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01/14/09
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Snow Angel |
Roland Burris |
Rod Blagojevich |
Chicago has only gotten more exciting since we were there!
Something fun, something new and something -
well......................
**** Copy Chicago Pictures and Videos to
Disc and Send Them In! ****
Dear Parents and Travelers,
We have received two letters of congratulations from Mr. Wells, our guest conductor and former Director of Fine Arts and Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser, Executive Director of Conn-Selmer Inc. Click HERE for a pdf version or read below for the text in full.
You may recall that every performer will receive a CD of the Midwest performance and many of you purchased a DVD as well. We are awaiting that arrival, so watch for a wrap-up packet to be given to performers during 5th period as soon as these items arrive.
Also, we have one last item of business, preserving our memories.
It is time to start documenting our warm memories of our trip before they start to fade. We need your input.
So many of you took hundreds of pictures and the ones I saw were fabulous! If you would like to add your favorite trip photos or videos to the collection, now is the time. Please download your best shots (as many as you like) to CD's and get them to Ms. Vandiver by Friday, January 30th. If you need help with this step, e-mail me and I'll work it out. They will be reviewed by committee and then used to create a booklet, a slide show and/or a DVD.
What photos should I include?
- Key landmarks,
beautiful holiday displays, snow
- Groups of travelers (we want all of
them to be in there somewhere!)
- Shots at any of the events or restaurants
- Touching moments that everyone will
appreciate
- Concert or rehearsal shots
What should I NOT include (my drive space is huge but not
endless)?
- Shots of your feet
- Lens cap shots
- Poorly focused shots (I can adjust light
problems, not focus)
- Too many shots of the same person
- Anything that would embarrass
Comment, help or input is all welcome.
Thanks!
Linda
Baldwin
Chicago/Midwest Trip Coordinator
RLNZ@sbcglobal.net
281-381-7783
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Ron
Wells, Conductor - Artist
San Antonio, Texas
January 7, 2009
Dear Ms. Vandiver:
I want to take this opportunity to thank you, MR. Winson and the students of the Austin High School Symphony Orchestra who performed so brilliantly in Chicago at the Mid-West Band and Orchestra Clinic/ What a treat it was to work with these young musicians. And to have it culminate in a wonderful concert in Chicago was the icing on the cake. I can't tell you how impressed I was with how all of the students rose to the occasion, creating some really exciting music. Special kudos to Vincent Wang for his brilliant clarinet solos in the "Hungarian Rhapsody".
It's not often that we as conductors/teachers/student musicians get to experience this level of performance, and I hope that all who were involved realize how very special this event was. Who knows, we keep working and we might just sound as good as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Weren't they something?
Good luck with the remainder of the year. I hope that each of you had a safe and happy holiday. If I can ever be of assistance to you or Mr. Winson, do not hesitate to ask.
Cordially,
Ron Wells
Copy: Mr. Michael Leach-Principal; Mr. Tim Ramsey-Ass't. Principal
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Dr.
Tim Lautzenheiser, executive Director
Division of Education, Conn-Selmer, Inc.
January - 2009
Carolyn
Vandiver/Dustin Winson
Stephen F. Austin High School Orchestra
Greetings:
CONGRATULATIONS! The 62nd Annual Midwest Clinic is now history, but your outstanding performance will long be remembered by those of us who were fortunate enough to be in the audience. We were benefactors of your obvious commitment and dedication to EXCELLENCE.
You must know that people were "buzzing" about SFA! Or...as one of my friends said, "I wish my own children could go to a school with such a remarkable program; they seem to have it all!" You are setting the bar MIGHTY HIGH for everyone.
It is always exciting to witness extraordinary young musicians sharing their skills and talents with such artistry. THANK YOU for your musical memorable GIFT. It is the collective efforts of many (teachers, students, parents, administrators and community members) who support this lifetime opportunity. Your concert stands as a tribute to EVERYONE who was a part of the total contribution.
In every discipline there are certain events that are considered to be "the ultimate." As you know the Midwest stage represents the Olympics of our music education world; all aspire to receive the coveted invitation. You are now a member of an elite group of musicians who have achieved this given goal; it is truly an accomplishment of noteworthy praise and due celebration. BRAVO!
With best wishes for
continued success, I remain,
Tim Lautzenheiser
12/24/08
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Passenger Stranded at O'Hare Last Night - 12/22/08 |
**** A FABULOUS
trip, but it's good to be home! ****
Dear
Parents and Travelers,
I
heard on CNN this morning that over 500 flights at O'Hare
Airport were delayed yesterday. We were truly blessed that the
one thing totally out of our control - the weather - was
one of the best factors of our trip. It was COLD as we
arrived, but no delays and no ice. We got two days of snow in
the middle so we could play, and then to have this seasonal
winter storm wait just until after we leave....... WOW!
Thanks
to Ms. Vandiver and Mr. Winson whose teaching skill made
this opportunity possible for us.
Thanks
to Mr. Leach and FBISD admin, especially Dr. Milner and
the Fine Arts Department, who approved the trip.
Thanks
to Mr. Ramsey, Principal at AHS and administrator of our
trip.
Thanks
to the chaperones who counted heads over and over and made
sure everyone was where they should be and when.
Thanks
so much to all performers who traveled - all behaved in the
expected AHS/FBISD manner and better! You have made AHS
proud!
Thanks
so much to the parents and family who traveled with us and
pitched in when needed to help make all go smoothly -
especially Mr. Quilllen who drove the equipment truck both
ways.
Thanks
to parents and family who remained here at home for funding
this marvelous trip for the kids and all the support that came
before we departed.
I
hope today - Christmas Eve - finds you all warm, happy and
surrounded by love ones. Enjoy and share your memories with
everyone, take care to travel safely and remember the
reasons for this giving season.
Merry
Christmas to all!
Linda
Baldwin
Chicago/Midwest Trip Coordinator
RLNZ@sbcglobal.net
281-381-7783
12/08/08
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**** What Will
We Eat? Mmmmmm, It's Gonna Be Great!
****
Dear
Parents and Students,
Chicago,
just like Houston, is a very international city with a huge
variety of foods to sample and enjoy. We have a wonderful
selection of food venues lined up from the gourmet to the
sublime! Of course, this will require some choosing on your
part. Attached to this e-mail is a form (don't groan, it is
the last one, I promise!). Mr. Winson and Ms. Vandiver will
have copies of this form at 5th period tomorrow. Click HERE
for a printable pdf. Your student
should fill it out and turn it back in immediately! That way I
don't have to nag! :)
Let's
see what is in gastronomic store..................
First
there's breakfast Tuesday through Friday. We will be served at
our hotel in a private meeting room. Breakfast on Tuesday
prior to our performance is mandatory. Refer to the itinerary
for times. On Friday, we will eat in the dining room with
other guests and enjoy their full breakfast buffet.
Monday
Lunch -
We will have lunch at Lawry's (of the seasoned salt fame) - but
no prime rib, that will come later in the week. This
restaurant is housed in the McCormick mansion and a restaurant
rep will let us look around and tell us about this historic
building. Also, we will eat in the Regents Room at the top of
the Grand Staircase!
Choices
are:
Deli
Sandwiches
- Roast Beef
- Turkey Breast
- Ham
Wraps
- Turkey Club
- Veggie
Coffee,
hot tea, iced tea OR 1 soft drink per person
Monday
Dinner -
With an interior inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright, you will
enjoy dining in style before the Lyric Opera performance. We
will be seated in tables of 10 and served family style. No
choices to make here since each table will have a platter of
each entree and sides.
Starter
- mixed green salad
Entrees
- Lemon Chicken, Lake Superior Whitefish or Eggplant Parmesan
with Fresh Pasta
Sides
- Stir Fried Mixed Veggies and Mashed Potatoes
Coffee,
teas and soda
Tuesday
Lunch -
You may already be familiar with this restaurant. Good food
and convenient to our afternoon activities.
We
start with Safari Fries
Entree
Choices are:
Paradise
House Salad - greens, tomatoes, jicama, carrots and cucs
Mini
Rainforest Burger - mini burgers, broiled with cheddar on
fresh buns
Planet
Earth Pasta - penne, tossed in marinara and roma tomatoes and
fresh buffalo mozzarella
Caribe
Chicken Tenders - golden fried chicken tenders
Tuesday
Dinner -
Wonderful Deep Dish Pizza, Chicago Style!
All
you can eat Pizza or Pasta along with Salad and Soda
Sound
simple, but it will be like no other you have ever tasted.
Delicious!
Wednesday
Lunch -
Haven't you memorized the movie Forest Gump yet? You better
get started! There will be a quiz.
