Composers Salon Concert – Celebrating Central Florida Composers.

The Central Florida Composer’s Salon Concert was held at the Timucua White House (2000 S Summerlin Ave Orlando, FL 32806.) The annual composer’s salon concert celebrated new music written by local composers in the Central Florida area.

There was food and wine before and after the concert in the entry foyer. I decided to sketch from the upper balcony. An entire orchestra filled the stage to start and I was quickly blocking in the performers. However when they were finished performing their one piece, they all exited the stage. My digital eraser got a good work out.

Marla E. Artist had a Plexiglass canvas set up so that the audience could watch as she worked on the transparent surface lit up by white Christmas lights. She painted a saxophone to the beat of the music. It is always a pleasure to watch other artists at work.

The Central Florida Composers Forum is an organization of composers
dedicated to engaging the creative and larger community of Central
Florida through the promotion of original and innovative music
programming.They strive to be part of a larger cultural conversation where the musical,
visual and other performing arts connect with audiences, foster vital
collaborations, and produce multidisciplinary performances. They are cultivating
an audience for new music through education, workshops and outreach
programs that create memorable artistic experiences for youth and
community members are also central to their mission.

Open Rehearsal Rossini’s Stab at Mater.

I went to an open rehearsal at Knowles Memorial Chapel, Rollins College (1000 Holt Ave, Winter Park, FL 32789). Dr. John V. Sinclair was conducting the Bach Festival Choir and Orchestra. It was composed late in his career after retiring from the composition
of opera. Gioachino Rossini began the work in 1831 but did not complete it until 1841. Rossini used his own librettos and compositions for a portion of the work.  Giovanni Tadolini, who composed the remainder with six additional movements. Rossini presented the entirety of the completed work as his own.

I decided to climb a large spiral staircase to get to the upper balconies of the church. From up there I had a god’s eye view of the chorus and orchestra below. Another artist joined me and did an abstract sketch inspired by the music The next concert at the Knowles Chapel is, Insights and Sounds by Paul Moravec. Stephen Tharpe, will be the guest organist.  The concert will be February 17th from 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Tickets are $20 – $45.

 

In announcing the release of a new CD, the Bach Festival Society will present more music by the Pulitzer
Prize–winning composer Paul Moravec. Works will include his poignant Songs of Love and War, based on letters from American wars, and his newest creation, Mass in D.
This concert is part of Insights and Sounds, a new series that will focus on individual composers or
genres and provide audiences with concise concerts in which great music
is performed and discussed. These concerts are perfect for classical
music connoisseurs who wish to expand their knowledge and classical
music novices who would like to explore classical music’s significance.

21st Annual Car Show at the Art Deco Weekend.

On day two of the Miami and Orlando Urban Sketchers crawl at South Beach in Miami, most artists were set up a block away sketching an Art Deco building on Collins Avenue. I wasn’t thrilled about just sketching a building, so I walked towards the crowds and commotion on Ocean Drive. I decide to sketch a long line of cars on display. Two Mini Coopers were at the front of the line. Pam Schwartz joined me and also sketched one of the cars in front of the Sury Hotel. The owner of the second Mini Cooper in line looked over my shoulder and was pleased to see his car in the sketch.

Pam was still busy when I had finished and I decided to rest in the shade of a palm tree and watch her work. I was amazed at how many people stopped to look over her shoulder. That must happen while I am working as well and I seldom notice. One young girl in ballet tights stopped to watch and she stood right in front of Pam blocking her view.  I have had people do that as a joke as if posing might get them in the sketch, but I think this girl was oblivious to the fact that she was blocking the scene Pam was sketching.

We stopped at the cafe in the hotel in front of us and ordered a huge iced margarita to split. A parade of giant puppets began to dance its way down the street. They were about 15 feet high. There was a merman whose arms dangled listlessly at his sides but he danced and leaned over to look at the crowds. Charlie Chaplin walked arm in arm with Marilyn Monroe.

Other artists started to explore the festival, and we watched them sketch as we sipped our drink. All the artists gathered in about an hour to share their work in front of a courthouse about two blocks away. The Miami Urban Sketchers had a rubber stamp that could be used to place the Miami Urban Sketch logo on each sketch. We then took a huge group photo and walked across the street to a vintage silver streamlined diner. Sitting near the couple from Puerto Rico, I got to learn about their struggles after hurricane Maria.

