in this country.
In conclusion, I will not be emailing Oprah because of my existing policy that encourages me to do the opposite of what Oprah says. If Joshua Bell appeared on Oprah, I would have to officially boycott him. I'm not prepared to take such a strong stance against JB.
...Unless, that is, he were dressed as a steak instead of a ham. Then I wouldn't have to boycott him.
Following Emily's lead, I figure I owe you at least this much, Sydney:
I haven't emailed Oprah for two reasons. One is that I don't watch her show (not because I have a problem with it, I just don't watch much TV in general), and I think it's dishonest to give feedback on a show I know nothing about. Two is that I'm not even sure Josh wants to be on Oprah.
That said, I wish you every success in your quest (as long as you don't bug Josh and Leah in the process ;) ) and I will watch it if it comes to pass.
You know Oprah isn't all that bad. She sometimes talks to interesting people, and just because she's popular, doesn't mean that she's bad.
I'm definately not twisting my ankle running to the TV to watch the show, but at 4 oclock if you have nothing else to do, there's worse things that one could watch.
Thanks for your feedback everyone. Even though some of you don't agree with me, I respect that and I'm glad you shared your thoughts with me.
You know what, Sydney? I sincerely admire your active pursuit of your cause.
You know what? I'll write that letter, if you allow me to include a request for a prime rib costume.
Health issues notwithstanding (and there are plenty of health reasons for not eating dairy or meat products), I can't imagine killing an animal and eating it, or hiring someone else to do it so that I don't have to be involved in the slaughter...just a personal preference.
Might I suggest you go to a meet and greet and see if he's even interested? Believe it or not, some people don't like Oprah
Mmmm, I love me some meat, especially when it comes from cows!
I know that people don't like Oprah. Believe me. Anyway, I DID e-mail him almost a week ago and he hasn't responded. If he really didn't want to be on Oprah, I think he would've said something.
Emily, you are so funny in such a quiet way, I wonder if the beef versus ham comment will slip right past people. Hilarious!
I can't stand mainstream American culture. I'm usually at a polar opposite from its likes and dislikes. Oprah is soooooo mainstream. That's precisely why I think Oprah meets classical music - particularly violinists - is a sound idea. It was worth sending one email.
Have never once watched Oprah. Probably never will. But I greatly respect her power and her charisma. She is truly one of the greatest living female icons of America and our culture. I'm deeply grateful for what she's done for the literary community and book reading in general.
And I must confess, I'd click on the old telly to watch Oprah meets Joshua. That would be very cool. But sorry, Sydney, I'm a one-time contributor on the email effort. That said, continued good luck wishes sent your way!
Perhaps I should post that dream up here? Actually no. When I sent the e-mail to Josh, I gave him a link to this site. What would you think if you saw that dream (involving yourself) on here? That dream first inspired me to get a violinist on the Oprah show. Not in costume, though. Sorry Emily! ; )
Start writing things to him like "the prophecy of the dream must be fulfilled." I think that will get results.
You know, the great thing about women is they can turn a dicussion about a 42 year old man into a discussion of meat. Ahhhh, chix.
Jim, Jim, Jim...where to start? First of all, Joshua Bell is 38. Secondly, that marvelous "the dream must be fulfilled" idea would probably not get responses, but if you're lucky, it may get me in handcuffs!
By golly you're right about his age. I tentatively retract my compliment to women.
If JB went on Oprah his cd sales would go through the roof. I don't think he needs anymore money. He has already got 6 Porches.
but it's not about the money...it's about getting ppl to realize that classical music is important...right??
and that it would be AWESOME if JB goes on oprah =)
Hey. I'm the one who is Josh's age. So is Scott68. So is Peter Wilson. It was a very good year.
You are exactly right, Elizabeth. It's not about Joshua Bell, it's about the promotion of classical.
AHHH! Laurie can tell everyone's age! AHHHHH! Actually I got nothin' to worry about ; ) Have fun at the Awards, Laurie. We are trying to figure out if they are even on German television.