Entree
Choices are:
Fried
Shrimp
Cheeseburger
Chicken
Strips
Fish
and Chips
Chicken
Caesar
Veggie
Pasta
Top
it off with a sundae for dessert.
Coffee,
tea and soda
Wednesday
Dinner -
Served family style once again!
We
begin with a house salad tossed with vinaigrette and bread
service
Entrees
will be Classic Alfredo with Chicken and Broccoli or
Baked
Penne in Marinara with Mozzarella and Ricotta
Water,
Coke and Sprite
Thursday
Lunch -
Not to be missed! This one will be the meal event to remember!
The food will be fabulous, the entertainment even better!
Entree
Choices:
Prime
Rib (see, here it is!)
Lasagna
(meat or meatless)
Breast
of Chicken w/ Lemon Herb Sauce
Salad,
vegetable, potato
Dessert
Coffee,
tea or soft drink
Thursday
Dinner -
Once
again family style, so no choices to be made.
Appetizer:
Saganake (cheese flambe), Taramosalta (greek cavaier)
Greek
Salad
Entrees:
Chicken
Riganati
Dolmades
(stuffed grape leaves)
Pastitsio
Meatballs
Gyros
with Tzatziki Sauce
Rice,
Potatoes, Baked veggies
Dessert choices: Baklava, Galactobouriko, Karidopita (look 'em
up and I'll tell you if you are right!)
Coffee
or Tea
It's
all Greek to Me (ok, now you can groan), but it sounds
delicious!
Friday
Lunch -
We will be in historic Oak Park. A wonderful place to visit
but not a single restaurant large enough to hold all of us.
The solution? Split in half! These two restaurant choices are
diagonal across a street intersection and we can look from one
to another. So...... you get to choose which restaurant you
would like. This is incentive to get your choices back early
because it will be strictly first come/first choice. If you
turn in your choices late, it might not be honored. Talk to
your friends and choose ASAP!
Winberie
This American bistro has an inviting
dining room which features exposed brick, warm yellow
walls, brass accents and Euro-inspired artwork. Delicious food
too!
Starter: bread and butter on table
Entrees: Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken
Sandwich – fries or fruit
All American Cheeseburger – fries or fruit
Four Cheese Grilled Cheese Sandwich – fries or fruit
Southwestern Vegetarian Chili – café salad
Dessert:
Warm Nestle Toll House Pie
Beverage:
Soda, coffee, tea
Flat Top
Grill
Think
how a buffet restaurant operates and then substitute a
long line of fresh vegetables, sauces and proteins where the
guests chose what they want and it is then cooked on a
large grill in front of the restaurant. Limited possibilities
of choices and cooked with the flavors and sauces you prefer.
Dessert:
Chocolate Storm
Coca
Cola products, tea, lemonade or coffee
That's
the list. I hope you were patient enough to read the whole
thing!I bet you are hungry now!
Students
will receive their form in 5th period. Parents and chaperones,
make your choices and get them back to me ASAP! You can e-mail
or fax to 281-242-0807.
Bon
Appetite!
Linda Baldwin
RLNZ@sbcglobal.net
281-381-7783
12/07/08
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AHSO/Midwest
Farewell Concert |
****
Trip Guidelines ****
Dear
Parents and Students,
Thanks
to all of you who were able to come to the parent meeting
after the Winter Concert. Wasn't it wonderful?! Join us once
again for the farewell concert on Thursday at
This
e-mail is to recap items discussed and to put in writing the
guidelines that were given. Please read all of the information
below and adhere to the recommendations.
WHEN
WILL WE LOAD
All
students have the option of loading your instrument on the
truck. Smaller instruments may be carried on the plane as your
one carryon item if you choose.
Non-
Region Performers - you must bring your instrument to AHS on
Saturday before noon. Please come prepared to pack
cellos and basses in travel cases and have all other
instruments secured gently but firmly in their cases. Strings,
loosen your strings one quarter turn to prevent stress.
Instruments will be loaded at noon.
Region
Performers - the truck will be at
WHEN
WILL WE LEAVE
All
travelers need to be at AHS at 3:00 AM (yes, that is correct),
Monday morning, 12/15/08. Busses will leave the parking lot at
3:30 AM. Sleep in and we leave without you.
BAGGAGE
GUIDELINES
You
will be allowed one bag at 45 pounds or less. The airline
charges for this bag and this fee is covered by your trip
payments.
You
may bring on one carryon which must weigh less than 40 pounds
and height+width+length must be less than 45 inches. This
would be a laptop or a back pack or small instrument. Then you
are allowed one purse or man-bag. THE ITINERARY
See
attached for the final itinerary in two formats. The It_Grid
which is a visual look at all activities and the bus itinerary
which shows a timeline along with addresses and phone numbers
of all destinations.
WHAT
TO WEAR
It
will be very cold. Wind chill will surprise even the hardiest
among us.
- Dress
in layers - t-shirt, then shirt, then sweater then jacket
- Wear scarves, mittens, ear and head
protection
- NO SHORTS, don't even bring 'em.
- Bring Chapstick, Carmex
DAY
By Day
Monday
-
All travelers wear their
- That evening will be the dressiest all
week. The Lyric Opera is very dressy. Slack and nice tops for
the ladies. Neckties and jackets for the gents.
Tuesday
-
AHSO issued formal wear for the performance. BLACK HOSE, BLACK
SHOES, BLACK SOCKS. Dresses for the ladies, Slacks, vest,
jacket, bowtie and tuxedo shirt for the gents.
- Warm casual clothes for the rest of the
day
Wednesday
-
Warm and casual all day. We will be outside during several
events and Blue Man Group is casual. Be FBISD appropriate.
Thursday
-
'Dressy casual' for the
- Dress up again for the Symphony - slacks
for both, neckties and sweaters or jackets for the fellas.
Friday
-
AHS Strings will wear their AHSO polo shirts and jeans.
- Winds, Ms. Winson will direct you on your
attire for the day and the ride home.
HOW
MUCH MONEY WILL THEY NEED
This
trip has all meals included. Travelers may want to bring some
souvenir money but they will receive $15 cash on Wednesday and
on Friday to help with that. The Midwest Clinic will have
wonderful music related exhibits and students may want items
there. I would recommend some spending money, but they will
not NEED it to fully enjoy the trip.
FAMILY
WANTS TO ATTEND
-
Ribbons will be issued, free of charge to allow friends and
family to attend.
- They are being held for us there. Please
contact Linda Baldwin at 281-381-7783 and she will be holding
them at the Hilton prior to our performance.
WHILE
ON THE TRIP
-
Two registered nurses will be with us and available if there
is any health issue. They will have all the documents you
prepared for the trip and will have supplies to handle all the
usual comp
- ALL FBISD, AHSO, AHSB rules apply. You
represent AHS and must be on your best behavior.
- All students will be assigned to a
chaperone and will be with them virtually all of the time.
Chaperones will check students into their rooms at night and
tape the doors after bed check. NO STUDENT IS ALLOWED OUT OF
THEIR ROOM AFTER TAPING. Chaperones will remove the tapes at
wake up.
-
No male students are allowed in females rooms (even one foot)
and no females are allowed in males rooms. Anyone risking this
rule faces immediately being sent home at parents expense
along with all the students assigned to the room where the
offense occurred.
ZERO
TOLERANCE POLICY
Trip
administration will not hesitate AT ALL to send home any
students violating rules. Offenses that require immediate send
home:
-
Any contraband in luggage or carryon. Yes, every bag will be
checked.
- Any infraction of the separate room policy
stated above. ALL persons affected, innocent or guilty, will
be sent home.
- Any FBISD rule infraction including
misdemeanor and felony behaviors.
- Any activity deemed serious enough to
warrant punishment by Ms. Vandiver, Mr. Winson or Mr. Ramsey.
Any
student sent home will be sent home at the parent's expense
and offending behavior will be addressed by AHS
administrate upon return from the holiday break.
WHAT
IS STILL NEEDED and THANKS TO THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY DONATED
-
Donated Water - we want to hand each students 1 or 2 bottles
of water a day - goal 1000 bottles.
- Donated Snack Items - individually
wrapped. We want to hand each student 2 items per day to keep
them energized and discourage purchase of junk food items.
Goal 1000 individual items.
- Breakfast for Monday while in transit to
IAH. It will be a long time until lunch! Lindsey Longshaw has
volunteered to coordinate. Contact her with ideas or
especially labor!
- 3 to 4 people on Wednesday and Thursday to
come to my office and help organize chaperone notebooks, fold
and bag trip shirts, prep labels on bag tags, etc.
Thanks!
