Fellowship Updates

 
The past month in the fellowship has been spectacular. 

Some of what I've learned:

There are more nuances to each situation than initially meets the eye
The era of the "Arts for Arts Sake" is over. We need to focus on the Arts for many sakes
Make a conscious decision about how you behave under stress
Orient your staff to the organization, not just their jobs
It's a leader's job to create something that does not exist
Reach out to people who have inspired you in the past.

The highlights of what has happened:              

Ben Zander invited us to the Boston Philharmonic Concert and we watched an exhilarating performance of Nielsen's Fourth Symphony. After the concert,  we were introduced to Roz Zander and Ilya Kaler, who amazed us with his rendition of the Tchaikovsky Concerto. 

The Fellows presented an interactive seminar at Harvard on El-Sistema principals. The presentation culminated in everyone singing collectively in a large rotunda in Cambridge.

In my spare time, I finished my softball season, went whale-watching, saw Christiaan perform Jake Heggie's Three Decembers, ate amazing Indian food at the Woodcock's, got visits from Natalie, Kate, and Monish, and even went out on a date. 
              

 Our trip to New York included a Venezuelan dinner at Jamie Bernstein’s aparetment. (Leonard’s daughter), the Tigers beating the Yankees in game 5, a meeting with the League of American Orchestras, time spent at the Corona Project with Alvaro and Jennifer, and a UW reunion with Leelanee, Joe, Matt, and Jenny. (somehow only the guys got into the photo)

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Mentoring and conducting at the Boston Arts Academy led to an unexpected trip to Symphony Hall to watch Yo Yo Ma rehearse the Dvorak Concerto.

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After the rehearsal Mr. Ma and Maestro Mena came upstairs to spend half an hour with all of us. Their humility reminded me how the most inspirational people can also be the most grounded.

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The NEC brass ensemble performed the first movement of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony on an innovative concert dubbed Mahler Remixed, organized by the fine staff of the Entrepreneurial Music Department.

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I also spent numerous days observing and teaching at the Conservatory Lab Charter School with Rebecca Levi, David Malek, and their awesome teaching artists. A few weeks ago, we were joined by special guest and former fellow Lorrie Heagy, all the way from Juneau, Alaska.

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Now, off to Texas for two weeks!!