I agree with Emily about the scariness of Oprah's power, which I guess is why so many want JB to appear there. Even scarier is the "icky" factor. At any rate, if JB were on the show I can't trust that the presentation that would result iwould be the way I would want classical music or classical violin to be shown. It could be seriously cheapened, and I believe that's the job for Vanessa Mae and Bond, not Joshua Bell.
Not to split hairs, Laurie, but Josh was actually born in late 1967. Tell ya what, let's say they were BOTH great years. ;)
Hey Hey now, Laurie, don't age me any more than I am! Yes, I was born in '68, but in November--I was the baby of our freshman class at Northwestern . . .
JB is a year older than I am, I believe. Also, he was most definitely a prodigy. Yes, I started at 2 and a half, but didn't have nearly the gift nor the drive. I'm doing okay now, but it's taken me a long time to truly appreciate the craft and enjoy the process of learning a piece. But I digress . . .
-Peter
I feel so ignored...by Oprah, by Joshua, by Leah.... *sigh* I want to keep this up, but I have a feeling no one is listening. I bet that they think I am just one of those "meddling kids." Which reminds me, I have to go meet Scooby Doo and the rest of the Mystery Machine gang.
That was a joke.
I'm glad Oprah said beef was bad and beef sales plummeted. We can't say that eating as much beef as Americans do is healthy, unless you're delusional or in denial.
On the topic of emailing Oprah, my reason for not emailing her is mainly because I'm not crazy about Joshua Bell but also because I don't watch her show. If it was another violinist I really liked I would glady do it.... like Heifetz.
Heifetz? Gee, you think getting Josh on Oprah is hard.... ;)
Has Oprah ever interviewed any dead people on her show previously?? I'm sure if she could get Heifetz on, even people who have never heard of him would watch!!
Maybe she can speak to Heifetz through John Edwards, hehe. That would make for an interesting interview...."He's drawing back, I'm losing him, whoops he seems to have broken his E string" :)
I venture a guess that Heifetz would not have been interested in participating in the show. It would be better to have a young undiscovered talented violinist on Oprah's. As for Joshua, he is coming to our shores (Ireland)in May for an all Schubert recital and I'll get a chance to ask him on your behalf !
Wow, thanks! I think we'll have several people at different concerts asking him (from what I've heard) and he'll probably be confused, but flattered (?) I hope.
Poor Josh, Oprah will haunt him for the rest of his life
IG
ARE you the one I heard on the radio playing Paganini's 24 Caprices, Ilya? If so, you were AMAZING and you should be on the Oprah show too!
Um...you'd do better to find some former prodigy who is now a single mom with five kids living in Detroit for Oprah.
Mr Gringolts, are you the Ilya that played Valse Scherzo really superb on french television 10 years ago or are you the Ilya that played Prokofiev under the baton of that amazing finnish dude a few years back?
Both Ilya's where amazing but they can't be the same, can they??? Not in my ears!!!
Wait???
Or are you that Ilya Gringo that sends me all those Mails???
In that case, please stop. I do not want to buy any blue pills.
I have more than one years supply left.
Hahahaha, Larry! :) Ugh, I can't stand John Edwards.
Edward, no "s". John Edwards was Kerry's running mate.
Whoops, thanks for the correction, Jim.
Even if Josh gets on Oprah, he won't get more than 2 sentences in :)
So is it really worth it?
Kidding of course.
I thought this thread was over...
If JB wants to keep his strad six Porshes private jet NY apatrment that is bigger than most peoples houses and his multi multi million dollar banck account he WILL do publicity. Weather on Oprah or Connan NBC,ABC,PBS or MTV.
Where on earth did you guys get the idea that Josh has six Porsches???
I'm sure Josh is reading this and chuckling.
I hear Josh Bell likes flight simulators. I bet he owns his own small fleet of 747s like John Travolta.
Well, I don't know about the private jet or SIX Porsches, but I do know one thing... Leah returned my e-mail! Here, I'll copy/paste:
Hi Sydney,
I answered this email a few days ago. Not sure why you didn't receive it.
Joshua would be interested in being on Oprah under the right circumstances.
His PR people have pitched him in the past, but Joshua was never asked to be
on the show. That's all we know.
