<![CDATA[MY SITE - Comings and Goings]]>Sat, 14 Feb 2026 22:16:42 -0800Weebly<![CDATA[February 1, 2026]]>Mon, 02 Feb 2026 22:26:22 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/february-1-2026February 1, 2026
 
In 1944 Dimitri Mitropoulos, Music Director of what was then called the Minneapolis Symphony (now Minnesota Orchestra) commissioned David Diamond to write a joyous work, something to lift spirits in the midst of the horrors of World War II. The result was Mr. Diamond’s Rounds for String Orchestra.
 
I’m always tempted to use an adjective in front of the name of that work, but which adjective is problematic. It’s not really an iconic piece as few people outside of musicians know it (although it has been performed thousands of times, and recorded many as well). It’s not “epic” or “monumental” as it’s only 16-minutes long. “Revolutionary” or “groundbreaking” don’t fit either. “Important” seems unsatisfying.
 
But IMHO, Rounds is the pinnacle of American works for string orchestra of the 20th century. Wait, what about Barber’s Adagio or George Walker’s Lyric for Strings you ask? Well, both of those were originally conceived for string quartet, so a different category. Rounds stands alone.
 
The other thing Rounds is, is very difficult. I’ve done the work a handful of times and my emotional arc of the process goes something like this: “Oh, we are doing a string orchestra concert, we can do the Diamond! Great!!”
 
I sit with that elation from the time the decision is made until the day I start studying it to prepare, at which point I am reminded of the actual depth of the immense challenges of the work. The emotional equation then goes south towards “Why did I choose this, of all the works??”
 
That apprehension lasts well into the rehearsal process. The orchestra at least tries to conceal their contempt at me for choosing the work. They recognize it’s greatness, but the added workload is significant. We get to the dress rehearsal, and things start really happening, then the concert. The orchestra knocks it out of the park. The audience responds with great enthusiasm. The elation returns.
 
The Diamond was one of several works of the 20th and 21st centuries on yesterday’s Winterlude, an annual concert the LSO does in partnership with the St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in downtown Lansing. We also had an 18th-century work on the program, Vivaldi’s Winter from The Four Seasons. It may have been the oldest, but it remains, in many ways, the most avant- garde work on the program.
 
LSO Principal Second Violin, Florina Petrescu was wonderful as the soloist in Vivaldi. We also did Giazotto’s Adagio in G minor for organ and strings (after Albinoni) with a beautiful performance from Leonid Tsoy on the organ. Clarice Assad’s flavorful and slightly spicy Impressions: Suite for String Orchestra and Gustav Holst’s St. Paul’s Suite rounded out the program. It was a nice way to start the month of February.
 
It was also wonderful to see a near capacity audience for this concert, especially after yet another how-to-save-classical-music article appeared in the NY Times recently with the usual range of responses. That topic has been in the air since the 1960’s and classical music is still here. We’re not going anywhere and we don’t need saving. We do still need continued support, just as communities still need us to enhance quality of life. It’s a vital symbiosis.
 
#StPaulsLutheranLansing #FlorinaPetrescu #ClariceAssad #LeonidTsoy #LansingSymphony
 
NEXT UP
 
Toledo Symphony Orchestra
March 12, 2026
Founders Hall
Archibold, Ohio
 
7:30 p.m.
 
Music of Flagello, Rossini, Copland, Faure and Grieg
]]><![CDATA[New Recording!]]>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 19:04:44 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/new-recordingI am thrilled to say that, as of today, the Lansing Symphony Orchestra has released a recording of David Biedenbender's Trumpet Concerto "River of Time" with the LSO and our Principal Trumpet Neil Mueller. This is a work we commissioned and premiered. It is an extraordinary addition to the trumpet concerto repertoire. 
The recording is available from Blue Griffin and all the common streaming services. 
Here's a link to Blue Griffin:
https://www.bluegriffin.com/cd-catalog/p/biedenbender-river-of-time-neil-mueller-lansing-symphony-orchestra-timothy-muffitt
https://music.apple.com/us/album/biedenbender-river-of-time-live-ep/1860342280
#davidbiedenbender #neilmueller #riveroftime #lansingsymphony #trumpetconcerto
]]><![CDATA[January 9, 2026]]>Sun, 11 Jan 2026 18:39:58 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/january-11-2026
There is a programmatic parallel between Verdi’s Nabucco Overture and Jared Miller’s Piano Concerto, Shattered Night, the two works that made up the first half of our Lansing Symphony concert Friday. Nabucco tells a story from ca. 586 BCE of Nebuchadnezzar’s destruction of Solomon’s temple as well as Hebrew homes and businesses in Jerusalem. Jared’s work is his response to the tragedy of Kristallnacht, (Night of Broken Glass), when thousands of Jewish homes, places of worship and businesses were ransacked in 1938.
 