Linda
Baldwin
281-381-7783
10/16/08
10/03/08
**** Chicago will be a Cool Trip. Literally! ****
Weatherbase.com tracks weather statistics for all major cities. Temperatures are in degrees Farenheit.
They have tracked Chicago weather for the past 37 years and here are some interesting stats for December:
27 Average December Temperature
35 Average December High Temperature (Brrrrrr!!)
20 Average December Low Temperature
71 Highest December Temperature
-25 Lowest December Temperature ( REALLY Brrrrrr!!)
8.3 Average December Inches of Snow (Yea!)
09/05/08
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Al
'Scarface' Capone leaving
court
during his 1931 trial
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Al Capone's modest Chicago home | Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik |
The Chicago Outfit, shortened to "the
Outfit" is a crime syndicate based in Chicago,
Illinois, USA. Dating back to the 1910s, it is part of the
United States phenomenon known as the Mafia; however, the
Chicago Outfit is distinct from the "Five
Families" of New York City, though all
Italian-American crime families are ruled by The
Commission. The Outfit is the only criminal organization
that has a monopoly on traditional organized crime in the
city of Chicago, whereas the Five Families compete with
each other for control of racketeering activities in New
York. The Outfit's control reportedly reaches throughout
the western United States to places as far away as Los
Angeles, California and parts of Florida. Unlike the
"Five Families," the Outfit has had other ethnic
groups besides Italian Americans in its upper echelons
since its earliest days. A prime example of this was the
Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik who was the top
"bagman" and "accountant" for decades
until his death. He was Jewish and either Polish or
Russian depending on the source. To this day, the Outfit
bears the influence of its best-known leader, Al
“Scarface” Capone. In fact for decades after
Capone had left the scene, the Outfit was known as
"the Capone Gang" or "the Capones" to
outsiders. The Outfit's membership is moderatily estimated
to be between 50-60 made members comprising a core group
with a 1000+ associates estimated.
Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik
(May 20, 1886 – February 21, 1956) was the financial and
legal advisor, and later political “greaser”, for the
Chicago Outfit. Born near Kraków, Poland on May 20, 1886,
Guzik immigrated to the United States in the early 1900s.
He later became involved in prostitution, and allegedly
white slavery, in the South Side of Chicago's Levee vice
district with his brother Harry Guzik eventually driving
rival Jack Zuta out of business. He later became a
powerful political "fixer" operating from St.
Hubert’s Old English Grill and Chop House; Guzik
received "bagmen" who delivered scheduled
payoffs to various police precincts and city officials. In
the early 1920s, Guzik, supposedly hearing a plan to
murder Al Capone, informed him and later allied with the
Chicago Outfit. Guzik continued to act as a bagman
for the Chicago Outfit until April 1930 when Guzik and Ralph
"Bottles" Capone, brother of Al Capone,
were convicted of tax evasion. In October Judge John
H. Lyle issued arrest warrants for twenty-six gangsters,
including Guzik, charging them with vagrancy. Guzik's
defense claimed he was a horse player and, as proof he was
an honest citizen, noted that he was living less than a
block away from the state attorney. Guzik was later
sentenced to five years imprisonment.
Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone
(January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), commonly
nicknamed Scarface, was an Italian American
gangster who led a crime syndicate dedicated to the
smuggling and bootlegging of liquor and other illegal
activities during the Prohibition Era of the 1920s and
1930s. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Capone began his career
in Brooklyn before moving to Chicago and becoming the boss
of the criminal organization known as the Chicago Outfit
(although his business card reportedly described him as a
used furniture dealer). By the end of the 1920s, Capone
had gained the attention of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation following his being placed on the Chicago
Crime Commission's "public enemies" list.
Although never successfully convicted of racketeering
charges, Capone's criminal career ended in 1931, when he
was indicted and convicted by the federal government for
income tax evasion.
Capone was born on January 17, 1899, in Brooklyn, New
York. Baptized "Alphonsus Capone," he grew up in
a rough neighborhood and was a member of two "kid
gangs," the Brooklyn Rippers and the Forty Thieves
Juniors. Although he was bright, Capone quit school in the
sixth grade at age fourteen. Between scams he was a clerk
in a candy store, a pinboy in a bowling alley, and a
cutter in a book bindery. He became part of the notorious
Five Points gang in Manhattan and worked in gangster
Frankie Yale's Brooklyn dive, the Harvard Inn, as a
bouncer and bartender. While working at the Inn, Capone
received his infamous facial scars and the resulting
nickname "Scarface" when he insulted a patron
and was attacked by her brother. In 1918, Capone met an
Irish girl named Mary "Mae" Coughlin at a dance.
Capone and Mae married that year on December 30. Capone's
first arrest was on a disorderly conduct charge while he
was working for Yale. He also murdered two men while in
New York. In accordance with gangland etiquette, no one
admitted to hearing or seeing a thing so Capone was never
tried for the murders. After Capone hospitalized a rival
gang member, Yale sent him to Chicago to wait until things
cooled off. Capone arrived in Chicago in 1919 and moved
his family into a house at 7244 South Prairie Avenue.
Capone went to work for Yale's old mentor, John Torrio.
Soon Capone was helping Torrio manage his bootlegging
business. By mid-1922 Capone ranked as Torrio's number two
man and eventually became a full partner in the saloons,
gambling houses, and brothels. When Torrio was shot by
rival gang members and consequently decided to leave
Chicago, Capone inherited the "outfit" and
became boss. The outfit's men liked, trusted, and obeyed
Capone, calling him "The Big Fellow." Capone
controlled speakeasies, bookie joints, gambling houses,
brothels, horse and race tracks, nightclubs, distilleries
and breweries at a reported income of $100,000,000 a year.
Attempts on Capone's life were never successful. He had an
extensive spy network in Chicago, from newspaper boys to
policemen, so that any plots were quickly discovered.
Capone, on the other hand, was skillful at isolating and
killing his enemies when they became too powerful.
Capone's most notorious killing was the St. Valentine's
Day Massacre. On February 14, 1929, four Capone men
entered a garage at 2122 N. Clark Street. The building was
the main liquor headquarters of bootlegger George
"Bugs" Moran's North Side gang. Because two of
Capone's men were dressed as police, the seven men in the
garage thought it was a police raid. As a result, they
dropped their guns and put their hands against the wall.
Six of the seven killed were members of Moran's gang; the
seventh was an unlucky friend. Moran, probably the real
target, was across the street when Capone's men arrived.
As usual, Capone had an alibi; he was in Florida during
the massacre.
Capone was equally known for his violent temper and for
his strong sense of loyalty and honor. He was the first to
open soup kitchens after the 1929 stock market crash and
he ordered merchants to give clothes and food to the needy
at his expense.
Because of gangland's traditional refusal to prosecute, Capone was never tried for most of his crimes. When Capone finally served his first prison time in May of 1929, it was simply for carrying a gun. In 1930, at the peak of his power, Capone headed Chicago's new list of the twenty-eight worst criminals and became the city's "Public Enemy Number One." The popular belief in the 1920s and 30s was that illegal gambling earnings were not taxable income. However, the 1927 Sullivan ruling claimed that illegal profits were in fact taxable. The government wanted to indict Capone for income tax evasion, Capone never filed an income tax return, owned nothing in his own name, and never made a declaration of assets or income. He did all his business through front men so that he was anonymous when it came to income. Frank Wilson from the IRS's Special Intelligence Unit was assigned to focus on Capone. Wilson accidentally found a cash receipts ledger that not only showed the operation's net profits for a gambling house, but also contained Capone's name; it was a record of Capone's income. Later Capone's own tax lawyer Lawrence P. Mattingly admitted in a letter to the government that Capone had an income. Wilson's ledger, Mattingly's letter, and the coercion of witnesses were the main evidence used to convict Capone.
Capone pleaded guilty to all three charges in the belief that he would be able
to plea bargain. However, the judge who presided over the case, Judge James H.
Wilkerson, would not make any deals. Capone changed his pleas to not guilty.
Unable to bargain, he tried to bribe the jury but Wilkerson changed the jury
panel at the last minute. The jury found Capone not guilty on eighteen of the
twenty-three counts. Judge Wilkerson sentenced him to a total of ten years in
federal prison and one year in the county jail. Even in prison Capone took
control, obtaining special privileges from the authorities such as furnishing
his cell with a mirror, typewriter, rugs, and a set of the Encyclopedia
Britannica. Because word spread that Capone had taken over in Atlanta, he was
sent to Alcatraz. There were no other outfit members in Alcatraz, and security
was so tight that he had no knowledge of the outside world. He was unable to
control anyone or anything and could not buy influence or friends. In an attempt
to earn time off for good behavior, Capone became the ideal prisoner and refused
to participate in prisoner rebellions or strikes.