Art Deco Weekend at Miami South Beach.

Art Deco Weekend at Miami South Beach.

The second sketch opportunity of our sketch crawl moved several blocks north. I became fascinated by two trees that were blown over at an angle. The two trunks spiraled around each other like a DNA helix giving the trees the appearance of being one. Most of the sketchers sketched more art deco hotels on Ocean Boulevard. From my vantage point sketching the tree, I could see several sketchers in the distance as they worked. We only had about an hour to sketch so I wanted to pay attention so I could finish about the same time as everyone else. Knowing me, I might get lost in the process and just keep working as everyone else packed up to leave.

I noticed the artists starting to gather and put their sketchbooks on the ground so everyone could see what had been sketched. There was some amazing talent in this group of  artists from Orlando Urban Sketchers and Miami Urban Sketchers. We walked towards a light in the ocean side park so photos could be taken of us as a group. We all held up one sketch along with the Orlando and Miami Urban Sketcher’s logos.

More than a dozen of us went to, Naked Taco, a local Mexican restaurant to chat and share stories about the experience. The server started up all off with free shots. Pam Schwartz and I split a queso dinero which feature crispy grilled chihuahua and manchengo cheese. This wasn’t what I expected being crispy chunks of cheese instead of creamy melted queso. I ordered a naked maarguarita. The margaritas were expensive and the servings small. My dish has hot peppers on top which made me spit out my first bite. Once I dissected the Dish and removed the offending peppers, the dish was fine. In Miami beach, a 20% tip is written in to the bill.

Artists were gathered from around the world. The couple next to me was from Puerto Rico, other artists were from were from Columbia, Argentina, Guiana, Vietnam, China, Israel and a gentleman from Virginia happened to be in Miami so he joined us as well. He had to  be the most enthusiastic artist I  have ever met, It is always fun to meet new artists exploring someplace new.

Art Deco Urban Sketch Weekend in Miami.

The Orlando and Miami branches of Urban Sketchers collaborated to host a sketch crawl at Miami’s 41st Annual Art Deco Weekend on January 21st to the 14th. It is a long drive to Miami and when Pam Schwartz and I arrived, the sketchers were already finishing up a sketch of a beach side life guards station. Pam and I went down to the beach to dip our toes in the ocean.

When the gathering of several dozen artists moved to a new location, we joined them. I sat down to sketch the Edison and Breakwater Hotels. A vintage orange and white car was parked in front of the hotels. As the sun set, the Art Deco hotels lit up, creating an amazing bright contrast to the dark ultramarine sky.

Pam and I were seated next to a small courtyard where a pink ribbon was tied across the top of a staircase. It turns out we were at the event’s ribbon cutting. South Beach’s mayor came out to cut the ribbon to officially open the Art Deco Weekend. A man started taking to Pam saying that I would sketch so much better if I was high. He opened his palm and offered her some marijuana buds. She declined.

The crowd gathering for the Mayor got in the way of my seeing the scene I was sketching. I patiently looked between people and around butts to draw what I could see at any given moment. The Mayor invited the artist who painted the poster for the Art Deco weekend to the stage. The mayor in a three piece suit, announced the artist saying, “This is how an artist dresses for an event like this.” He got a few laughs from the crowd. The artist, Michael Young from Kansas City, was in khaki shorts and a t-shirt.

Weekend Top 5 Picks for January 27th and 28th.

Saturday January 27, 2018

8 AM to 1 PM. Parramore Farmers Market. Free. The east side of the Orlando City Stadium, across from City View. The Parramore Farmers Market will be open every Saturday from 8
a.m. to 1 p.m., on the east side of the Orlando City Stadium, across
from City View.Purchase quality, fresh and healthy food grown in your
own neighborhood by local farmers, including Fleet Farming, Growing
Orlando, and other community growers.

Noon to 4 PM Free. Winter Music Series. Lakeridge Winery and Vineyards 19239 US 27 North, Clermont, Florida 34715. Each Saturday afternoon during the month of January, Lakeridge Winery
holds its famous Music Series, featuring live music on the outdoor
stage, and inside at our Wine and Cheese Bar upstairs in the winery.
The musicians selected are all fantastic performers, hand-picked from
the wealth of talent located throughout Central Florida. Lakeridge wine,
beer, soft drinks and a variety of food is available for purchase,
along with complimentary Winery tours and tasting.