It is with that description that the similarities end. The composers were writing nearly two centuries apart, so naturally in completely different musical languages. The two works could not sound more different, but the side-by-side comparison is intriguing.
 
Before going any further, I have to say that Jared’s work is among the most heartfelt, poignant and moving works written in this century that I have encountered. In his description of the work, he tells us that the music is not meant as a depiction of the events of Kristallnacht, but more his emotional reaction, as a Jewish person who lost most of his mother's family in the Holocaust, to those happenings over 80 years ago, a time that witnessed an unimaginable breakdown of civility, decency and humanity.
 
As is often the case with exceptionally powerful works, it is a journey. In this work, we move in and out of music of unrest, turmoil and violence, toward music of peace, dreamlike states and even tranquility. The aural images of shattered glass are present in much of the work in myriad forms, from the cold, violent slashes of the opening percussion gestures to the prominent Mark Tree passages reminiscent of shards of glass falling in slow motion, as if in a dream. (The Mark Tree is a percussion instrument you’ve heard many times in pop and movie music. It is a set of small, graduated metal tubes that hang from a beam. The musician’s finger runs along the row, creating a gentle cascade of tiny chime sounds).
 
Pianist Han Chen was the perfect partner in this work. He brought a full range of fragility, delicacy, power, and most importantly, pacing. He knew how and when to maintain a surreal, dreamlike atmosphere, resisting the urge to flow forward, and when to let loose with unbridled momentum. He was stunning.
 
So how does a composer bring a work on this subject to a close? An important feature of the work is that musically it is based on quotations from a popular melodic setting of the Hebrew prayer Sh’ma Yisrael. The quotations remain clear but are transformed over the course of the work as if representing a single point of view that changes with each given scene. In the final scene, after the most shattering climax of the entire work, the Sh’ma Yisrael appears again in the cellos, rising from the rubble in a setting of looped reverberation created by dividing the cello section into 7 individual parts, each echoing the main melody. The effect is like musical slow motion, time suspended. With the next phrase, violas are added, also in divided slo-mo, then the second violins, then the firsts, all divided. Each player in the orchestra is a soloist on their own line, tracing the melody, but lagging behind, following the leader as if a procession of souls, the destination being a climax that is nothing short of cathartic, transcendent and yes, reaffirming and strong. As the theme fades away to the end of the work, we are left with a scene of beauty and serenity, suggesting the possibility of a future of hope and peace.
 
 
Following the concert and over the last few days, I’ve had several conversations, phone calls, and text messages remarking on the impact of this work. I’m also aware it may not have been to everyone’s taste, and that’s ok.  Shattered Night is a highly emotionally-charged experience.  If a listener was expecting 20 minutes of pure beauty, that’s not what this work is. Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony was not to everyone’s taste in its day either. That’s why we play music of our time, so that it can become the music of the future, and as such, timeless. The payoff is worth the investment.
 
In the days leading up to the concert, I imagined today’s post would be about Brahms. We played his First Symphony, the greatest first symphony ever written by the GOAT of composers, but after experiencing the power and impact of Jared’s work on the audience, our players, and myself, I realized it deserves the focus today. Brahms has had no shortage of good press.
 
February 1, 2026
 Lansing Symphony Orchestra
WINTERLUDE
 St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
Lansing, Michigan
3:00 p.m.
 
David DIAMOND         Rounds for String Orchestra
ALBINONI                    Adagio for Organ and Strings
VIVALDI                       Winter from The Four Seasons
                                                Florina Georgia Petrescu, violin
Clarice ASSAD             Impressions for Chamber Orchestra
HOLST                         St. Paul’s Suite
 
#JaredMiller #HanChenPianist #LansingSymphony]]><![CDATA[​December 21, 2025]]>Mon, 22 Dec 2025 20:07:04 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/december-22-2025
Another Holiday Pops in the books as of yesterday afternoon. It was a wonderful time. We had a terrific audience, the orchestra sounded glorious and our soloist, Ben Gulley brought down the house. Ben is working all over the world these days in major roles and big houses and for good reason. This is a special voice and a wonderful collaborator. It was a beautiful way to wrap up the year.
 
​Happy Holidays everyone!
 
NEXT UP
 
Lansing Symphony Orchestra
Han Cen, piano
The Wharton Center for the Performing Arts
East Lansing, Michigan
Friday January 9, 2026, 7:30 p.m.
 
