Klarinet Archive - Posting 000398.txt from 1995/04

From: "Dan Leeson: LEESON@-----.EDU>
Subj: My face on TV - a glorious sight
Date: Sun, 23 Apr 1995 09:22:20 -0400

Tonight on the Hallmark Hall of Fame show is a dramatic piece about
a young woman pianist who is of Vietnamese origin and her struggle to
come to grips with her ethnic values.

As part of the unfolding of the plot is her performance with a symphony
of a piano concerto, allegedly part of some big international competition
that she wins (or loses, I don't remember).

For this scene, the whole San Jose Symphony was hired to mime a performance
of this movement. Actually, it was about 10 measures of video recording and
we mimed our brains out in 2 minute intervals.

Sitting back in the clarinet section, miming the hell out of second clarinet,
is me. And the beauty is glorious as I sit there trying to plumb the
depths of the concerto that she was playing because none of us were playing.
She had a completely felted piano!! It wouldn't make a note if you stuffed
dynamite up its gazoo, and when we mimed playing it was to imitate some
amateur orchestra like the Boston Symphony or Cleveland whose recording we
were listening to during the miming. We had to coordinate our actions with
that of the recording. So though I was miming 2nd clarinet, I was imitating
Frank Cohen or Buddy Wright or whoever was on the recording.

As for sending out autographs to the members of this group who see me on
TV, the fee is $3.00 because that is all I can afford to pay you for taking
my autograph.

It was an interesting experience. We worked a good two hours, got top pay,
didn't do anything musical, practiced miming (my tone is exceptionally good
when I look as if I am playing and Frank Cohen is really doing the work),
got our pictures on national TV and maybe will even get residuals. Who can
argue with work like that!!

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Dan Leeson, Los Altos, California
(leeson@-----.edu)
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