www.ThomasMcConville.com

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Two things pop into my head when I hear the term "musical joke." One is something along the lines of Tenacious D or those classic Adam Sandler Saturday Night Live sketches. You know--stuff that's meant to be funny.

The other is a lot less positive and brings to mind the word "trainwreck." We've all heard/seen this sort of musical joke, usually in the form of a teenage garage band playing a show three weeks after buying instruments, our crazy uncles thinking they are on stage at the Staples Center when in fact they are botching a Bob Dylan tune on their couches or Madonna.

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​Hollywood Bowl Opening Night with Harry Connick, Jr., and Gloria Estefan
June 17, 2011
Hollywood Bowl

The Hollywood Bowl opened its 90th season Friday night with its Hall of Fame concert featuring the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Youth Orchestra LA, Cirque du Soilel performers and sets by HOF inductees Harry Connick, Jr., and Gloria Estefan. That might sound like a lot of entertainment for one night, but the Bowl operates in such a smooth manner that the evening moved quickly without feeling rushed.
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​Two reasons brought me to the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra on Saturday night. First, I'm always on the prowl for something new, and to me, the symphony is definitely something new. The second reason was because I had been locked down by the flu for two weeks and I had enough of staying in bed watching Law & Order.

As an absolute symphony virgin, you'll have to accept my apology for some of the dumb things I'm about to say.

To summarize, the LBSO's performance was amazing. The orchestra ran through Beethoven's Symphony No. 1 in C major, Kopetzki's Concerto for Marimba and String Orchestra and Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, "Eroica."

What first blew my mind was the precision layering of instrumentation during the first movement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 1 in C major. As a recovering rock musician, I'm used to hearing songs with a constant percussion to keep time. But not Beethoven. And not the LBSO. Conductor Enrique Arturo Diemecke had that large group bopping and weaving as tightly as any rhythm section I've ever heard. Plus, his arms moving around made me think he was really into it. Showmanship at the symphony? Whoduthunk? Not me, that's for sure.
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​Rick Berry's a lot of things. Some of these things include jazz trumpeter (currently in the Hollywood Canteen Swing Band), political candidate (he ran for Long Beach city council) and gardener (he's got a killer backyard garden). But to the rest of the world, he's got a new title that is pretty darn spiffy--marketing manager for the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra.

If you're like me, you're wondering why a jazzman is getting in bed with classical music. I just had to ask.

1. Tell the people a little bit about yourself.

I was born in Washington, DC, but my family moved to Long Beach in 1962 when I was just a baby. I've been in Long Beach my whole life, living in Alamitos Heights, the Peninsula, Belmont Shore and now downtown. I have an Electrical Engineering degree from CSULB, an MBA from Pepperdine, and a certificate in Nonprofit Arts Management from CSULB. Most of my career has been marketing electronic components for local manufacturers.

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Courtesy of Pacific Symphony

​Who doesn't love a good sale--especially in these dreary economic times? Here's one: the Pacific Symphony is celebrating its upcoming season--their 20th year with musical director/conductor Carl St.Clair, pictured--with a chance to score some half-price tickets.

This Sunday and Monday only (August 30 and 31), head to the Pacific Symphony website, for a 50% discount on each single ticket bought online. The sale ends 11:50 p.m. Monday, August 31st.

The next event on Pacific Symphony's calendar is the "Tchaikovsky Spectacular - Music for the Cure" at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine on September 12. Following that is three nights of "Midori Plays Tchaikovsky" from September 24-26 at Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. This season's pops series kicks off with Patty LuPone at Segerstrom Concert Hall, October 8-10.

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