Save the Orchestra

"Roll Over, Mahler: U.S. Orchestras Are Shrinking"
By: Michael Cooper
Source: NY Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/23/arts/music/roll-over-mahler-us-orchestras-are-shrinking.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=photo-spot-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0

"Composers have long dreamed of bigger orchestras," says Cooper. Some American orchestras struggle in today's economy. "They are taking a page from the corporate world and thinking smaller: They are downsizing, shedding some full-time positions while making up the difference with less costly part-time musicians" (Cooper,1). The result became minimizing the size of the Atlanta Symphony, which had become known over the years for it's large-scale works which showed off the famous chorus formed by Robert Shaw. The Atlanta Symphony, whose contract called for 95 players a few years ago, had to lower it's minimum to 88 in 2012. The new contract will keep it this year at 77, where it has fallen after retirements, deaths and departures. In an estimation of four years the number will grow back to 88. “There are three elements which are each feeding off of each other,” said Tim Carter, a professor of musicology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Cooper, 1).  “Larger performance spaces requiring larger orchestras, which encouraged composers to write music for larger orchestras — which required larger orchestras, which required larger concert spaces,” (Cooper,1). The size of the orchestras became a point of contention during the lockout in Atlanta. It ended when the orchestra’s management gave up it's goal to drop the requirement for "a minimum number of players from the contract and players agreed to let vacancies go unfilled longer" (Cooper,1). Musicians and management at the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra have reached agreement on a new labor contract after months of negotiations and a lockout, setting the stage for the ensemble's 70th anniversary season to start on Thursday. Appropriately enough, the first concert will feature Beethoven's "Ode to Joy."

My Little Trip

My father took me to Santa Monica Beach today in California, where I sat for about an hour from one of the seatings at a restaurant right in front of the beach, and enjoyed my view.With a pen and paper in my hand, I started writing down everything I was seeing, feeling, smelling, touching, and hearing. It was about 4:30p.m. and the sun had started going down into the sunset. I saw a half blue, half orange beautiful sky and a bright yellow sun that looked like it was sinking into the salty, blue ocean. The ocean was shimmering from the reflections from the sun. There were many people I was able to see and hear. Some walking on the beach down below and some were talking around me. May conversations were going on from the people sitting next to me. One group of girls were talking about Facebook instead of enjoying the beautiful scenery. Then I heard a man saying the words, "Are you ready to order, ma'am?" 15 minutes later I was able to smell the delicious smell of margarita pizza along with the salty smell of the sea. Putting down my pencil, I grabbed a slice of the thick pizza by the crispy crust and let it enter my mouth. The taste of tomato, garlic, and basil made my senses tingle. It was a beautiful scenery, beautiful dinner, and a beautiful day.
Going to the beach always makes me happy. Watching and hearing the waves crash into the sand always calms me down, helps me forget about my worries, and takes me into my own world. By writing down everything I experienced, I was able to enjoy it more. It opened my eyes. We do not appreciate the beauty of the Earth as much as we should. I never thought watching the ocean would calm me down as much as it did. Nature: IT'S BEAUTIFUL! We should really take the time to actually see it instead of just looking at it.  

Grand Bahamas Plane Crash

"9 Killed in Grand Bahama Plane Crash"
By: Associated Press
Source: LA Times
http://www.latimes.com/world/mexico-americas/la-fg-bahama-plane-crash-20141109-story.html

A small plane crashed this Sunday, November 9, when approaching to the island of Grand Bahama, killing all 9 people on board. This information was given by the government of the Bahamas. Grand Bahama is about 70 miles east of Florida. The plane was a Lear 36 Executive Jet which had taken off from the Bahamian capital of Nassau. The group was on their way to the Global Leadership Forum, which was organized by Munroe and was scheduled for this week in Freeport. A posting on Munroe's Facebook page said the event would go on for two and a half days.Sadly, the jet went down and crashed at about 5 p.m. on local time while it was coming in for a landing at Grand Bahama International Airport in Freeport. It was not yet known what caused the crash, although there had been heavy rain across the region.. The police and the rescue teams quickly went to the scene. However, they needed to wait to do a full investigation until it was daylight, some officials said. "The Grand Bahama Airport Company Crash Fire Rescue Department responded to the incident, and the Police and Bahamas Air Sea Rescue (BASRA) are presently on the scene," (Association Press). The names of the victims are still not available. Tomorrow, everything well be cleared up. The names of the people will be released and the investigation will begin to find out why the jet came falling down.

R.I.P.: First Suicide Hotline Inventor

"Bernard Mayes, 85, Dies; Started First U.S. Suicide Hotline"
Source: New York Times
By: William Hardley
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/02/us/bernard-mayes-85-dies-started-first-us-suicide-hotline.html?ref=health

Bernard Mayes, an Anglican priest, started the first suicide hotline in the United States. Then Mr. Mayes, a decade later, became the founding chairman of National Public Radio. Well this smart man died on Oct. 23, 2014 in San Francisco being 85 years old. "Mr. Mayes was most proud of San Francisco Suicide Prevention, the hotline he set up in 1961 with a single red telephone in the city’s gritty Tenderloin District," says William Hardley (NYTimes). At this time, Mr. Mayes was already juggling careers as a priest in Marin County and also as a correspondent for the British Broadcasting Corporation. Then he noticed San Francisco’s high suicide rate which prompted him to action and eventually saved many lives.“Thinking of ending it all? Call Bruce, PR1-0450, San Francisco Suicide Prevention.” was one of the first advertisements. It was posted on city buses driving through all of San Fransisco. The phone rang once the first night the advertisement was released. Today, many years later, it rings nearly 200 times a day. The suicide hotline has about 100 volunteers and 10 paid staff members who are always there to help the people in need. Now, suicide statistics show that the city’s suicide rate is less than half of what it was when the agency was first founded. Mr. Mayes, inventor and hero, had no training in suicide counseling, yet he saved thousands of lives. The 85 year old man with Parkinson's will always be remembered for his many ideas and the changes he brought to the world.

What does the future hold?

Change is constant. People used to dream about things, now they are used to having them around. The future holds so many mysteries. What does the actually future hold? That is a question no one can answer. However, everyone has their own view of it. So many different types of technology has come out between the past 5 years. How about in the next 20 years? 30 years? What will happen to students then? Will they have books? Books might be too old school at that point. Surely, schools will start to incorporate different electronic devices with pages from textbooks, apps where students can take notes, measure how much of the lesson the student is understanding, and much more. School would probably have less teachers and more electronic charging stations. Students might not even be going to school since everything that they need to know is already in their hands. Teens and young adults will interact less with each other and spend hours on tablets or electronics. At least that is how I see the future. I feel as though the amount of technology we have today is enough. At some point, when everything is already being done for students by tablets, they will start wanting a change and start wanting to go back to more traditional ways. Whatever the future holds, we all must be ready for them and we must use what we have to enlighten us more, help strengthen the youth, and spread more knowledge.