After his release, Capone returned to his home in Palm Island where the rest of his life was relaxed and quiet. His mind and body continued to deteriorate so that he could no longer run the outfit. On January 21, 1947, he had an apoplectic stoke he died a few days later from cardiac arrest. Capone was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Chicago's far South Side between the graves of his father, Gabriele, and brother, Frank.
08/27/08
**** MIDWEST REHEARSAL FOR
FULL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ON FRIDAY ****
Dear Parents and Students,
School is back in session and our first full orchestra rehearsal for Midwest is scheduled this Friday.
WHO: Winds and Strings Traveling to Chicago
WHAT: Rehearsal of Midwest Pieces
WHERE: J-Hall
WHEN: Friday, August 29, 2008, 3:00PM - 5:00PM
This would be a PERFECT time to make that August payment since it is due before Monday!
Thanks!
08/26/08
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**** Hector Berlioz and Symphonie Fantastique ****
The Symphonie Fantastique was
initially composed in 1830 and first performed in December
of the same year under the direction of Habeneck. Berlioz
however revised the work extensively during his trip to
Italy in 1831-1832 and in subsequent years and did not
publish it until 1845. The work, as we now know it, is thus
substantially different from the original of 1830, which can
no longer be reconstructed in full detail.
The Symphonie Fantastique has always been the work with which Berlioz’s name is most closely associated. The composition of this revolutionary masterpiece marked a breakthrough in the composer’s career, at once the culmination of his years of apprenticeship, and the starting point of his mature work as a symphonic composer. The impact that Beethoven had on Berlioz is evident in the work, but no less evident is Berlioz’s originality in opening up new paths that Beethoven had not explored, and the sound world of Berlioz is entirely his own.
The programme on which the symphony was initially based went through a number of changes between 1830 and 1855. Under the influence of opium (in the 1855 version), a young and sensitive artist (Berlioz himself), experiences a series of visions – the different movements of the symphony – in which his beloved figures as a theme, the idée fixe, which recurs in every movement, though each time in a different form. The theme had already been used by Berlioz in his cantata Herminie written for the Prix de Rome of 1828, though it is much more fully developed in the symphony than in the cantata.
The idée fixe pervades the volatile and tempestuous first movement. The opening melody of the slow introduction alludes to it, and prepares the listener for the first full statement of the theme at the start of the allegro. The allegro is in sonata form, but hardly has a second subject. After a series of long and stormy developments the end of the movement alludes retrospectively to the introduction.
The second movement, an elegant waltz rather like a rondo in form, makes a complete contrast with the first. The movement is notable for its scoring, at once delicate and brilliant, and the use of two harps gives the music a festive glitter that is characteristic of Berlioz – compare the harps in Part II of Romeo and Juliet, the last movement of the Te Deum, the Trojan March, and Berlioz’s orchestration of Weber’s Invitation to the Dance. The idée fixe is heard twice, in bars 120-162 in its complete form, then more briefly in bars 302-319 before being swept away by the whirlwind which brings the waltz to a brilliant close. The autograph score of the symphony contains a part for solo cornet added by Berlioz at a later date, but not reproduced by him in the full score of the work published in his lifetime. Performances and recordings of the symphony sometimes include this part for cornet. The movement is presented here in two versions, the first without and the second with the cornet part.
The long third movement is the musical heart of the symphony, as well as the pivotal point in the drama: from the world of imagined reality in the first three movements the music moves to the world of imagined nightmare in the last two. The main subject, briefly hinted at in the first movement, is now known to have been used previously in the Gratias of his early Messe Solennelle though with a change of key from E major to F major. The shepherd’s piping heard in the introduction, then again at the close of the movement, recalls through its similarity of key, instrumental colour and mood. Beyond this the movement is also an obvious homage to Beethoven whose discovery in 1828 put Berlioz firmly on the path of symphonic music. The movement recalls the Pastoral Symphony, written in the same luminous key of F major, and there are intentional echoes, notably the discreet allusions to the bird song of the end of the second movement of the Pastoral Symphony. The mood of isolation which pervades the movement is, however, very different from Beethoven’s celebration of nature in dance and song. The idée fixe, briefly alluded to early in the movement, reappears in the stormy middle episode in the wind and in a modified form in the basses, then again more quietly in the concluding pages.
The fourth movement originated as a march of the guards in Berlioz’s early opera Les Francs Juges, composed mainly in 1826 and revised in 1829. In adapting the piece for the Symphonie Fantastique Berlioz added a strikingly unexpected reference to the beginning of the idée fixe at the climax of the march: the artist, led to execution for murdering his beloved, remembers her on the scaffold, but the melody is abruptly cut off by the fall of the guillotine and the concluding uproar.
The fifth movement is the most obviously provocative of the whole symphony and goes well beyond anything that had been attempted in this kind of music before. The movement is also the freest in form of the symphony’s five movements, though is actually very carefully constructed. After a brief introduction which sets the atmosphere, the idée fixe makes its last appearance, only to be subjected to musical vilification and quickly dismissed. The real business of the night can then begin: first the Dies irae, then the Witches’ Sabbath, with in the end the inevitable coming together of the two as the music hurtles to its headlong conclusion.
Hector Berlioz,
the passionate, ardent, irrepressible genius of French
Romanticism, left a rich and original oeuvre which exerted a
profound influence on nineteenth century music. Berlioz
developed a profound affinity toward music and literature as
a child. Sent to Paris at 17 to study medicine, he was
enchanted by Gluck's
operas, firmly deciding to become a composer. Berlioz
entered the Paris Conservatoire in 1826. His originality was
already apparent and disconcerting -- a competition cantata,
Cléopâtre (1829), looms as his first sustained masterpiece
-- and he won the Prix de Rome in 1830 amid the turmoil of
the July Revolution. Meanwhile, a performance of Hamlet in
September 1827, with Harriet Smithson as Ophelia, ended with
Berlioz in love with Ms. Smithson and inspired his most
famous work, Symphonie Fantastique (1830).
Returning from Rome, Berlioz organized a concert in
1832, featuring his symphony. Harriet Smithson was in the
audience. They were introduced days later and married on
October 3, 1833. Berlioz settled into a career pattern which
he maintained for more than a decade, writing reviews,
organizing concerts, and composing a series of visionary
masterpieces. Harold en Italie, the monumental Requiem, and
an opera, Benvenuto Cellini. The dying Paganini
made Berlioz a gift of 20,000 francs to write a piece for
viola and orchestra titled Harold
en Italie.
This commission enabled him to devote nearly a year to the
composition of his "dramatic symphony," Roméo et
Juliette. To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the July
Revolution, came the Symphonie funèbre et triomphale.
The 1840’s were a difficult time for Berlioz, as
his marriage failed to bring him the happiness he desired.
He divorced in 1842 and Harriett later died in abject
poverty. Concert tours to Brussels, many German cities,
Vienna, Pesth, Prague, and London occupied him through most
of the decade. Composing La Damnation de Faust, en route to
Paris, it was premiered on December 6, 1846. The massive Te
Deum -- a "little brother" to the Requiem -- was
largely composed over 1849, though it would not be heard
until 1855. L'Enfance du Christ, scored an immediate and
enduring success from its first performance on December 10,
1854. Elected to the Institut de France in 1855, he started
receiving a members' stipend, and this provided him with a
modicum of financial security. Consequently, Berlioz was
able to devote himself to the summa of his career,
his vast opera, Les Troyens which was completed in 1858. As
he negotiated for its performance, he composed a comique
adaptation of Shakespeare's
Much Ado About Nothing, which met with a rapturous Baden
première, on August 9, 1862.
Though frail and ailing, Berlioz conducted his works
in Vienna and Cologne in 1866, traveling to St. Petersburg
and Moscow in the winter of 1867-1868. Despondent and
tortured by self-doubt, the composer received a triumphant
welcome in Russia. Back in Paris in March 1868, he was but a
walking shadow as paralysis slowly overcame him.
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Chicago Symphony Orchestra |
**** Chicago
Symphony Tickets are Booked! ****
Dear
Parents and Students,
We now
have our Chicago Symphony tickets reserved and it will be
an amazing exhibition of sight and sound. What a treat! A
magnificent final evening of our trip to this fabulous
city. See below for the
Orchestra's history - check out that list of guest conductors.
WOW! Next e-mail will discuss the program for the evening.
Items
of business for this week.......
