Friday, September 23, 2022
We were off to Minneapolis tonight to see Jazz at Lincoln Center (led by Wynton Marsalis) with the Minnesota Orchestra. We got there with just moments to spare – after having to park quite a ways away. Our seats were perfect. PERFECT. On the aisle in the first balcony – easy access to the bathroom for intermission and easy access to zoom back to the car to get ahead of the traffic. I want to sit there always. I took the potd before everything started, which is good because they said no photography; it is bad, because not everyone is there yet and they are not looking very organized. I was very much enjoying that the musicians were not just in black and white; I enjoyed the pops of color. I especially enjoyed looking at everyone’s shoes. Can you see that cello player’s boots? They look like they have spats. I like ’em. The concertmaster had a pretty purple dealie on, but she’s not there yet, because of specialness and making an entrance.
The first half of the concert was just the orchestra. They started with the Star Bangled. Oh, that’s not right. I just stared at that for a long look and wondered what was wrong with it. The Star Spangled Banner. What a great thing to hear a great big orchestra play and a sold out audience sing. I was singing along (with gusto, because I could – it was nice and loud) and I thought, uh oh, what if I don’t remember the words? I don’t think I remember the words. As I was thinking that, I was still singing along, remembering the words. I did not forget the words.
After that opening, they played Symphonic Suite from West Side Story. It was FANTASTIC. I loved it. I wasn’t what I went to hear, but it was what I liked best. So good, so good, so good. I haven’t been to a big orchestra concert since pre-pandemic and it was just so exciting. I say big orchestra because it was a BIG orchestra. There were eight basses and a tuba! Everyone was there to play tonight! It is a terrific piece of music and was perfectly played.
At intermission, we looked down on the first level of the lobby. We were watching people (Keith was looking for former orchestra member/our friend, Ron. He is often at concerts. We didn’t see him) and Keith said, “With all these people, you’d think you’d see someone you know.” I disagreed – I said it didn’t seem like it was many people and I didn’t expect to see anyone. We swung to the other side of the walkway and looked down. He said, “There’s Ona and her husband.” I said, “There’s Julie and Bill.” So much for not knowing anyone. Then I wanted to know everyone.
The second half was Wynton’s Swing Symphony (I left the program in the car. It might be called that. It is likely called that). It had 8 movements and took an hour. Parts of it I really liked. Parts of it were kinda repetitive. Overall, quite good, but nothing compared to the brilliance of the first half. It was a lovely night out.
The tuba player is my friend, Steve Campbell – very nice person and great tuba player. In other trivia, Wynton Marsalis wrote a new tuba concerto that was premiered in December by my friend Carol Jantsch. Carol is the first woman to hold the tuba job in any major orchestra in the U.S. And she played a recital here at Interlochen last June when she was eight months pregnant – really!!!! Enough tuba trivia du jour. We miss the Minnesota Orchestra. And we were very sad when Jorja Fleezanis passed away a few weeks ago…. She was the same age as me! Yikes!!!
Of course I thought of you when I saw the tuba player – and immediately assumed he knew you, because I assume all tuba players in the world know you. 🙂 Jazz at Lincoln Center put out SEVEN albums since the start of pandemic. Wow. Perhaps the tuba concerto is on one of them. Maybe it is not jazzy. I am glad it mattered to the story that you explained Carol is a woman, because as I first read her name I wondered if Carol was a man or woman. Keith said he thought of Jorja several times last night, as he wondered where she was. He had not heard that she had passed. She will certainly be missed by many.