VERDI              Nabucco Overture
Jared MILLER  Shattered Night (for piano and orchestra)
BRAHMS          Symphony No. 1
 
#lansingsymphony #bengulley #hanchen #jaredmiller]]><![CDATA[December 6-7, 2025]]>Thu, 11 Dec 2025 01:12:34 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/december-10-2025
I do love being in the orchestra pit. The added dimensions that opera and ballet bring to the music making create an entirely new level of possibilities and fulfillment. There are, however, extra challenges that go along with it. The complexities of theatrical productions require everyone involved to be at 110% from beginning to end. Maybe I like that part too.
 
I was lucky early in my career to be connected to some people with extraordinary gifts in opera and ballet. The first was David Effron, my conducting teacher at Eastman. He is an immensely gifted opera conductor and, even in discussions of non-operatic repertoire, somehow opera always came up. It changed how I thought about what can and should be done on the podium both on and below the stage.
 
Also early in my career, I was fortunate to come into the orbit of two greats in American ballet performance and teaching, Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux and Patricia McBride. We became colleagues at the Chautauqua Institution and collaborated on many performances over the years. They were no longer dancing but at that point providing artistic direction for their dancers.
 
As I look back at those times, I realize that being immersed for so many years in the dance world with them as guides was profound and enlightening. We never talked about the actual conducting element, but being in dance rehearsals with them year after year taught me not only some technical aspects, but most importantly, those things that are hard to put into words, elusive in description, but concrete and very real…a sense, a feel, a flow, a look, and a connection. As I write this, I’m realizing perhaps the connection was the biggest take away, that connection between the dancer and the orchestra, with the conductor serving as a conduit.
 
This weekend we wrapped up the 2025 Nutcracker with the Flint Symphony, dancers from the Flint Institute of Performing Arts, and guest professional dancers. That event came with an emotional “small world” happening for me. This was the 50th anniversary of FIPA’s production of The Nutcracker and for that, alumni were invited back for the first performance. One of those was the original Artistic Director of Flint’s Nutcracker back in the 1970’s, Gayla Zukevich. I had the pleasure to meet Gayla backstage prior to the first performance. When she learned of my connection to Chautauqua, she told me that Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux had danced with them way back in the day, on that very stage.  
 
We just lost Jean-Pierre in April of this year, so hearing this as I was about to walk into that very pit was especially poignant and moving. It instantly brought up all that I mentioned above and made me realize that, every time I walk into a ballet pit, Jean-Pierre and Patti are with me.
 
Others called him JP, but he was always Jean-Pierre to me…not sure why, maybe I just liked saying it. His passing has been difficult for all of us that were close to him. For me, it has been a slow-burn bereavement after the initial shock. He was a gift to all that had the chance to know him and of course, a gift to the world of dance. You can check out his obituary here: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/28/arts/dance/jean-pierre-bonnefoux-dead.html?unlocked_article_code=1.DU8.6ZwV.FqfkcjFeJNAC&smid=url-share
 
I share the obit, not only to focus on his many accomplishments, but also to shine a light on the extraordinary humanity he brought to the world of dance, especially as a teacher. He and Patti transformed the world of ballet teaching in this country.
 
The circle of life continues. Patti still teaches at Chautauqua, and now Sasha Janes, who worked for years under Jean-Pierre and Patti, is the Artistic Director for Dance at CHQ. Sasha brings his own magic to the process, continuing to provide inspiration to us all.
 
The circle continues in Flint as well. Gayla passed the torch on to Karen Mills Jennings who, after several decades, then passed it on to Tara Gragg, the current Artistic Director. Both Karen and Tara began as dancers in the program under their predecessors and thus the traditions are passed through the generations, growing with each year. The production, now 50 years old, is remarkably beautiful. I feel truly fortunate to be a part of it. Kudos to all who had a part in building and carrying on the tradition, and thank you for including me.
 
NEXT UP
 
Lansing Symphony Orchestra
 
Home for the Holidays
Ben Gulley, Tenor
The Wharton Center
Sunday December 21, 3:00 p.m.
 
#FlintSymphony #FlintInstituteofMusic #FIM #FlintInstituteofPerformingArts #FIPA #JeanPierreBonnefoux #PatriciaMcBride #TaraGragg #GaylaZukevich #KarenMillsJennings #DavidEffron #ChautauquaDance #SashaJanes
]]><![CDATA[November 26, 2025]]>Thu, 27 Nov 2025 01:52:52 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/november-26-2025Those of you who are return visitors to this page may notice I have changed the format at bit. Just FYI, I tend to be a DIY kind of person, always have been. I like that by doing things myself I tend to learn. There is a sense of satisfaction (if things go right), sometimes save money (if things go right), save time (hardly ever).
 
