My Funny Valentine

Posted on by Thor

My Funny Valentine, hosted by Bryce West and the Friends of the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra featured a preview performance by Michael Andrews and Swingerhead.  The event began at 7PM at the home of Bryce West. Parking was at the First Baptist Church Windermere, Lakeside Campus (8464 Winter Garden Vineland Rd, Orlando, FL).

When I got to the church parking lot there was a shuttle bus waiting. I climbed in as the only passenger and the took off down a dirt road. We arrived at a gorgeous lake side mansion and after I picked up a name tag, Bryce showed me some of his art collection. He had a portrait of a cleric by Gainsborough in the dining area where food was ready for guests. Another portrait of Marquis Drogheda was by Reynolds. A mysterious dark Dutch painting by Petrov Van Schenbel depicted skaters in a moonlit landscape. The light from a chandelier caused the oil glazes to glare making the painting hard to see.

I set up pool side to sketch the staging area. By the time Michael Andrews performed, the sketch was solidly blocked in. My Funny Valentine will be a concert featuring Michael Andrews, his band Swingerhead, and the Orlando Philharmonic on February 9th at 2PM and 8PM at the Bob Carr. Michael explained to the audience that many of the songs were by Marvin Hamlisch for a new musical of “The Nutty Professor“. The play has been seven years in development. It was just performed in North Carolina and is Broadway bound once the producer gets the finances worked out. Michael has been working with Jerry Lewis to bring this musical to the stage. Michael said he got into entertainment because of Jerry Lewis and now the 86 year old is his mentor. Jerry’s mentor was Charlie Chaplin who took the young comedian under his wing.

Casino Royale

Posted on by Thor

The Friends of the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra held a Casino Royale fundraiser at Villa Conroy. Tickets were $100. My wife, Terry, painted herself gold for the event in honor of the James Bond film Gold Finger. When we entered Villa Conroy, the first song on the sound system was appropriately, Gold Finger. Upstairs, blackjack and roulette tables were set up. The room was filled with art, both representational and abstract. A Chihuli glass lily pad was encased behind Plexiglas. Everyone was handed a hundred dollar bill which could be turned in for chips. Terry used my chips since she played while I sketched.

At the roulette wheel, Kristin Brandt, the Assistant Director of Development for the Philharmonic, was tentative about placing her first bets. She had never played roulette before. Her boyfriend  stood behind her coaching. She doubled her money. Then doubled it again. She was giddy and flustered, blushing. “Beginners luck” someone muttered as his chips were cleaned off the table. A crowd gathered and shouted as she won again. More chips were pulled out to be added to her pile.

Terry, the golden girl, mostly stuck with Blackjack. Towards the end of the evening she grew fearless and her winnings grew exponentially. At stake for everyone in the room was the lure of a gift basket. I scanned the other tables to see if anyone else had a stack of chips as big as Terry’s. Kristin’s stack had dissipated. The gentleman on the right side of my sketch had an impressive pile. With a minute to go before they closed the betting, Terry bet everything and lost. The gentleman took home the gift basket. Each of the dealers had Tupperware “tip jars”. They were stuffed full or real green.

After the fundraiser, Terry and I went to the Kerouac House where we just missed the reading by resident author, Leslie Parry.  Former resident author, Catlin Doyle, was there as well. She was at the Atlantic Center of the Arts in New Smyrna Beach and she drove to Orlando for the reading.  I was fascinated with her life as a nomadic resident artist. After a quick bite and sip, Terry and I went to Fringe for a Poetry Smack down.

Friends Meeting And Spring Fling

Posted on by Thor

The Friends of the Orlando Philharmonic had an informal meeting hosted in the home of Lael and Duncan Wahl. People were standing out in the sun room and living room and the meeting was in full stride. The United Arts Campaign was the item on the agenda. The next item was a call for volunteers for the friends gift show which is set up in the Bob Carr lobby for each concert. There wasn’t a mad rush of new people wanting to volunteer.

Upcoming Friends of the Orlando Philharmonic events include…
On September 29th there will be a Philharmonic 20th Anniversary Season Opening Night Gala at the Sheraton Downtown, starting at 5:45pm. Tickets are $90 for friends and concert subscribers.
Symphony in HD will be a Concert Gala at Full Sail University on April 21 starting at 6pm. This event will be a unique marriage of music and technology. The $250 ticket includes a reception, concert, dinner, cocktails, silent and live auction s and a post-concert party.
Casino Royale will be an evening of gambling at the tables for a good cause. This event hosted by Connie and Roy Brand will be at Villa Conroy starting at 5pm. Tickets are $60 for Friends members.
This year’s Jeans and Jewels gala goes Hawaiian at the Winter Park Garden Club, Mead Gardens starting at 7pm. This is the Friends most popular party. For $65 Friends members enjoy plenty of music, cocktails, great food and fun.

After the meeting, Nicolay Blagov, the principle clarinet player for the Orlando Philharmonic performed several stunning solos. Friends gathered in the living room, lining the walls, crowding in the hallway, and sitting on the couches. Some friends even sat on the floor to soak in the music closing their eyes in a reverie.

Orlando Philharmonic Sneak Peek

Posted on by Thor

This is the 20th anniversary of the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra. A sneak peek event was held at the brand new Full Sail Live facility on 436 and University Boulevard. The event was for Friends of the Philharmonic and the Press. I made the mistake of putting my Full Sail lanyard around my neck thinking it would make me blend in. It must have made me look like a lost student instead. One of the women at a reception table asked if she could help me. When she realized I wasn’t lost, she offered me a press pass.

