Sigma Alpha Iota

PAN PIPES • WINTER 2016 • sai-national.org 28 much music is performed live by the poor, immigrants, and people living in rural areas because it is part of their cultural experience. Question 14: Can you select one musical experience/ piece of music that you have performed in or helped to get performed that changed you personally from the inside out and provided you with the inspiration to devote or continue to devote your life to classical music? Jonas: ere are a few pieces that I greatly enjoyed performing and would love to perform again. ere are definitely works that I have a stronger connection with than others. However, I do not think I would say that a single work has changed me from the inside out or provided me with the inspiration to continue to pursue music. Sonja: I was tasked with producing a concert called "Singing City" with the Pittsburgh Symphony. It was to have a community chorus of 2,000 people, with full orchestra in a basketball stadium. A tremendous amount of work went into the project, but it was pretty awesome to see a performance work with that many people. is, like many other huge projects, has been inspirational in that there was a lot of community involvement and the product was really excellent. Excellence speaks and communities want to participate in that. Jason: No, I cannot select one moment. For me, it is the continual moments of transcendence, beauty, or truth that I encounter on a daily basis that keep me going. ere are many transcendent experiences, including music camps, tours, performances, and workshops, that have strengthened my resolve or sustained my calling. ere is not one that has been significantly better than the next. Likely, it is the constant hope that the next experience will be better or more transcendent than the last that drives me forward. Question 15: If a "velvet revolution" occurred in classical music in America because of your efforts and others like you who believe in classical music, how would our society be different than it is now, not just in music but in other ways? Jonas: We would probably have a society that is more interested in deferred long term benefits and more value driven goals and less interested in immediate gratification and quick results. We may have a more appreciative society as a result, or even one that is more apt to seek creative options, as a result of embracing a creative field such as music. Sonja: If the values of community, excellence, diversity, respect, and balance were embraced, we would have a more productive, expressive, and free society. Jason: If all of our society was a single choir, we would have to learn to respect each other's talents and be thankful that we are singing together. is doesn't mean that we would all think about the world in the same way. We would not all be Democrats, or straight, or spiritual. In the professional choral ensembles I sing in, there are a wide variety of people who are willing and eager to put aside differences to make something meaningful happen together. A society that is like a choir would be a place where a variety of people can sit down in conversation to get something meaningful done by working together. We would learn to appreciate our differences while celebrating our mutual gis. is would be a different society. Question 16: Do you think that such a "velvet revolution" in our society is possible as a result of the daily work you do in classical music? Jonas: I think we are able to affect our community and those that we come in contact with as a result of our daily musical encounters. A larger, concentrated effort of all classical musicians could be possible but seems unlikely. If impact on a small level can grow to a larger reach and continue to grow, then it is possible, but again, the most impactful way to affect a community is through close contact and instruction. Sonja: Yes. Jason: Only in a very small way. ese changes can't be made by one performer or choir, but require a movement. ere are movements beginning to take shape in America, but it may be a generation before change is evident. Question 17: If you were to be part of a "dissident movement" or create "parallel structures" that might give life to classical music in America, what would you do? Jonas: I would organize community events that involve bringing together diverse people of all ability levels in music making activities. I would present concerts that program engaging, interesting, and thought-provoking repertoire and/or include collaborations with different art forms. I would perform in non-traditional performance venues. I would educate audiences through performances. Sonja: I would facilitate great performances. I would seek out community involvement. I would interact with patrons. I would make each interaction important. Jason: I would find ways and people to serve the disenfranchised with live music making. I would find ways to meet people literally where they are to make music. e ultimate in this mindset is for performers to go to the audience and for hopefully the audience to become part of the performance. e concert hall is dying, because the people aren't there. Musical missionaries are becoming vital. Jason Thoms, Dean of Arts and Sciences and Director of Choral Activities at Concordia College-New York "A society that is like a choir would be a place where a variety of people can sit down in conversation to get something meaningful done by working together." MODERN MUSICIAN SURVEY SURVEY continued from page 27

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