July
ends on Thursday and July payments need to be in by that time. I
received 14 payments at the string clinic today and THANKS SO
MUCH to those who brought them! Mr. Winson will be at AHS on
Wednesday if you want to drop your payment by. Other wise,
please mail it to:
Linda
Baldwin
12823
Park One Drive
Sugar
Land, TX 77478
281-381-7783
Please
watch for e-mails about Midwest rehearsals. Ms. Vandiver and
Mr. Winson will set the dates and then you will receive an
e-mail. Most of the music for the program has now been
received and you can get copies to practice. The music is
challenging so take advantage of every opportunity to learn
your part. This is the big leagues!
Several
students have signed up to help with trip material creation, I
need 3 or 4 more! I
need creative students to volunteer to help create the printed
materials for the trip. Are you good at those special projects
- especially in English or Social Studies? Are you
artistically creative? Do you have a knack for graphic arts?
Call
or e-mail and join the student team. We need to come up with a
theme, T-shirt design, info materials for every traveler.....
and more. 281-381-7783 or RLNZ@sbcglobal.net
THANKS
so much to all who are on time with forms and payments!
Thanks to the family members who have turned in their
reservations.
If
you have not already done so, please print, fill out and
return the Contact Form and/or Trip Agreement with your
next payment. All forms are posted to the AHSOrch.org
web page at the Midwest 2008 link to the bottom left.
Deposits,
Trip Agreements, Contact Forms and June payments are
past due.
Thanks!
Linda
Baldwin
I
leave you with.......................
By the end of the 19thcentury, Chicago's reputation
was well established as one of America's fastest growing
centers of commerce and industry. Even though Chicago's
structural and commercial growth was nothing short of
phenomenal, a number of its leading citizens were concerned
that the cultural development of their rawboned metropolis was
not keeping pace with other American cities. Accordingly,
Charles Norman Fay, a prominent Chicago businessman, traveled
to New York to talk to TheodoreThomas, the highly respected
German conductor whose musical mission after coming to America
was to develop a tradition of symphonic music in this country.
Fay finished his meeting with Thomas with the question.
“Would you come to Chicago if you were given an
orchestra?” The maestro's reply is now legendary: “ I
would go to hell if they gave me an orchestra.” One year
later he had his own ensemble, having been appointed music
director of the city's new Chicago Orchestra (later to be
renamed Chicago Symphony Orchestra)
The
orchestra played its first concert on October 16, 1891 at the
Auditorium Theatre. It is one of the oldest orchestras in the
United States, along with the New York Philharmonic, the
Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Saint Louis Symphony
Orchestra.
Orchestra
Hall, now a component of the Symphony Center complex, was
designed by Chicago architect Daniel H. Burnham and completed
in 1904. Maestro Thomas served as music director for thirteen
years until his death shortly after the orchestra's newly
built residence was dedicated on December 14, 1904. The
orchestra was renamed"Theodore Thomas Orchestra"in
1905 and today, Orchestra Hall still has"Theodore Thomas
Orchestra Hall"inscribed in its façade. The orchestra
was renamed"Chicago Symphony Orchestra"in 1913.
Other music directors have included Désiré Defauw, Artur
Rodzinski, Rafael Kubelík, Fritz Reiner, Jean Martinon,
SirGeorg Solti and Daniel Barenboim. The orchestra has also
had many distinguished guest conductors, including Richard
Strauss, John Williams, Arnold Schoenberg, Sergei Prokofiev,
Sergei Rachmaninov, Maurice Ravel, Edward Elgar, Aaron
Copland, Leonard Slatkin, André Previn, Michael Tilson
Thomas, Leonard Bernstein, Leopold Stokowski, Morton Gould,
Erich Leinsdorf, Walter Hendl, Eugene Ormandy, George Szell
and Charles Münch. Many of these guests have also recorded
with the orchestra.
Today
the Chicago Symphony Orchestra is a musical force in Chicago
and around the world. More than 150 performances and events a
year. 107 talented musicians. Two internationally renowned
conductors -Bernard
Haitink, principal conductor and Pierre Boulez- conductor
emeritus.
Two award-winning composers in-residence.On
May 5, 2008, Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association President
Deborah Card announced that the orchestra had named Riccardo
Muti as its 10th music director, starting with the 2010-2011
season.
07/19/08
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The Stevens |
Chicago Hilton - Downtown |
International Ballroom |
“Conceived as the greatest hotel of all times and built at a cost of over 30 million dollars, The Stevens is a magnificent realization of an ideal – an inspiration and a challenge to the caravansaries of the world. It is the Chicago home of many of the world’s leaders of industry, finance, politics, and society. Extending the entire block from Seventh to Eighth Streets on Michigan Avenue, facing Lake Michigan and Grant Park, The Stevens occupies the most perfect hotel site in America.”
Those proud words were written in 1927 to commemorate the opening of a Grand American hotel founded on a grand ideal: a commitment to be the greatest hotel of all times. More than half a century later, the grand tradition continues. With its recent 150 million dollar renovation, the Chicago Hilton and Towers ensures that the legacy will continue into the next century, as the Hilton remains “an inspiration and a challenge to the great inns of the world.” This hotel, now the Chicago Hilton and Towers, was destined to be different. From the very start, its founding father, James W. Stevens, envisioned a rather ambitious undertaking. His plan was simply this: to create the world’s largest hotel – to build a hotel which would be large enough and capable of providing the world’s most extensive convention facilities for half a century or more. In May of 1927, Mr. Stevens’ dream became a reality. The Stevens opened its impressive doors… It measured 28 stories, boasted 3,000 luxurious rooms, 5 sub-basements, an 18 hole roof-top golf course, three-story laundry, its own hospital and a 1,200 seat theater with “talking motion picture” equipment. Two “Towers” floors were dedicated to some of the most magnificent guest rooms ever created with luxuries and amenities that were to set industry standards for years to come. One of the most ambitious construction undertakings of its time took place with the building of the Stevens Hotel. Included in the architect’s plans was a Grand Ballroom completely free of any structural obstacles. To accomplish this, architects had to design and construct 4 immense steel trusses to compensate for the absence of 55 structural pillars, normally present in an area this size. To add to the challenge, the four trusses had to be designed with enough strength to support 22 stories of building. The end result was a testimony to ingenuity and architectural beauty.
Long the scene of historic events, in 1942 the hotel went to war! Many of the elegant rooms underwent drastic changes. The Grand Ballroom, stripped of its finery, became a mess hall. Other rooms were turned into offices for Army personnel, as the entire hotel shortly became an Army barracks. One year to the minute after the bellman’s uniforms had been replaced by Khaki, for reasons not fully apparent, the Army dispersed the air force technical training facilities it had set up and returned the hotel to civilian life. Speculation of the future of The Stevens became rampant. Stephen Healy, contractor and President of the Avenue Hotel Corporation, finally bought The Stevens and reopened its doors to guests on November 1, 1943. On February 15, 1945, for 7 ½ million dollars, Conrad N. Hilton purchased The Stevens and in 1951 renamed it The Conrad Hilton Hotel.
In many instances, statistics concerning recent construction make the following statistics seem tame, yet it is still fascinating to consider the sizable capabilities of the original Conrad Hilton. For example, in 1945, if one were to have slept in every room of the hotel, one night at a time, it still would have taken over 7 years to cover the entire hotel… Including hotel dining rooms and banquet halls, a daily total of 300,000 dishes were washed at a rate of 34,000 dishes per hour… The Grand Ballroom was so immense it could accommodate ten 2-story houses in two rows of 5 each… The laundry handled over 328,000 pieces of linen a day… And the Conrad Hilton even made the Guinness Book of World Records. It earned its place in recorded history for serving the largest number of people at one meal. That was 7,200 dinners, which required all of the hotel’s ballrooms and meeting space, as well as 480 waiters. The size of the tip remains undisclosed.
The first intensive rehabilitation program occurred in 1956 with the addition of two “Imperial Suites” on the 26th floor. Designed for very special guests, the suites included floor to ceiling picture windows, a grand piano, satin sheets, a wood burning fireplace and a personal maid. Truly, it was hospitality fit for Kings… as well as Queen Elizabeth, and Presidents Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Nixon. In 1960, a decision was made to reduce the number of rooms in the hotel from 3000 to 2400. This was done so that smaller rooms could be eliminated in favor of larger, more elaborate sleeping facilities. The Hotel has just completed a $150 million renovation.
In all areas, the unmistakable elegance and distinctive flair that was originally here remains for all to see and experience. So does the coveted tradition of unexcelled service – the Hilton caring that has always served our guests well, whether they are emperors or queens, the President of the United States, or a delegate to the smallest convention. That tradition continues. As does the remarkable foresight that compelled James W. Stevens to construct a hotel capable of sustaining excellence for half a century. That same foresight echoes in the magnificent halls of the Chicago Hilton and Towers with innovations, standards, and facilities that will still be setting the pace decades from now.
