Archives > Archive 11
DEAD RODENT
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Well, you've read the notes, the notes smelled sweeter than then dead rodent, and now it is time for you to post until the living cows come home.
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And the word of the day is: AMARANTH!
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And now, the unvarnished version of the event. Forget that it was too many speeches, all clapping themselves on the back in a way I just don't care for. Just make a snappy evening, not two hours of speeches.
When they came to me, they had no idea about the entertainment for the show. They had some ideas that were silly and unfocused and meaningless. It was I who suggested doing a tribute to Goldsmith - they didn't even know he'd been an alumni, and frankly they didn't even know who he was until I finally began listing the litany of films he scored. So, they got the Young Musician's Foundation - forty-five players. I went to Charles Fox and secured him to conduct. He immediately began worrying about just forty-five players and spoke to the YMF who said they had no prob providing more players. But, as the months went by, it became obvious that space was the issue and forty-five it would be. That made Charles too nervous, since the music was orchestrated for ninety players - so that, coupled with elbow problems caused him to drop out. He'd arranged for the widow Mrs. G to attend. She cut short a trip to do so. After I realized that the forty-five would not be able to play charts scored for ninety, I came up with a solution and offered it to them - to have three key pieces reorchestrated and reduced to forty-five instruments. They declined, saying the guy from the YMF would do the work for free. I expressed my concerns, but got him Charles' personal copies of the scores.
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I suggested a meeting be set up so I could show him the program I envisioned. No meeting was set up. And, at that point, they simply stopped asking my advice. I was supposed to follow this through, attend rehearsals, and plan ALL the entertainment and the way it was to be presented. But, like most amateurs who don't know what the hell they're doing, they simply thought it was easy and took me out of it. And that was their downfall and hideous error.
Instead of doing my three four minute pieces, they did a seventeen-minute movie medley. But, worse, in announcing them, Cindy was made to read, "Ladies and Gentleman, while you eat your dinner, the YMF will play some Jerry Goldsmith music." Can you imagine the chutzpah of that. Mrs. Goldsmith was LIVID and shouted, "Jerry Goldsmith did not write dinner music" and ran from the room in tears. She came back at some point, and I could see them trying to placate her, but she left again and they followed her out, begging her to come back - she didn't. And I don't blame her. What they did was sacreligeous and offensive and disrespectful. I felt like leaving, too. No one listened, they ate and talked during all seventeen minutes. And when they launced into Star Trek: Nemesis (the wrong piece - should have been Star Trek: The Motion Picture) no one gave a crap.
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It was a complete disaster, and the head of the foundation had to accept Jerry's award. I'm going to write Mrs. G a letter, just telling her the idea was mine, but that they'd taken me out of it, and that if I'd had any idea of what they were up to I would have called her and told her to stay the hell away.
If I had seen this through, the orchestra would have been spotlit, the house lights down, and Cindy's intro would have made it clear that the audience was supposed to listen and appreciate the MUSIC being played because the composer had something to do with LACC. I also would have had the orchestra miked, so that they could be heard.
Amateurs - what the world doesn't need. I'm sure their event brought in lots of money, but they should be ashamed of themselves for making a travesty of the Goldsmith tribute.
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