Of course more frequently than I care to admit, it seems I become a DIW person (do it wrong).  The tendency towards DIW increases as I venture into the realm of things about which I don’t have a firm understanding. In this case, posting blogs on a website.
 
I’ve noticed that there is a much better way to post here where you, the reader, can actually reply if you like. Imagine that? How modern!!

So as of today, feel free to share your thoughts and observations. All the previous posts have been re-formatted to allow comments. Thanks again for visiting! ]]><![CDATA[November 14, 2025]]>Thu, 27 Nov 2025 01:49:14 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/november-15-2025
Well that was fun...a week ago I was conducting Bartok, last night the music of Green Day. There’s something to be said for that variety and spice of life thing.
 
The concert was with the Buffalo Philharmonic, part of the BPO’s “Rock Series” featuring cover bands with the orchestra.The band was terrific, very comfortable in the style and great with the audience.
 
And the audience...clearly die-hard fans, singing along with even the most complex passages. I’m sure for many, it was their first time with the BPO, and I bet it won’t be the last.
 
NEXT UP:
 
Flint Symphony Orchestra
Guest artists from Collage Dance Collective
Dancers from Flint School of Performing Arts
The Whiting, Flint Michigan
December 6 at 7:30 p.m. and December 7 at 3:00 p.m.
 
Tchaikovsky             The Nutcracker
 
#buffalophilharmonic #tcgentertainment]]><![CDATA[November 7, 2025]]>Thu, 27 Nov 2025 01:48:29 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/november-9-2025
Over the course of my career, I’ve have often thought about the many different ways people demonstrate truly extraordinary musicianship. To be clear, by “truly extraordinary," I mean those artists whose connection with the audience is uncommonly potent, a very small group among the many wonderful musicians in the world.
 
It is challenging to articulate the seemingly ineffable elements that put a performer into this tiny subset. I know that it begins with a connection made with the music internally that is unusually strong. Then there is the ability to actually transform that connection into sound.
 
Another trait of the truly exceptional is a personality and love of music-making that overflows into the audience. It happens in a completely genuine way such that each listener feels a gravitational pull to their presence. You can’t fake this or force it. It’s just there. 
 
Then there is the white-hot inner burn…that flame of intensity that informs every note. In some great artists, this flame remains highly internalized, in others it appears more overtly. It is in this aspect where we sometimes find the force-of-nature factor. I would not say every great artist has this, nor is it a requirement for greatness. 
 
But a force of nature was visited upon the Lansing Symphony this weekend in the form of violinist Ray Chen playing Bruch’s dramatic and inviting First Concerto. Ray is one of those extraordinary artists about whom I’ve been writing here, and that is apparent from the moment he walks on stage before playing a note. Once his bow is on the string, he’s got you in the palm of his hands. He left an indelible impression on all of us.
 
Our concert opened with Zhou Tian’s heart-felt “A Thousand Years of Good Prayers.” Since I've become acquainted with his music, he has become among my favorite composers of our time. While writing very much in today’s musical vocabulary, his music is a continuation of 19th-Century Romanticism. It creates a deep emotional connection with the listener. His music fills the hall with kaleidoscopic color, drama, and a broad emotional scope. 
 
Like Zhou, Bela Bartok also channeled 19th-Century Romanticism into a more modern context while retaining the human, emotional element. His masterpiece Concerto for Orchestra closed our program. It was a great pleasure to do a deep dive into this work with my Lansing Symphony colleagues.
 
NEXT UP
 
November 14, 2025
 
Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
The Music of Green Day
7:35 p.m
Kleinhans Music Hall
Buffalo, New York
 
#lansingsymphony #raychen #zhoutian]]><![CDATA[October 3, 2025]]>Thu, 27 Nov 2025 01:47:50 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/october-6-2025
We opened our Lansing Symphony mainstage season on Saturday night with a program that explored an intersection of science and mythology. On the mythological side, we offered Holst’s epic work “The Planets”. The title at first appears somewhat misleading in that I think most of us interpret that as an astronomical theme when actually Holst was inspired by the astrological side of these celestial bodies.  He was heavily into the zodiac, horoscopes and astrology at the time he conceived this work.
 
We did add an actual astronomical element to the Holst by displaying images from a project NASA created several years ago called “Cosmic Designs,” a melding of NASA imagery and animations of the planets with Holst’s music.  I had avoided that pairing for most of my career, feeling that it distracted the listener from focusing on the music, but those were my purist days, We already had the video setup and operator in place for the other work on the program, so it seemed a good time to explore this, and I’m glad we did.
 