07/10/08
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Summertime
and the livin’ is easy,
Fish
are jumpin’ and the cotton is high.
Oh,
your daddy’s rich and your ma is good lookin’
so hush, little baby, don’ you cry.
Those are the very first words of Porgy and Bess, the opera by George Gershwin, DuBose and Dorothy Heyward, and Ira Gershwin. Is there an American anywhere who does not have them committed to memory? While most of us have never seen the folk opera, as Gershwin liked to describe it, we've been living with its songs all our lives.
If America's entire 20th-century experience were compressed into a feature-length movie, a good part of the soundtrack would be by George Gershwin. The son of Russian-Jewish immigrants, Gershwin was born in 1898 in New York and over his short life of 38 years produced a body of work that is broad in scope, universally appealing, and uniquely American. Whether it’s his oft-heard Rhapsody in Blue or the multitude of his songs that have become jazz classics, Gershwin’s music is America. It has been performed and recorded by thousands of musicians of every generation. A Gershwin song is completely malleable – it works in a host of settings. “Jazz artists have loved Gershwin’s tunes right from the start,” says jazz piano legend Ramsey Lewis. “They are wonderful springboards for improvisation and in each one Gershwin constructs his own, very personal universe of musical logic.
Gershwin songs are true masterpieces, and Porgy and Bess is loaded with them – and not just the popular ones like ‘Summertime,’ ‘Bess, You Is My Woman Now,’ and ‘It Ain’t Necessarily So.’ Some of the songs in that opera may be lesser-known but they're still musical treasures – songs like ‘The Buzzard Song,’ ‘Dere’s a Boat Dat’s Leavin’ Soon,’ and ‘O Lawd, I’m On My Way.’” Porgy and Bess bristles with jazz-age rhythms and harmonies, but there's more. The opera goes right to the core of this country's race and class issues. Porgy and Bess has crime and grinding poverty, but the opera’s place at the pinnacle of American stage works is not due to its cultural and sociological lessons. It’s because the characters are immediately appealing, and they bring with them a string of unforgettable melodies that are wrapped in masterful orchestrations. Porgy and Bess is Gershwin at his zenith – as a songwriter, composer, and as A musical storyteller.
Porgy and Bess is the one American opera to become fully established in the international opera repertory as well as in the popular musical imagination. Its tunes have become standards for jazz improvisation, and the lullaby "Summertime" has by now achieved the status of a folk song. Gershwin sketched the opera in 1934 and prepared the orchestra score from September 1934 to September 1935. The production was originally created for Washington National Opera.
Chicago Lyric Opera
The
Washington Post lauded this sumptuous production of Porgy
and Bess as "Heaven the Whole Night
Long." The Washington Times pronounced it
"dazzling." And you'll call it wonderful as the
glorious music and a top-notch cast sweep you away to
Catfish Row.
There's Crown, a murderous local thug who
keeps the alluring Bess by his side through intimidation and
his own prowess; Bess, who falls for the
good-hearted Porgy—but in the end can't resist her own
weaknesses; and Porgy, the lame man who's
the strongest of them all—an indomitable spirit determined
to do whatever it takes to reclaim the woman he loves.
Lyric
Opera of Chicago is recognized internationally as one of the
great opera companies of our time. Its artistic standards
are universally admired. The company's financial solvency
and massive subscription audience are envied throughout the
field. Its administrative and artistic leadership is
long-standing and rock solid. William Mason is general
director.
The
company, originally known as The Lyric Theatre of Chicago,
was founded in 1954 by Carol Fox, Lawrence V. Kelly (both 28
at the time), and conductor Nicola Rescigno, to fill
Chicago's operatic void of nearly a decade. The company was
renamed Lyric Opera of Chicago prior to the beginning of the
1956 season. Carol Fox served as general manager (1954-80)
of the world-class company. Ardis Krainik served as Lyric's
general director from January 1981 until her death in
January 1997. She is widely recognized for saving the
company from financial peril while enhancing its world-class
status. Following an extensive international search, William
Mason was chosen to succeed Ardis Krainik as general
director of Lyric Opera in early 1997. Sir Andrew Davis has
served as Lyric Opera's music director and principal
conductor since 2000, and as artistic advisor of the
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra since 2005. Over the course of
the company's 53-year history, Lyric Opera of Chicago has
consistently offered its patrons a world-class roster of
singers, conductors, directors, designers, choreographers,
and dancers in a wide-ranging repertoire.
07/04/08
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Excerpted
from Chicago Magazine
“We
knew the winner before the votes were counted. At
Giordano's restaurant it was unanimous love at first
taste. It's pizza was so delicious that we applauded the
chef, Efren Boglio. He told us this story:
"My
brother Joseph and I both own and cook for Giordano's. We
were born in a small northern Italian town near Torino,
where our mother was know for her exquisite dishes. Of all
her repertoire, though, my family was most fond of her
deep-dish, double-crusted pizza, which she made on Easter
and stuffed with ricotta cheese.
I
loved her pizza so much that when I came to America in
1967 I took a job at a pizza restaurant, pleased to be
near my favorite food. But the pizza there was only
fair-not nearly as good as Mother's. And, as time passed,
I tasted pizzas at other restaurants, I was surprised to
find that the very best around didn't approach the worst
of those I'd eaten back home in the old country.
So
I opened my own pizza restaurant. It was called Roma and
was doing all right. But then my brother Joseph came to
Chicago, and we decided to close Roma and open a
restaurant specializing in Mother's pizza-one
which would be called by her name, Giordano. We worked for
months, trying to develop a superlative Chicago variation
of Mother's pizza; then, in February 1974, we opened
Giordano's.
Don't
get the idea that we're satisfied, though. We're not. We
alter our pizzas as time passes, as the necessity arises.
Our first pizzas, for example, had just the right amount
of garlic for us, but too much for most of our customers;
so we cut down some of it. But besides surveying our
customers constantly, Joseph and I go once a week, to
different pizza restaurants, in order to taste the
competition.
The thing about pizza is that like everything good, it has to have an evolution. To stay the same means to go backward. It wasn't my mother or my brother and myself who invented the pizza we serve here. The recipe probably began with our great, great, great, great, great-grandmother. You ask how long it took to develop the recipe. I'd have to say 200 to 300 years. And it's still developing."
Completed May 3, 1973, rises to a height of 1,450 feet and is one of the most recognizable landmarks in the Chicago skyline and in the world. Sears Tower held the record for the world’s tallest building for 25 years until the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lampur, Malaysia were built in 1998. Then in the Fall of 2004 Taipei 101 took all but one title -- tallest to the tips of the antennas, which Sears Tower still owns. Including the Sears Tower antennas, the total height of Sears Tower increases to 1,725 feet. Designed by the architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill for Sears, Roebuck & Company, the world’s largest retailer at the time, the 3.8 million RSF building is the preeminent office address in Chicago and one of the premier properties in the world.
 | The
Sears Tower is 1450 feet high - 1730 feet including
twin antenna towers
| The
Skydeck is 1,353 feet (412 meters) above the ground.
| The
lowest level of Sears Tower is 43 feet (13 meters)
below the Franklin St. elevation. | The
combined weight of the building is 222,500 tons -
that's 445,000,000 lbs. or 201,849,000 kg. | The
cost of building the Sears Tower was in excess of
$150 million. | The
Sears Tower, opened in 1973, took 3 years to build. | The
building has 4.5 million gross square feet (418,064
gross square meters) of floor space. | On
a clear day, you can see four states - Illinois,
Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan. Visibility from the
Skydeck is approximately 40-50 miles (65 - 80
kilometers). | The
average sway of the building is approximately 6
inches (152 millimeters) from true center. | The
Sears Tower has approximately 16,100 bronze-tinted
windows. | 6
roof-mounted robotic window washing machines clean
all 16,100 windows. | Sears
Tower elevators operate as fast as 1,600 feet (488
meters) per minute - among the fastest in the world.
| The
Sears Tower contains 25,000 miles (40,223
kilometers) of electrical cable. | Approximately
43,000 miles (69,200 kilometers) of telephone cable
runs through the building. | The
Sears Tower was designed for more than 12,000
occupants.
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Approximately
25,000 people enter the building each day.
07/01/08
**** Preliminary Itinerary and The
Blues! ****
Blue Man Group is a creative organization founded by
Phil Stanton, Chris Wink, and Matt Goldman; it is centered on
a trio of mute performers, called Blue Men, who present
themselves in blue grease paint and wear latex bald caps and
black clothing. The Blue Man can be considered a type of homologue,
a creature approximating a real male human being. The
strongest and most obvious Blue Man characteristic is his
static appearance, namely, the earless, bright blue head and
face and nondescript, utilitarian clothing. In action, the
Blue Man does not speak and his face is usually
expressionless, although suggestions of curiosity, surprise,
wonder, chagrin, etc. are sometimes visible (though only in
the eyes and eyebrows). The Blue Man does not communicate
through speech or broad body language or gestures; rather, he
communicates through intense eye contact and simple gestures.
