SEPTEMBER 2022

NEXT MPRO MEETING

The Mid-Peninsula Recorder Orchestra’s next Zoom meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 7 at 7:30 p.m. Admission to the Zoom session will begin at 7:15. See Fred Palmer’s column in this issue for more information.

MPRO’S NEW SEASON

Our 2022-2023 season, beginning in September, will be our 60th. (We are the oldest recorder orchestra in North America!) It is still not clear when we will be able to meet in person. As of late August, the space rental web page for Trinity Church in Menlo Park (our usual rehearsal venue) still states: “We require all people, including musicians, to be masked at all times indoors.”

The MPRO Board of Directors has voted to continue with Zoom meetings for the rest of 2022 and to evaluate the feasibility of in-person meetings in 2023. The Board also voted not to plan for a winter workshop. The possibility of a workshop at a later date will be considered along with the potential for in-person meetings.

Dues will not be collected from MPRO members until we can resume in-person meetings. However, to maintain our cash reserve and keep Zoom meetings self-sustaining, a playing fee of $15 per Zoom session will be requested from member and non-member participants. This is an increase over the $10 fee requested during the last season, based on numbers of participants. Players who paid in advance for four sessions may apply the unused $10 to their first session of this season, and the increased fee will apply to their next session.

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CONDUCTOR’S CORNER

Dear members of the Mid-Peninsula Recorder Orchestra,

Ray White and I will be co-hosting a virtual MPRO meeting via Zoom on Wednesday, September 7, at 7:30 P.M. Those attending will be admitted to the meeting starting at 7:15 P.M. We will be working on the following music:

Schein: Suite No. 15

MacDowell: To a Wild Rose

Greig: Gavotte and Musette from the Holberg Suite

I have sent out the music and PDF files for these selections to all MPRO members, and you should have received these materials by now. The Suite No. 15 by Johann Hermann Schein was featured at a previous virtual meeting. I plan to present this selection at future concerts when live performances are once again possible and, therefore, want to rehearse it from time to time. If you have been assigned parts for the Schien Suite please play the part to which you have been assigned. If you have not, you are free to play any part you choose. There are no part assignments for the other selections scheduled for the September meeting, and everyone is free to play the part of his or her choice.

Please remember that I will be conducting this music. This means that the music will not appear on the screen, and those attending will need to read from hard copies they have downloaded when playing along with the sound files. Ray White will be sending out invitations to all MPRO members with a link to the virtual Zoom meeting and other information. Please contact him at <rayhwhite@yahoo.com> if you do not receive an invitation. The orchestra will continue with virtual meetings until the current health situation changes and in person meetings are once again possible. I look forward to seeing those who will be attending the meeting on September 7.

-Sincerely, Fred Palmer

COMING EVENTS AND ONLINE RESOURCES

The first concert of the San Francisco Early Music Society’s new season will feature three performances by the ensemble Alkemie on September 30 and October 1 and 2. The title is “Like a Woman: Finding the Feminine in Medieval France.” This link provides more information including a video example of Alkemie’s music: Alkemie | Sept 30–Oct 2 – San Francisco Early Music Society.

Claudia Gantivar will hold two workshop classes on October 6-20 and October 13-27 from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. Eastern, on the music of a Spanish Baroque composer and dulcian virtuoso. The title is " Bartolomeo de Selma y Salaverde, a Composer to Discover." This link has more information including a sample audio recording: https://mms.americanrecorder.org/Calendar/moreinfo_responsive.php?eventid=71251&org_id=ARSO.

Santa Cruz Baroque Festival will present a free “O’Carolan Celtic Concert” on Sunday October 9 at 3:00 p.m., in honor of the 350th birthday of Irish harper and composer Turlough O’Carolan. The location is still to be determined. See scbaroque.org for more information.

The East Bay Recorder Society is planning a fall workshop on Monday, October 10. Details will be available later at: Special Events of the East Bay Recorder Society.

Hidden Valley Music in Carmel Valley will host a national "Road Scholar" workshop with Tish Berlin beginning on October 30. The theme is "Music of France and England from the Middle Ages to the Age of Reason.” The workshop is for recorders and viola da gamba. Dulcians and shawms may be added by audition. See National Road Scholar Recorder Early Music Workshop.

The University of California, Berkeley has posted the calendar for its 2022-2023 music and dance events at Cal Performances. Early music performances include a concert by Jordi Savall and Hesperion XXI on November 10.

The American Recorder Society has a "Practice Project" including links to articles, videos and other information to help recorder players practice more effectively. The first article is titled "Practice Makes Perfect? Nah (but it does a heck of a lot of other things)." See: Practice Project - American Recorder Society.

RECORDINGS OF MPRO’S “NEW” MUSIC

The following are links to recordings of the music that will be played at MPRO’s September 7 Zoom meeting:

Johann Hermann Schein, Suite 15: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orDSL06HY9g

Edward MacDowell, To a Wild Rose (flute and piano): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUompgMeEcA

Edvard Grieg, Gavotte and Musette from the Holberg Suite: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4DksvE_L4s.

The Board: President: Judith Unsicker; Treasurers: Chantal Moser and Mary Ashley; Recording Secretary: vacant; Membership: Chris Flake and Tom Granvold; Publicity: vacant; Graphics: Mary Ashley; Newsletter Editor: vacant; Workshop Coordinator: vacant; Hospitality: vacant; Music Sales: Laura Gonsalves; Historian: vacant; Webmaster: Dan Chernikoff; Music Director: Fred Palmer. MPRO website: http://www.mpro-online.org

Past Months' Issues: http://www.mpro-online.org/MPROArchives.htm