I wanted to share these “fun facts” about the impact of the NHSCA on the state (huge) – and the state budget (very small).

The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts (State Arts Council) and its grantees – like the Nashua Symphony Association – generate revenue by creating more active downtowns and community life and attracting visitors.  This in turn creates jobs, tax revenue and consumer revenue that will help the state address its many challenges. A modest investment in the State Arts Council is part of the solution.

In FY 2011 the state appropriation of $462,065 represents 0.034% of state general fund expenditures. That is less than one half of one tenth of one percent. Yet this extremely conservative (by any statistical measure) investment leverages more than $36 million in federal funds, in-kind contributions and grantee matching dollars.

The State Arts Council differs from private business support for the arts in that through its policies and grant making criteria,  it ensures that arts are accessible to all citizens including those with disabilities. Public funds ensure availability and access to a state’s cultural life for all its citizens.

National Endowment for the Arts dollars are designed to help states achieve their own state goals. The NEA does not link its funding to federal mandates. Federal funds are an investment in state priorities.  The only requirement the NEA stipulates is that state arts agencies meet basic eligibility criteria, which are:  a stand alone state arts agency, a staff trained in arts administration/arts, and financial investment to match the federal dollars.

If the State Arts Council is abolished or severely underfunded by the State, NH citizens will not receive the Partnership Agreement federal funds from the National Endowment for the Arts. Those funds cannot be “saved.” The National Endowment for the Arts will redistribute the funds slated for NH to other states. For FY 2012 state activities this amount is expected to be approximately $800,000.  In other words, New Hampshire taxpayers will be paying for citizens in other states to have access to the arts.

Please call or write to your state senator this week and urge them to support restoration of funding for the NHSCA in the state budget.

For many young people, wind ensembles – more popularly known as school “bands” – provide a gateway to a more intimate relationship with concert music.  Playing one’s part in an ensemble allows students to hear how each part fits together, to understand concepts of balance, proportion, and color, and to internalize the deeper themes that underlie the greatest music.

My own experience began in 5th grade, when I joined the trumpet section of our town’s middle school band.  But it wasn’t until I was a freshman in high school – when we graduated from simple pop tunes to the standards of the traditional wind ensemble repertoire – that I discovered the power of great music for band.   The work was Gustav Holst‘s First Suite in E-flat for Military Band, a tightly-constructed three-movement work that revealed to my young ears a new world of complexity, craft, and power at which the theme from “Dallas” never hinted.

There is a profound quality to Holst’s suite that belies its brevity.  A broad theme played by the tuba opens the work and serves as the germ for all the noble melodies still to come, which Holst seems to spin out without effort.  But the melodies truly sing, taking listeners and players through emotions ranging from a tentative, searching pathos to joy and celebration.

I’m really looking forward to hearing the NSO’s wind and brass players perform this piece on March 5, along with other classic works for winds like Vaughan Williams’ charming “Folk Song Suite”, Stravinsky’s sublime “Symphonies of Wind Instruments”, and Mozart’s elegant “Serenade No 11 in E-flat”.  For students currently participating in their school bands, this concert presents a rare opportunity to hear the classics of this repertoire performed by seasoned professionals.

I was lucky enough to encounter Holst’s suite when I was just 14, but not all school bands have the wherewithal to perform this kind of music.  Our hope is that a concert like this can inspire young players to seek out the wide range of musical experiences available to them, beyond what their school may be able to offer.

Over the past few days I’ve been able to confirm that pianist Sergey Schepkin and cellist Sergey Antonov will be performing with the Nashua Symphony Orchestra during the 2011-12 season!  Pretty exciting stuff.

For people who’ve been coming to our concerts for a while, both Sergeys will be easy to remember.  Mr. Schepkin last played with the NSO during conductor Royston Nash‘s final year as Music Director.  That was in February of 2007, for a performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2.  It was an unforgettable evening.  This time, he’ll be playing Beethoven’s “Emperor” concerto, under the baton of NSO Music Director Jonathan McPhee.