He acts impulsively and primarily as a group of three,
"checking in" with the other two when making
decisions and before moving to their next action. The Blue
Man's outwardly apparent motivations are often presented in
mild caricature in order to make a humorous and/or ironic
point to the audience. Additionally, the Blue Man is
inscrutably motivated to drum. They even have their own hand
gesture, called the "Blue Man Salute", made by
raising both arms in the air when they do so. These
characteristics provide a character free of stereotypes or
race and allow all members of the audience to identify with
them equally. Early in the history of the group, the members
would speak with audiences after the show while still in
makeup, answering questions, signing autographs, and talking
about the show. Eventually, however, it was decided that cast
members would stay in character at all times while in makeup,
meaning after shows they would still not speak to audience
members, and the only "autograph" they would sign
would be a smudge of blue paint. (When shown a "new"
piece of technology, such as a cell phone or even an old pair
of binoculars, they will simply stare at it in wonder.)
Blue Man Group's theatrical acts incorporate rock music (with
an emphasis on percussion), odd props, audience participation,
sophisticated lighting, and large amounts of paper. It is also
noted for having a "poncho section" of the audience;
in the front rows, audience members are provided with plastic
ponchos in order to protect them from various food,
substances, paints, and so on, which are thrown, ejected, or
sprayed from the stage. The shows are family-oriented,
humorous, energetic and often employ thought-provoking satire
on modern life.
There are a number of different themes found in various Blue
Man performances. These themes include:
| Science
and technology, especially the topics of plumbing,
fractals, human sight, DNA, and the Internet. | Information
overload and information pollution, such as when the
audience is asked to choose one of three simultaneous
streams of information to read. | Innocence,
as when the Blue Men appear to be surprised and
perplexed by common artifacts of modern society or by
audience reactions. | Self-conscious
and naïve imitation of cultural norms, such as
attempting to stage an elegant dinner for an audience
member with Twinkies; or following the Rock Concert
Instruction Manual (see below) with the expectation that
following a series of instructions is all it takes to
put on a rock concert. | The
Outsider. Blue Men always appear as a group of three.
This is because not only are Blue Men viewed as
outsiders to the rest of the world, but three is the
smallest group possible where one member could be viewed
as an outsider by the other two. Many of the Blue Man
skits involve one of the three Blue Men performing in a
manner inconsistent with the other two. | Rooftops,
or otherwise climbing to the top. There are a number of
references, both in visual pieces and in lyrics from the
COMPLEX tour, that have a common theme of getting to the
roof. This theme is a metaphor for the advice CMP were
given by Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers's PBS program The
Power of Myth and represents "Following your
bliss." | |
Friends Chris Wink, Matt Goldman and Phil Stanton (collectively referred to as CMP) formed Blue Man Group in 1988. CMP worked as caterers for Glorious Foods in Manhattan, New York. CMP were the Blue Men as others (Caryl Glaab) worked on sound, light, stage, etc. They began appearing on the streets in Blue Man regalia, performing for passersby and staging unusual events such as The Funeral for the 80s, in 1987, and doing short bits as part of the underground cabarets. Shortly after it opened, The New York Times critic Stephen Holden reviewed the La Mama show, calling it a "deliriously antic blend of music, painting and clowning". Meryl Vladimer, the Artistic Director of The CLUB, saw their work and commissioned Blue Man Group to create a full-length show. The resulting piece, TUBES, took off after Vladimer persuaded Holden to review it. Blue Man Group's popularity continued to snowball, eventually winning CMP an Obie Award and a Lucille Lortel Award, which led producers to take the show to off-Broadway. TUBES opened in 1991 at the Astor Place Theater. Blue Man Group won a special citation in the 1990-1991 Village Voice Obie Awards and a special award in the 1992 Lucille Lortel Awards, which are for excellence in off-Broadway theatre.
In 1999, the group released their first audio recording,
appropriately called Audio. Although it contained some
of the music from their stage productions, it was less of a
soundtrack and more a collection of full-length instrumentals
that featured new instruments. In 2002, the group participated
in Moby's Area2 tour, giving a more rock-oriented performance
than in the theatrical shows. Songs developed during this tour
appeared on 2003's album The Complex. In 2004, the
group released a scoring DVD on their 2004 work called Scoring
Reel. It is no longer available. Unlike Audio, The
Complex featured a variety of vocalists and guests
including Tracy Bonham, Dave Matthews, Gavin Rossdale and
Venus Hum. The record spawned its own 2003 tour, the first
headlined by Blue Man Group. The tour cleverly deconstructed
the traditional rock concert experience into its often clichéd
parts and was chronicled in a 2004 DVD release. Blue Man Group
launched its second tour, The "How to Be a Megastar Tour
2.0", on September 26, 2006. Also in 2006, the group did
a PBS documentary called Inside the Tube. The tour
added some new material to material from the original Complex
Rock Tour. This third leg of the tour began in May 2007 and
included international performances. The group released a DVD
and CD together on April 1, 2008, How To Be A Megastar Live,
recorded in Dallas, Texas.
Blue Man Group is in the midst of an International Blue Man Theatrical Tour which started in Stuttgart, and will continue on to Basel, Switzerland, Spain, France, and Austria for approximately four to six month runs. Unlike The Complex Rock Tour and the How to Be a Megastar tours, the International Blue Man Theatrical Tour will actually showcase the theatrical show currently performed in New York City, Boston, and Chicago.
06/20/08
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Views from the Midwest Clinic
What is the Midwest Clinic?
The Midwest Clinic, held each year in Chicago, is the nation's largest band
and orchestra meeting. It is attended annually by more than 15,000 music
educators, students, and professionals from all fifty states and more than
thirty nations. The Midwest Clinic began on December 7, 1946, when
approximately 120 directors from the Chicago area assembled in a YWCA
gymnasium on Chicago’s West Side for a six-hour clinic and new music reading
session. In 1947, the event was expanded to two days and moved to the Hotel
Sherman to take advantage of the larger facilities and accommodations for
out-of-town directors. Besides the two-day format, this second installment
brought many new features, including a printed program, an additional band,
and a new name: The Mid-West Band Clinic. The VanderCook School of Music, Neil
A. Kjos Music Company and Lyons Band Instrument Company sponsored the event.
For the next 25 years, the Hotel Sherman was home to the Midwest Clinic. In
the 1950s, orchestras and jazz ensembles were introduced, and in 1962, the
Midwest Clinic held its first official Orchestra Day. In 1963, the clinic
expanded to its present format of four and a half days. Since 1973, the
Midwest Clinic has been held at the Hilton Chicago, and in 1995, the
Blackstone Hotel was used in addition to the Hilton for hosting clinic events.
With the addition of this facility, the Midwest Clinic was able to present
more clinics than ever in its history. In 1999, the Congress Plaza replaced
the Blackstone Hotel as the second site of conference events.
In the earliest years of the "Mid-West Band
Clinic," the organizers – H.E. Nutt, Howard Lyons and Neil Kjos, Sr.
– invited outstanding bands to perform, based upon the reputations of the
organization and its director. In addition to giving a formal concert, the
bands were also expected to provide a sight-reading session, with the
selections being requested by audience members on the spur of the moment.
Today, the Midwest Clinic continues to feature performances by outstanding
organizations. Performances are given by thirty
organizations from around the world. Grade school, middle school, high school,
college, military, adult, and professional groups all present concerts.
The Midwest Clinic exists for educational purposes exclusively; to raise the
standards of music education; to develop new teaching techniques; to
disseminate to school music teachers, directors and supervisors and others
interested in music education, information to assist in their professional
work; to examine, analyze and appraise literature dealing with music; to hold
clinics, lectures and demonstrations for the betterment of music education;
and in general to assist teachers and others interested in music education in
better pursuing their profession.
The Midwest Clinic is held every December at the Hilton Chicago and Towers,
Palmer House Hilton, Congress Plaza Hotel, and the Merle Reskin Theatre.
Who attends?