The NASA images, while from a scientific institution, are also art in their own right especially in the realm of curation. The choices of images flow beautifully with the character of the music and the flow of the work, and they are awe-inspiring on their own. The end result is a different kind of orchestral concert experience. I also still think we should just play the music by itself sometimes too.
 
We were joined on this program by choirs from Michigan State University, and Lansing’s community choir known as the Choral Union. It’s an impressive collection of singers under the guidance of MSU professor Sandra Snow and her colleagues at MSU. A small group from those choruses joined us for the ethereal “Neptune” movement that closes the Holst work, but the entire combined choruses were featured in a work called “The Notebooks of Leonardo DaVinci” by the American composer Jocelyn Hagen.
 
Hagen’s work combines an elaborate video compilation of DaVinci’s painting and sketches, some of which actually become animated, with sung text from his notebooks. It is very attractive music and a visually appealing presentation. The video is run by a live operator on stage. He functions as a part of the orchestra, reading the music, and using newly-developed software that allows the video to actually follow the conductor rather than the way we normally have to do such things, meaning the conductor follows a click track or a clock, both musically limiting devices.
 
I wasn’t quite sure what to make of this piece when I first heard it, but I’m glad I had the sense to trust Sandra’s advocacy of the work. It was clearly well received by the audience, and that explains why it has had over 50 performances since being written just a few years ago.
 
Before the concert I joined WKAR’s popular on-air host Jody Knol for the LSO’s pre-concert talk. Jody asked if I thought this (mixed media) was the wave of the future for classical music, and I told him I didn’t think it  was the only wave. It’s one of many waves as our art form continues to evolve in how we engage with our audience and community.
 
NEXT UP
 
November 7, 2025
 
Lansing Symphony Orchestra
Ray Chen, violin
7:30 p.m.
Wharton Center for the Performing Arts
East Lansing, Michigan
 
Zhou TIAN       A Thousand Years of Good Prayers
BRUCH            Violin Concerto
BARTOK           Concerto for Orchestra
 
#lansingsymphony

]]><![CDATA[August 13, 2025]]>Thu, 27 Nov 2025 01:47:06 GMThttps://www.timothymuffitt.com/comings-and-goings/august-13-2025
In my last post I mentioned that Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony stood alone in the symphonic output, and now I’m going to say the same about Bartok’s Concerto for Orchestra. So how many works out there really do “stand alone”? I’m reminded of an observation by my late friend Michael Scearce who once commented on a young person’s appearance saying “he’s trying to be ‘alternative’ like all the other people who are ‘alternative’ ”. Michael said that decades ago and it still makes me laugh.
 
So yes, there are several works from the first half of 20th century that stand alone, both from what came before, from what followed, and from what was happening at the time. It was a time of divergence of existing stylistic threads and the establishment of new ones; a time of experimentation…of the shockingly new, or the blending of the old and new, and as a result, a time that spawned many iconic works.  
 
Prokofiev’s symphony came from 1944, Bartok’s Concerto for Orchestra from 1943. The dust was settling somewhat after the shaking of the earth created by such innovative works as Debussy’s Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune, (1894) and Stravinsky’s Le Sacre du Printemps, (1913), but composers were of course still pushing the envelope. Interestingly enough, Prokofiev and Bartok’s works were packaged under old-timey titles like “symphony” and “concerto” and certainly the styles of these works were more conservative than some of their contemporaries. As we look back now, some 80 years hence, these two works still feel fresh, relevant, impactful and most of all, timeless.
 
I want to pause and share a personal moment of gratitude. I was fortunate enough to get to conduct both of these iconic works with two terrific orchestras within a span of 5 days. That made for an exciting (and busy) week, and one that I will not forget anytime soon.
 
The Bartok was the final work on our last program of Chautauqua’s 2025 Music School Festival Orchestra season, a bittersweet moment for sure. We opened the concert with Michael Torke’s Javelin, a guilty pleasure of mine, and Tchaikovsky’s Francesca da Rimini, the latter conducted by 2025 Conducting Fellow Hannah Schendel. It was an immensely challenging program for the orchestra, but you wouldn’t know it to have heard them. They were wonderful.
 
It has been a rich and memorable summer here with these extraordinary young musicians. I miss them already!
 
NEXT UP
 
October 4, 2025
 
 
Lansing Symphony Orchestra
MSU Choirs and Choral Union
7:30 p.m.
Wharton Center for the Performing Arts
East Lansing, Michigan
 
Jocelyn HAGEN           The Notebooks of  Leonardo da Vinci
HOLST                         The Planets
 
#musicschoolfestivalorchestra #chautauquainstitution #msfo

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