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Doublereed Archive - Posting 000050.txt from 2003/11
From: James Jeter <jyjeter@-----.com>
Subj: [DR-L] [Fwd: Response to Brooklyn Opera]
Date: Wed, 12 Nov 2003 11:51:41 -0500
Dear Friends,
I was so depressed about the recent press release from Opera Company of Brooklyn,
that I sent a letter to 3 of the company's more illustrious (remaining) members of
their Board of Artistic Trustees. You may know that last summer, after several letters,
Marilyn Horne and Deborah Voigt resigned from this company's board. I've included
addresses and a copy of my letter, in case anyone is inspired to also write these
ladies. Also, I'd like to find out how to contact George Gershwin's family. I note that
Brooklyn will do excerpts from "Porgy & Bess" next summer, with the virtual orchestra,
and I happen to know that the Gershwin family is quite adamant about his music being
properly presented - would like to contact them about this future production, as well.
Just doing the little we can do for live music!
Sincerely, Jim
Ms. Betty Allen, Member
Board of Artistic Trustees
Opera Company of Brooklyn
c/o Harlem School of the Arts
645 St. Nicholas Avenue
New York, NY 10030 (Please forward)
Ms. Anna Moffo, Member
Board of Artistic Trustees
Opera Company of Brooklyn
c/o Metropolitan Opera Guild
Board of Directors
30 Lincoln Center
New York, NY 10023 (Please forward)
Ms. Frederica Von Stade, Member
Board of Artistic Trustees
Opera Company of Brooklyn
c/o IMG Artists
825 Seventh Avenue
New York, NY 10019 (Please forward)
Dear Ms. __________:
I am writing you as a committed lover of live opera and live
musical performances. I recently received a press release from the Opera
Company of Brooklyn, which informed me that the company would blatantly
continue to use virtual orchestra technology in future performances this
season, including the production of Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro." This
is quite disastrous for live opera and for great music of "soul," which
machines will never quite manage to muster, unlike the human voice or a
live musician's performance. The very future of opera, I humbly
believe, is threatened by this growing trend to use machines and
mechanical amplification of both instruments and singers.
I certainly welcome your support of young American singers and
fledgling opera companies, but seeing your name on the Opera Company of
Brooklyn's Board of Artistic Trustees disturbs me greatly. I know that
last summer, when Marilyn Horne and Deborah Voigt learned of this
company's travesty of performing "Magic Flute" to virtual machines, that
they immediately resigned from the Board of Artistic Trustees of this
company.
I can't imagine that you would support this virtual music
campaign, which will effectively destroy the livelihood of future
instrumentalists and singers (taught to sing without mechanical amplification)
in the near future, should more artists of your caliber "approve" of said
machines, by endorsing companies that use them.
I sincerely hope that you will reconsider being a member of a
Board of such an institution.
Sincerely yours,
