along with this article, there was also an article on the front page of Yahoo about New York Phil last night. i thought that was very unusual for them to have 2 orchestra related topics on the front page.

What a refreshing departure from Britney Spears, et al.

I have to say that seeing the 60 Minutes segment got me excited all over again. It's going to be a great ride.

Gustavo's enthusiasm is positively contagious. I would really like to see him live.

quote:

Originally posted by orchdork:
along with this article, there was also an article on the front page of Yahoo about New York Phil last night. i thought that was very unusual for them to have 2 orchestra related topics on the front page.

Now can you imagine if Dudamel had conducted the concert in North Korea??

I certainly hope that he has success with the outreach program he is starting in LA! Wouldn't it be great if it took off and all major cities created such a program! (I know I'm a little idealistic, but you have to dream a little).

I wish him luck and success too. Let us remember that it took the program in Venezuela 30 years to reach the level they are at today. It won´t happen overnight in LA, and I hope they give it the chance it deserves and the time it takes.

El sistema may not have the same social impact here in the US because most kids have more options for what to do with their time relative to Venezuelan counterparts. I believe one significant impact from such a program can be -- besides an enhanced education and general childhood experience for the kids involved -- the development of future orchestra audiences. Often overlooked in our world of orchestras looking for quick fixes to attendance issues is that one of the most important variables if not the most important variable in the demographics of symphony audiences is the audience members' previous -- usually from childhood -- musical instrument-playing experience.

Interesting comment from Pinchas Z on Dudamel:

He "galvanizes" the orch quickly in rehearsal.