All the front row seats had purses, programs and persons seated in them. A string quartet was playing and I decided I should start sketching right away. I wandered back stage a bit and sat down in my artists stool to sketch. When the music stopped, David Shillhammer, the executive director of the Orchestra, addressed the crowd. The 20th Anniversary season will kick off on September 29th with Mahler’s Symphony # 3, the Pastorale Symphony. On October 13th “Wicked Divas” will hit the stage with Andrew Lane conducting and Broadway stars Alli Mauzey and Nichole Parker singing songs from Wicked, Gypsy, Chicago, Ragtime and Phantom. November 17th Bronfman & Beethoven will come to the Bob Carr. Yefim Bronfman will perform on the piano. Local composer Stella Sung will unveil a new piece commissioned by Lynn & Chuck Steinmetz, the recipients of the 2o12 John Blackburn Distinguished Service Award.

David Shillhammer made an announcement that Sharon & Marc Hagle donates $750,000 that morning to the Philharmonic. This was the first gift towards establishing a family foundation endowment fund to continue endorsing the orchestra going into the future. The Bryce West foundation also supports the performing arts in Central Florida. Harriett Lake is Sponsoring “How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying.” This show about corporate ladder climbing will be on May 11th at 2pm and 8pm Saturday.

Opera is being kept alive as the Philharmonic joins forces with the Florida Opera Theater Company to stage, Rigoletto on March 2nd & 4th, The Marriage of Figaro by Mozart on November 9th & 11th, and Madam Butterfly by Puccini on April 5th & 7th. Frank McClain is directing these productions which are semi staged featuring the music by having the orchestra onstage as the actors sing. Cirque De La Symphonie on March 30th at 2Pm & 8pm Saturday sounded thrilling. Featuring the music of Bizet, Saint Saens, Tchaikovsky, Dvorak and others along with acrobats, contortionists, jugglers and strongmen. Aerialists will sour overhead as the orchestra offers suspense.

For the first time the Orchestra will be collaborating with the Shakespeare Theater to bring “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” to like. There is also “The Summer Series”, “The Focus Series” and “My Funny Valentine” featuring Michael Andrew & Swingerhead on February 9th. There is plenty happening as the 20 year old Symphony forges forward into its mature years.

In Bloom

Posted on by Thor

Friends of the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra were invited to a class on flower arrangement at In Bloom (325 West Gore Street). Terry gave me her invitation suggesting it might be a good subject to sketch. Hurricane Irene was spinning 200 miles off the coast of Florida sending outer cloud bands over Orlando. When I arrived at In Bloom, the sun broke through the clouds. I was impressed by a small garden of native plants that had been nurtured in front of the building. Inside I was introduced to John Kobylinski, florist and owner. He offered me a quick tour. A hidden black wrought iron spiral staircase lead us up stairs. This building had once been a Coka– Cola bottling plant. He lead me to a room with old wooden floors and an old sink. Here he said the Coke was mixed by hand in that room.

Back downstairs he lead a small group into a freezer room where boxes of flowers are stored at 30° Fahrenheit. He explained that all the flowers are shipped from South America. Roses arrived with 200 blooms per box. They are wrapped in groups of 25 although they are sold by the dozen. Several beautiful arrangements were stored for an upcoming event. Friends of the Philharmonic were sipping wine to relax before the arranging began. Ten to twenty orange clay pots were set out for the students. Wet green foam blocks were placed in each pot.

I decided to climb half way up the spiral staircase to get an overall view of everyone at work. Everyone was first asked to arrange yellow, orange and red roses so they looked like elegant round topiary spires. Smaller blooms and greenery were arranged at the base. The long blades of saw grass had serrated edges so everyone was warned to be careful. I rushed the sketch thinking that the arrangements would probably be finished quickly. I was wrong. Arranging flowers is a subtle art and it takes time and lots of concentration. My eye glasses were filthy. I kept tilting my head to look around distracting fingerprints as I drew. I took my glasses off when I painted. Everything was blurry but at least the colors were vibrant. Sunlight streamed through the shop’s glass doors as the sun set.

Jeans & Jewels Speakeasy

Posted on by Thor

The Jeans & Jewels Speakeasy was a fundraiser put on by the Friends of the Philharmonic at the Winter Park Garden Club. An old vintage Ford Model T was parked in front of the clubhouse entrance. Terry had gone all out wearing a gold sequin dress she had borrowed from Genevieve Bernard. With her gold turban, gold high heels and long gold necklaces and brooches she was a hit. I was not half as flashy in my black suit. I sketched the band before dinner.

After dinner I decided that dancing was more important than sketching. Terry and I mixed it up with all the other flappers on the dance floor. The room was kept mysterious thanks to a theatrical fog machine. Flappers and gangsters mingled and talked. In the men’s room bullet hole stickers punctured the stalls and doorway. There was a wide assortment of silent auction items, the most tempting one being a kitsch oil painting of a monkey dressed as royalty. Many revelers thumbed their noses at prohibition.

When the band began playing again after a break, Terry lounged on the steps in front of the group like she was part of the act. A group of people got up and started shooting photos with their cell phones. Terry blocked her face with her black gloved hands but the photographers persisted. She finally had to retreat off the steps. For the rest of the night we danced to the point of exhaustion. Rainbows End played tirelessly. I recognized the saxophone player from sketches I had done at the Monday Night Jazz sessions at the Grand Bohemian. I kept wondering when police would raid the party.