Hey All,

Ok, I am back.  It has been a long time since my last entry.  So much has gone on it is hard to even know where to begin.  First of all, we are having a fantastic 60^th season with the SOST.  Just each concert is better than the last one.  The big focus this year has been on working on our strategic plan and dreaming where we can take the orchestra over the next 10 years (with or without me!  LOL)

We just had our pops concert for the season and it was wildly unusual and popular.  We did a gospel themed concert with Antioch Baptist Church, a church that is here in the community.  The audience (and orchestra for that matter) did not know what hit them!  Umm, well I didn’t know spin palace casino what hit me either. The choir just sang their hearts out, we had a kickin’ rhythm section and there was me dancing and swaying of the podium.  It was nuts but crazy fun.  I hope that we can do it again in the future.  These two genres are not commonly placed together.  Gospel, which is an oral tradition and the very rigid European orchestra traditions.  It was great to introduce the community to this hybrid of music.

So, what I am going to try to do drop in shorter entries but do it on a more frequent basis.  That is all for today.  I am headed to San Antonio tomorrow to participate in the Texas Music Educators Association convention.  It should be fun.

Bye for now.

Chelsea McMaestro!

Hello All,

Well, the summer heat is beginning to subside thank goodness.  It has been a wonderful summer and I am ready to get back to work with the SOST.  We are gearing up for our 60^th Diamond season here.  Last summer I was on the road it was nice to be here and just a lot of prep work for the symphony.

Also this summer I went to an awesome conductor’s retreat in Maine.  It is called the Conductor’s Retreat at Medomak in Washington Maine.  It was 18 days long and I felt every minute of everyday.  There were 36 conductors and the primary teacher was Kenneth Kiesler.  He is a very exacting teacher and ???????????? did an amazing job of working with all of us.  It was also interesting being around that many conductors at once.  Typically as conductors slots online we one or two no deposit casino bonus in a best online pokies australia given community so fellowship is not so easy.  But Ken did a really good kasyno internetowe job of forming us into a supportive community.  I was one of the elder statesman so to speak but I learned a lot.   Two things that Ken kept referring to during the course of the retreat was new online casinos with no deposit bonuses we should use music to ?????? ?????? transform the world.  And the other is that our conducting should be a visual online casino no deposit bonus coefficient of the music.

Transform the world through music is self explanatory.  We can effect change in peoples lives through using music.  The visual coefficient refers to the fact that what we show with our hands needs to visually reflect the music.  This is hard to do and hard to break the habit of “generic” conducting and time beating.  We also taped all of our sessions which is painful to watch yourself conducting.  You think that you are doing one thing and you realize your tongue is hanging out of the leftside of your mouth whenever you do a four pattern.  Not a good look for me.

So today we start the media blitz around here and first rehearsal tomorrow night.  Let the GAMES BEGIN!!!

Go SOST!!!!

Chelsea

Hey Everyone,

I hope that everyone’s summer is progressing well and staying cool or dry.  Some crazy weather patterns are happening around the country.  I’m in here in Maine at the Conductor’s Retreat at Medomak.  It has been a crazy intense experience but very rich in knowledge shared and a wonderful community of conductors here.  It is an 18 day retreat that will end on July 22 and I will be ready to return back to Beaumont.  I have learned so much here.  We have a big singing project left to do and the final concert on Sunday.  I will be conducting the 2^nd movement from the Mozart Symphony No. 40.  It is all about learning.

One of the aspects that has been really refreshing here is that there are 36 conductors and just to be able to compare “notes” (small pun intended), meet people, network and just fellowship.  In the conducting world we get so cut off from our fellow conductors because there is not usually many of us in any given community.  So it can get a bit isolating.  We are also hanging in the woods from civilization.  No McDonalds, no Diet Pepsi, no TV (now that hurts), just a lot of trees, lakes and fresh air.  It has been nice to detox out here, just some good living.

One of the challenges after one gets off of the formal training track (out of college and such) is how does one continue to grow.  The other issue is that you can reinforce bad habits and habits as you know can be a silent killer.  I have been trying to exorcise some conducting demons these past two weeks and it is not easy.  It is especially not easy when you are in front of an orchestra, a room full of conductors, in front of a teacher who is going to share your faults with the world AND you essentially have no control.  But my motto here has been, lets deconstruct so that we can reconstruct.  One has to put their beliefs and methods to the test, put them to the fire otherwise you live in your own fantasy of greatness…….in your head.  If all you get is the “Atta Boy” and pats on the back then is there any real growth?  This is about truth and exposing your truth to the world and getting it picked apart.  Is it difficult, yes it is but hopefully I will get on the podium a stronger conductor.

The SOST season is kicking off September 15 and more about that later.  Wow, the summer flying by.  SOST will be back in business before you know it.  Have a great rest of July.  Bye for now.

Peace,

Chelsea “The Woodsman” Tipton, II

Hey All,

Well having a Stay-Cation here in beautiful Beaumont this summer.  It is really lovely around here and the heat has not been unbearable thank goodness. Actually this week it is suppose to get into the triple digits for the first time.  The season is done and this morning we recorded commercials for the upcoming season celebrating 60 years of SOST-ness.  Pretty cool and we have some real treats coming your way.  Great music with a great orchestra!

This summer for me is far less travel than last summer.  It has been a summer of reflection for me.  Not always easy but certainly necessary.  Last summer with the Sting tour was crazy exciting and I would do it again in a heartbeat but it was a grind that is for sure.  Nice to be sleeping in my own bed this summer.  So this summer I will be headed to Medomak Conductors Retreat right after the SOST July 4^th concert.  Ken Kiesler is the teacher and he has a staff that works with us.  It will be a good learning experience and great to meet some other conductors in the “biz”.  I really enjoy learning and try to stay open to learning.  It also lets me know where I have grown in casino my conducting.  The only thing is that my flight leaves at 5:55 AM on July 5^th out of Houston Airport.  I probably will not even go to bed on July 4^th with such an early start to my day.  Then I will head back here at the end of July to get the season up and going for the SOST.

I hope everyone in the Southeast Texas region can stay cool.  If you want to stay cool on July 4^th come and join us at the Julie Rogers Theater at 8 PM.  We will have some great music to serve up.  GO SOST!!!

Maestro T  (My rapper name, LOL)