Take care,
Leah
HA! So under the right circumstances he would be on the show! I knew it!
And under the right cirumstances I'd be the king of Holland.
...and under the right circumstances, Oprah would be promoting beef. And I would be a vegetarian.
Come on guys, stop being so negative. This would -- Wow, I was just going to say something along the lines of that famous Neil Armstrong quote (except involving violinists) and then I realized it sound really REALLY stupid. The bottom line, keep e-mailing Oprah.
Hey Pieter,
When you become the King of Holland, maybe I'll see you at the White House for your State Dinner! Make sure you come over to the orchestra and say, "Hello!" (It's a drag when the famous pass by without at least waving . . . )
-PW
Pitch Josh with the White House Orchestra to Oprah. She won't turn that down.
From www.nnbd.com (answering a previous question):
Oprah Winfrey was born poor and black in Mississippi in 1954, when poor and black meant no flush toilets, no shoes, and no real chance to get ahead in the world. She was supposed to be "Orpah" Winfrey, named for the Biblical Ruth's sister-in-law (see Ruth, chapter 1), but the name was spelled wrong on her birth certificate, and soon everyone was calling her Oprah. She learned to read at home, and skipped kindergarten to go straight into first grade. She skipped second grade, too. At 17 she was working as a reporter for a local radio station. She was a bright kid.
Peter,
I'll do better than that. I'll come backstage while you guys are eating the leftovers and get wasted with you while my handlers frantically try to find me so that I can shmooze with some Sheik from Abu Dabi.
YAY!!! Leah emailed back!!
i think we can totally do this...well, i don't know what the rest of you are gonna do...but i'm gonna email Oprah right now
My apologies...I'm an early 1968 baby. But that's still the same year! Actually Robert was born in late 1967 and so for 4 months we make a pretty big deal of how much older he is. :) Peter, indeed you are quite young.
So has anyone heard any kind of word from Oprah's people at this point?
Did you ever think Josh doesn't want to be on Oprah? And did you ever think that Oprah doesn't want Josh?
Well, I never really thought that Josh wouldn't want to be on the show, but after others had mentioned it, I thought that it would be a good idea to ask. As for Oprah wanting Josh, I thought that that would be where the problem was and that is why I continually e-mail her regarding it and it is also why I asked all of you to help me. If she gets enough interest, then perhaps she will ask him to be on her show. I mean, why should swingers get to be on her show and not classical musicians? Honestly...
Why would swingers be on her show, well I think you know the answer. Its all about ratings, afterall Oprah is showbiz :)
I know, but it's not exactly an honorable, hard profession, is it? I think that a classical soloist has a much more difficult job ; )
I'm so sick of the self righteous, self indulgent approach that some "classical musicians" have when it comes to fame. They love to remind everyone that their profession is so much harder than everyone elses. This is part of the inaccessibility of the whole thing which makes people intimidated by classical music.
At the same time, if you think about how much work an anesthesiologist (not knocking them) does compared to how much work a musician does and then compare their pay, you can see why some people think there is a disconnect. Thankfully we don't have lives on the line...well, other than our own, or so it may seem before some auditions/performances.
Preston
The lights turned on and the curtain fell down.
And when it was over it felt like a dream
He stood at the stage door and begged for a scream
The agent had paid for the black limousine
That waited outside in the rain
Did you see him?
Neil Young, Buffalo Springfield
Pieter - I was talking about comparing the difficulty of a musicians career to a swinger. Not all professions. You would agree with me, yes?
Wages for anesthesiologists are artificially supported. Maybe necessarily so, not sure. Some musicians are as well through grants. Would you trade good music for surgery without anesthetic:)
What do you mean by "swinger?" Not the meaning I know...
I couldn't define it on here without getting a flag or something. Is that enough of a definition for you?
Let's see if I've got this correct. Oprah is looking for swinging anesthesiologists (preferrably named Josh) who think they are better than anyone else because they play the violin. When Oprah finds one, she'll put him or her in a black limousine, but whether he or she plays the violin or demonstrates the use of anesthesia on the show, he or she will get paid a lot of money for putting people to sleep.
