Tag: Inspiration

FAREWELL AND BEST WISHES TO GEORGE

~ Jnana Hodson ~ 1 Comment

For the past four years I’ve been a member of the bass section of a remarkable community chorus in Greater Boston. We rehearse weekly through much of the year and find ourselves performing in public when occasions present. Most recently, it was as part of a summer solstice event hosted by the Harvard University museums of science and culture.

Known as the Revels Singers, we’re under the umbrella of the Boston Revels organization, which is best known for its annual Christmas productions at Harvard’s Sanders Theater.

George Emlen, the Revels music director for the past 32 years, founded the community chorus four years ago as a way to keep much of the Revels’ repertoire and spirit more active and visible throughout the year, augmenting the pub sings, concerts (spring and fall equinox and summer solstice are duly observed), educational outreach programs, harbor cruises, and the like.

And now he’s retired. How do you replace a skilled and enthusiastic conductor, one who reaches out to know his performers and their families as well? How do you replace an insightful composer and arranger or a collaborator on creating a new show every year for Christmas? (The last one was set in Wales. The next has a Cajun-Acadian base.)

It’s been an emotional year for us. At the final show of the Wales production, George was given a curtain-call, something the directors never do, preferring the applause be for the cast of singers, actors, and dancers ranging from very young to, well, admittedly old. The well-earned roar that greeted George matched what James Levine might hear at the Metropolitan Opera at the conclusion of a Ring Cycle. It was amazing. He’s touched a lot of people over the years.

For me, every rehearsal has brought new perspectives on music and music-making, from his improvised warm-ups (they’re never the same, and I wouldn’t want to sing without them beforehand) to the discoveries and interplay we share in pieces that range from the 12th century to the present, spanning more than two dozen languages and both classical and folk disciplines. How does a conductor remain patient while incrementally yet continually raising the level, anyway? We were good to begin with, but now? It’s a much higher standard than we would have had any right to imagine.

One eye-opener for us was the opportunity to audition the four finalists from the applicants to succeed him. Each was assigned three pieces to introduce to us in an hour-long rehearsal – one from the Renaissance or earlier, one from the American shape-note tradition, and one from world folk. As we found, each conductor was quite different, having something unique to bring to us. We could also sense how the fit might or might not work, which in itself was a revelation.

What I can say is that we’re excited to know that what George has established will continue and grow. We’ve had an opportunity to rehearse a full session with our new music director, Megan Henderson, and it feels like a match made in heaven. But then, as she says, we all share one thing in common: we all love George. She understands what she’s inheriting.

He plans to focus on composing, but I can’t imagine he won’t be in demand for guest conducting or teaching or travel in the arts. We all wish him and Jan all the best.

~*~

To view a video tribute to George by Michael Kolowich, including an interview and footage of productions George conducted, go to Revels.org.

FEELING A BERN

~ Jnana Hodson ~ Leave a comment

I was already deep in trying to comprehend and explain just what hit us in the hippie outbreak of the late ’60s and early ’70s. As I’ve recounted, there were many overlapping strands of activity and interests within the movement, many of which continue as active parts of the American scene, and no one could possibly embrace them all.

Many of those I knew could be hardworking, responsible, loyal individuals taking steps toward lofty goals. Some of the others, well, lazy was only part of their problem. ‘Nuff said?

Outwardly, the subsequent decades weren’t kind to our vision, however hazy it may have been. So much went underground, even as it became accepted part of American culture. Organic food, anyone? A peace protest? How about yoga?

And then Bernie Sanders embarked on his White House run. Attending his early town hall meetings was like a retired hippie reunion, except that there were a lot of serious, neatly attired young adults there, too. It felt like a hippie revival, actually, at least for those of us of the more political activist vein, plus a lot of back-to-the-earth types.

Yes! Keep the faith and keep on truckin’!

What a relief after the embarrassing recognition that many who continue in the stereotypical “hippie look” carry an air of loser more than the cutting-edge adventure and discovery we embraced in our youthful exuberance. Yes, there are still beards and long hair, along with the baldness and natural-looking cuts.

Looking back, I can point to a host of reasons the movement lost direction and traction in the ’70s. This time, I’m hoping we can keep our eyes on the destination and our egos in check. We’ve had enough bad trips, OK?

Remember, it’s not just the White House if we want to make the changes we’ve long dreamed.

If we should have learned anything in the hippie experience, it’s this. Nobody can do it alone.

HARDLY WHAT I’D ANTICIPATED

~ Jnana Hodson ~ Leave a comment

Here I am, a little more than three years since formal “retirement,” though I hardly feel retired, whatever that is.

As I mentioned the other day, I’d long anticipated this time in my life as one of intensified spiritual and literary focus. What’s been happening is something altogether different, and from my inner perspective, what I’m feeling is a sensation bordering on spiraling out of control. Or maybe it’s just sliding into oblivion or the like.

Earlier there were a few patches where I had a taste of what I thought my life would be like these days. Much reading, attending free concerts at the neighboring university or jazz night at a now defunct downtown spot, preparing dinner and then meeting my wife when she got off work (well, at least she’s home full-time now – yay!). But then I started spending much of that space working random shifts at the newspaper before the pension kicked in and then, well, as I’ve also noted, I took up new, unforeseen activities like singing in a first-class choir, swimming laps in the indoor pool, and blogging plus its related social media.

The daily nap, for several reasons, just hasn’t materialized, and I’m not taking days “off” to head into the mountains or rove the seashore. (You did catch the glitch in trying to get away, as if I’m still tied down to an office?)

My joke is that I’m not retired, it’s just that my work’s not generating an income. Think of Donald Hall’s distinction among Work, Jobs, and Chores – or what Gary Snyder’s called the Real Work. If I look closely, I have to admit to spending more time on that focus these days, no matter how much more I’d wish to devote.

Could it be I just have never intended to follow a course that more closely resembles the stereotype of retirement? Things like golfing and extended leisurely travel and nights playing cards at the club? Let’s be honest, that’s not me. By the way, gardening is hardly a hobby around here, so don’t consider it along the lines of retiree at play. In the ashram, we called it Karma Yoga — part of life in our holy boot camp. The mere memory of that puts other things in focus, reconnecting me to early adulthood and the pathway since. So here we are.

Well, if I ever get bored, I guess there’s always politics. It might be fun becoming the cranky protester at public meetings or holding a sign at the intersection of Washington Street and Central Avenue. Maybe that’s closer to my expectations, after all. Maybe in another decade?