Sergey Schepkin

Rarely have I seen a standing ovation happen as quickly as it did following the final bars of Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1, which Sergey Antonov performed with the NSO in October of 2009.  His playing electrified the audience and I’m thrilled that this Tchaikovsky Competition winner is coming back to play Dvorák’s Cello Concerto

Sergey Antonov

on October 1.

Stay tuned for more updates about the 2011-12 season as they develop!

Sometimes you need to pull back a bit in order to get some perspective, before moving forward.  As we continue our season into 2011 and begin planning for 2011-12, it’s worth taking a few moments to reflect on a truly memorable and important year in the life of the Nashua Symphony Orchestra & Chorus.

Among the many successes of 2010 – including an expanded board of trustees, strengthened educational outreach programs, and the third year in a row of increased subscriptions, three achievements stand out:

1.  In February we went on our first-ever tour of the state, performing our “Made in New Hampshire” program in Nashua, Keene, Plymouth, and Concord with the help of Citizens Bank, Putnam Foundation, NH State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts;

2.  In October, we were named the Arts & Culture “Champion in Action” by Citizens Bank and WMUR-TV, which came with a host of benefits including three months of TV coverage and a $25,000 grant;

3.  We performed Mahler’s epic “Symphony of a Thousand” with 300 performers and 1,058 people in the audience!

It is safe to say that these milestones were barely imaginable five years ago
(Mahler 8 was barely imaginable five months ago!). But the community has rallied around our programs, and enthusiasm is spreading.  We’re reaching more people than ever before.

So. Looking forward into the next year or two, suddenly it feels as though windows are opening all around us, illuminating new possibilities for growth, collaboration, and great music-making.  I can’t share details at this early stage… but I can tell you that Jonathan McPhee and I have been pulling the pieces slowly together, and that next season is shaping up to be, well, BIG.

Our production of Mahler’s “Symphony of a Thousand” is now history.  Although we didn’t have 1,000 performers (more like 300, which is still quite a few), we did get 1,058 people in the audience.  It was an amazing experience for the audience, orchestra, chorus, and soloists, all of whom have been buzzing about it ever since.  The Boston Musical Intelligencer described it as a “tsunami of ecstacy” – only this was one tsunami where there was no loss of life or property!  It was a unique pleasure to collaborate with the New World Chorale, Lexington Symphony, and Boston Children’s Chorus, all under the magnificent direction of our Music Director Jonathan McPhee.

For me, the project lit a path toward a new appreciation for Mahler’s achievement in this symphony.  A lifelong fan of this composer, I had never quite warmed up to the Eighth until getting to know it during this production process.  Despite its breathtaking scale and massive forces, it is nevertheless an astonishingly economical work.   From just a few musical ideas Mahler generates an outpouring of sound over the course of its 80 minutes that is carefully crafted to transport the listener to a kind of parallel universe of feeling.  By the end, he has whipped the audience into a frothing excitement (tsunami of ecstacy?) that compels a standing ovation, even 100 years later.

Were you there?  (If not, I’m so sorry you missed it.)  If so, I hope you’ll add your comments!

Baritone Steven Scheschareg rehearses for Mahler 8 along with New World Chorale, Nashua Symphony Chorus, and Boston Children's Chorus.

The Nashua Symphony Chorus got together last night with the New World Chorale and Boston Children’s Chorus for a rehearsal of Mahler 8 in Wellesley Hills. Jonathan McPhee conducted, and it was the first time the three ensembles – about 200 people – had combined their voices under one roof in preparation for this weekend’s performances of Mahler’s “Symphony of a Thousand.” Several of the vocal soloists (Elizabeth Keusch, Michele Trainor, Tania Mandzy, Janice Edwards, & Steven Scheshareg) were also there to get a feel for this massive sonic universe.

Vanessa Gardner, the new General Manager for Lexington Symphony Orchestra, told me that the sound of all these voices singing together was “awesome” and declared herself “amazed” by the power of the solo voices as well. Excitement is definitely building!