Is that it?
Sandy
Dictionary.com:
swing·er ( P ) Pronunciation Key (swngr)
n.
1. One that swings: a good swinger of baseball bats.
2. Slang.
a.) A person who actively seeks excitement and moves with the latest trends.
b.) A person who engages freely in promiscuous sex.
c.) A member of a couple, especially a married couple, who exchanges sexual partners.
flag away:-)
Wasn't there a Dodge or a Plymouth called the "Swinger" back in the late 60s or early 70s?
test
That definition is from the days of the Swingle Singers. I was wondering if it had a fresh def meaning to kids these days.
Swingle Singers! :-D
How do you make colors?
8^P
google font tag
All this talk of swingers is so immoral... I simply cannot participate any longer.
Sandy, you put it brilliantly.
And someone, please take Pieter off our swingers' list, then. The rest of you, the next meeting is still on at my place.
Sounds good, Terez! HAhahaha, jk, lol! My, this discussion has certainly gone off on a tangent. I've already completed my Oprah-mailing for the day. You?
Pieter, stop being so uptight. You didn't even know what they were! You learn something new everyday.
Sydney, I was joking. I've seen and done things on a single drunken Saturday night that would send you screaming to your church, so the little swinger bit doesn't particularly phase me.
Er... does this mean that was YOU I was with that night, Pieter? Summertime, 1990? Or was it 1991? Ooh. That was a good year. Single and new to San Francisco...
Oh we are SERIOUSLY off topic here. In compensation to Sydney for this, I will hereby go email Oprah again....
Done. And Sydney, that's it. I MEAN it.
....or until the next time I hijack your thread...
Terez I was 6 years old then. Unfortunately I was not capable of that particular type of mischief at that point, though somehow I wish I had been, when you tell the story like that.
I'm going to watch Oprah today.
Well, no, I guess that couldn't have been you, then, Pieter. This kid was at LEAST twelve.
Aw Terez, I meant 'you' as in to everyone. That's the problem with English. Ihr=you all (German) Vous=you all (French)
Sounds like you 2 had a good time ; )
I e-mailed Oprah!
Heck, if this keeps up I'm gonna want Terez on Oprah. Or failing that, I'm sure we'll see her on Jerry Springer. :)
Now I'm off to Terez's for the party. ;)
Neil
come on won't you people listen to me if JB wants to keep his wealth and fame he will do publicity.Oh and by the way i found out that he and sting recently did a musical theater project.
Sting the wrestler or Sting the ex-policeman?
Sting the ex-policeman.
Sydney - no worries. And of course we have a second person plural: y'all. : )
Neil - the front door's open. The party's in the kitchen.
there are canadian puritans on this board
IG
There's also a herritical russian harlot in our midst with a satanic facial hair arrangement.
Piet - If you did wind up watching it, how was Oprah yesterday?
I saw oprah yesterday and they had jay leno on with some child prodigies. they had a 4 year old playing piano.
Ahh, that was an old one.
well im in england so were about 5 years behind the rest of the world ;-D
Well, Ilya and Pieter, three guesses which of those two will be getting directions to MY place...
Yeah well the joke's on you because I have a PI following Ilya 24/7.
Yesterday I watched it for 2 minutes because it was about getting people out of debt who spend beyond their means. BOOOORING.
Sorry Pieter, I was under the impression that the PI in question was actually following IP...
IG
His life isn't nearly sordid enough to warrant it.
IT WORKED!!!! OPRAH ASKED JOSHUA BELL TO BE ON HER SHOW!! See my blog for more info. THANK YOU EVERYONE!!
you realize that they all think you're insane right? It's great that Joshua Bell might be on Oprah ^_^. Well congradulations, classical music on Opera should be interesting.
Hehehe, I am an insane one? That's news to me. Oh well, classical music MIGHT be on Oprah! Joshua hasn't decided if he will go on the show yet.
Wow, that's really cool. Congratulations.
could it be?
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March 4, 2006 at 11:21 AM · Wow, Syd, that idea just gets more exciting every time I hear it! I e-mail her multiple times daily as well. I hope that this will help promote classical music.