School
Band and Orchestra Teachers
Instrumental
Music Administrators
Professional Musicians
Military Musicians and Conductors
College and University Teachers, Students and Administrators
Music
Industry Representatives
Music
Booster Representatives
Composers
and Arrangers
Grade
School and High School Music Students
Here are the numbers:
13,000 Annual Attendance
350 Exhibitors - 560 Booths
40 Concerts - 100 Clinics
All
50 states represented in attendance
Representatives
from more than thirty countries
Over the years, the focus of the Midwest Clinic has remained on bringing music
directors into contact with not only the best published music, but also with
new and established teaching techniques, and the latest products and services
for the music educator. The Midwest Clinic provides outstanding professional
development opportunities for instrumental music educators of all levels.
These opportunities are both practical and motivational, offering tools and
insights that you can apply to your own situation and the inspiration to
implement them. The clinics present diverse teaching techniques and guidance,
the concerts feature model ensembles of all levels and introduce you to
repertoire that you can program with your own ensemble, and the exhibits
feature virtually every service and industry that caters to music educators.
Surrounding the conference is a genuine sense of community that makes it easy
for you to make valuable connections among other teachers, composers, and
music industry members.
06/16/08
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Chicago Skyline |
Chicago Street |
The Great Chicago Fire |
Chicago and the River |
CHICAGO
is
the largest city in the state of Illinois, the largest in the Midwest, and,
with a population of nearly 3 million people located almost entirely in Cook
County, is the third-most populous city in the United States. The Chicago
metropolitan area has a population of over 9.7 million people in Illinois,
Wisconsin and Indiana, making it also the third largest metropolitan area in
the U.S. Adjacent to Lake Michigan, it is the largest city located on the
Great Lakes and among the world's twenty-five largest urban areas by
population.
Incorporated
as a city in 1837, it soon became a major transportation hub in North America
and quickly became the business and financial capital of the American Midwest.
It also boasts some of the world's tallest buildings (Sears Tower, Aon Center,
and Hancock Center), and some of the tallest skyscrapers under construction
(Chicago Spire and Trump International Hotel and Tower).
Today, Chicago boasts a rich diversity of cultural offerings: teams from
each of the major league sports, a financial district anchored by the Chicago
Mercantile Exchange, the shopping of the Magnificent Mile, and a blossoming
Theatre district. Chicago is served by two major international airports and the
Chicago 'L' system of rapid transit. Chicago was once the capital of the
railroad industry and the nation's meatpacking was hubbed at the Union Stock
Yards. Chicago has seen the gangland era Al Capone and has a history of
Chicago-style politics. Senator Barak Obama, Democratic candidate for President
is from Chicago.
The first permanent settler in
Chicago, Haitian Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, arrived in the 1770s, married a
Potawatomi woman, and founded the area’s first trading post. In 1803 the
United States Army built Fort Dearborn, which was destroyed in the 1812 Fort
Dearborn massacre. The Ottawa, Ojibwa, and Potawatomi later ceded the land to
the United States in the 1816 Treaty of St. Louis. On August 12, 1833, the Town
of Chicago was organized with a population of 350. Within seven years it grew to
a population of over 4,000. The City of Chicago was incorporated on March 4,
1837.
Chicago’s first railway, Galena and
Chicago Union Railroad, opened in 1848, a year which also marked the opening of
the Illinois and Michigan Canal. The canal allowed steamboats and sailing ships
on the Great Lakes to connect to the Mississippi River. A flourishing economy
brought many new residents from rural communities as well as immigrants from
abroad. The city’s manufacturing and retail sectors became dominant among
Midwestern cities and subsequently influenced the American economy, particularly
in meatpacking and the regional centrality of the city's Union Stock Yards.
Within the span of forty years, the city's population grew from slightly
under 30,000 to over 1 million by 1890. By the close of the 19th century,
Chicago was the fifth largest city in the world. Within fifty years of the
Chicago Fire, the population had tripled to over 3 million. After the Great
Chicago Fire of 1871 destroyed a third of the city, including the entire central
business district, Chicago experienced rapid rebuilding and growth. During
Chicago's rebuilding period, the world's first skyscraper was constructed in
1885 using steel-skeleton construction.
The 1920s brought notoriety to
Chicago as gangsters, including the notorious Al Capone, battled each other and
law enforcement on the city streets during the Prohibition era. The 1920s also
saw a major expansion in industry. It was during this wave that Chicago became a
center for jazz.
Mayor Richard J. Daley was elected in
1955, in the era of machine politics. The city hosted the tumultuous 1968
Democratic National Convention, which featured physical confrontations both
inside and outside the convention hall, including full-scale police riots in
city streets. Major construction projects, including the Sears Tower (which in
1974 became the world’s tallest building), McCormick Place, and O'Hare
Airport, were undertaken during Richard J. Daley's tenure. In 1979, Jane Byrne,
the city’s first female mayor, was elected. She popularized the city as a
movie location and tourist destination. In 1983 Harold Washington became the
first African American to be elected to the office of mayor, in one of the
closest mayoral elections in Chicago. Current mayor Richard M. Daley, son of the
late Richard J. Daley, was first elected in 1989. He has led many progressive
changes to the city, including improving parks; creating incentives for
sustainable development, including green roofs; and major new developments.
Since the 1990s, the city has undergone a revitalization.
Chicago is located in northeastern
Illinois at the southwestern tip of Lake Michigan. The city lies beside Lake
Michigan, and two rivers — the Chicago River in downtown and the Calumet River
in the industrial far South Side — flow entirely or partially through Chicago.
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal connects the Chicago River with the Des
Plaines River, which runs to the west of the city. Chicago's history and economy
are closely tied to its proximity to Lake Michigan. The Lake also moderates
Chicago's climate, making it warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer.
Chicago’s yearly precipitation
averages about 34 inches. Summer is typically the rainiest season, with
short-lived rainfall and thunderstorms more common than prolonged rainy periods.
Winter precipitation tends to be more snow than rain.
A
2006 estimate puts the city's population at 2,873,790. As of the 2000 census,
there were 2,896,016 people, 1,061,928 households, and 632,909 families residing
within Chicago. More than half the population of the state of Illinois lives in
the Chicago metropolitan area. The population density of the city itself was
12,750.3 people per square mile, making it one of the nation's most densely
populated cities.
06/06/06
Trip
Payment Schedule Per Person (all checks payable to AHS
Activity #133):
05/31/08
Non-refundable Deposit
$250.00 per
person
06/30/08
Trip Payment
$250.00 per person
07/31/08
Trip Payment
$250.00 per person
08/31/08
Trip Payment
$250.00 per person
09/30/08 Trip
Payment
$250.00 per person
10/31/08
Trip Payment
$250.00 per person
Total $1500.00
Chicago, Chicago, I'll show you around, I love it
Bet your bottom dollar you'll lose the blues in Chicago
On State Street that great street I just wanna say
They do things they don't do on Broadway
They have a time, the time of their life
I saw a man, he danced with his wife In Chicago
05/05/08
04/01/08
AHSO FULL ORCHESTRA HEADED TO MIDWEST!!!
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Congratulations to Ms. Vandiver, Mr. Winson and AHS Symphony Full Orchestra on their magnificent performance at Williams Trace Baptist Church on Friday, March 14, 2007. This recorded session was submitted for review to the Midwest Clinic Committee and has secured an invitation for AHSO to travel to Chicago in December of 2008 to perform. This is a prestigious invitation and can only be received once every five years. Thanks to conductors and performers for all your hard work and to parents and supporters who assisted. A special thanks to Elizabeth Myer and Teresa Lin for making video recordings of performances required with our submission.
Here is the acceptance e-mail received:
Sent: Monday, March 31, 2008 3:01 PM
To: Vandiver, Carolyn
Subject: Midwest Clinic Invitation
On behalf of the Board of Directors, it is my pleasure to
invite you to present a concert at the 2008 Midwest Clinic,
held in
To
perform at the Midwest Clinic, you are required to attend our preview
meeting on Saturday, June 7 at the Hilton Chicago from 9:00 a.m. to
approximately 2:00 p.m. All participating directors are required to
attend. Additionally, acceptance of this invitation signifies full
agreement to the policies set forth in the application form. Another copy
of this form is enclosed with the hard copy version of this letter.
We will send you our first instruction memo, which will include the
tentative date and time of your performance, as soon as we receive
everyone’s written acceptance. Please do not delay in checking with your
administrators to make sure they support your performance at the Midwest
Clinic.
Once
we receive a confirmation from everyone we have invited, we will announce
the names of the performers on our website. If you would like us to
create a link to the website of your organization, please include your web
address in your acceptance message. For your official listing, we
will take your ensemble name and city from your performance application
form. If you would like to be listed differently, please inform us
of the correct name or city when you write to accept this invitation.
Congratulations
to you and your organization for having been selected to perform at
the 62nd Annual Midwest Clinic. A wonderful
opportunity awaits you and your performers in
Kelly
Jocius
Executive
Director