BAND SCHEDULE:

OUTDOOR STAGE

Jan 27, 2018 NOON – 4pm Mike Quick Band

WINE & CHEESE BAR

Jan 27, 2018 NOON – 4pm Jeff Whitfield

8 PM to 10 PM $8. No Borders Art Competition Presents Marvel vs DC. The Geek Easy 114 S Semoran Blvd, Ste 6, Winter Park, Florida 32792. No Borders Art Competition would like to bring you our first Marvel vs DC edition.

Watch as two universes collide!!

Two
competitions, one on our traditional 4ft x 4ft smooth white canvases
for 30 minutes. Four black markers with different tips and their choice
of one color marker.

For our first time ever…

Two
artists on one 8ft x 4ft canvas for 1 Hour. Same rules apply, four
black markers with different tips and their choice of one color marker.

Artists
will be judged with our 5 point system. Based on neatness, time
management, use of color, over all balance and how well they stick to
the the Marvel vs DC theme.
Artists representing Marvel are:

Grandmasta Gray

Alex Cuevas

Artists representing DC are:

Joel Gonzalez

Bernard Cruz

This will be an all-out battle and the beginning to something epic.

90s Hip Hop all night provided by our very own DJ Cubby (Chris Mendez)

Our judges for the night:

Earl Lugo

Josue Ortiz

TBA

Prizes sponsored by:

Apopka Downtown Barbers

Mogel Clothing

KULT Clothing John Leo

Dat Hoot Smoke Shop

Doors open at 8pm

Show starts at 9pm

Sunday January 28, 2018

Noon to 6 PM. Garden Bros Circus protest. Kissimmee Civic Center 201 E Dakin Ave, Kissimmee, Florida 34741. Join the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida as we protest
outside the Garden Bros Circus again in Kissimmee, your help is needed.
Always peaceful, always educational
Protest times: 12:00- 2:30- 6:00
*Signs provided*

This circus leases animals from other circus co.’s, which all have
a long list of Animal Welfare Act (AWA) violations see: https://secure.mediapeta.com/peta/PDF/GardenBrosCircusFactsheet.pdf
“The USDA has cited Piccadilly Circus exhibitors for forcefully
striking an elephant with a bull hook and for failing to provide adequate
veterinary care, to provide adequate and safe enclosures, to handle
animals in a way that does not cause unnecessary stress or trauma, to
provide wholesome and uncontaminated food, to provide shelter from the
elements, and to provide environmental enrichment.”
 

Noon to 1 PM. Donation based. Yoga. Lake Eola Park near the red gazebo. Bring your own mat.

4 PM to 6 PM Free. Orlando Out Tonight Theatre Meetup. Melrose Center, 101 E Central Blvd, Orlando, FL 32801. Anyone interested in learning about theatre, and anyone who already has
an extensive theatre background, will find this meetup to be a fun night
out. We’ll talk about introduction to theatre, acting for the stage,
set design and more. We’ll have sessions led by Melrose Center staff and
also bring in guests from the theatre community.

The Orlando Concert Band.

I sketched a rehearsal of the Orlando Concert Band at Saint Luke’s Lutheran Church (2021 West SR 426 Oviedo FL.) Pam Schwartz and I arrived just as the band began to play the Star Spangled Banner. Everyone in the audience was standing so we stood in the back row waiting to scope out a seat. The concert celebrated the music of John Williams and even the Star Spangled Banner was arranged by him. After the usual musical refrain you would hear at a football game the arrangement then expanded as if scoring an important scene in a movie.

The Music Director, Jon Territo, clearly loves the John Willams musical scores and the evening highlighted music from films such as Jurassic Park, Jaws, 1941, Saving Private Ryan, Schindler’s List, Catch Me if You Can, Superman and Star Wars. Between arrangements the conductor spoke to the audience about each piece. This was a working rehearsal although the audience was packed. On occasion the music stopped so that a passage could be reworked. The evening was an eclectic mix of scores that have become iconic over the years to scores that supported the drama of less known films.

The Orlando Concert Band was founded in 1989. If is composed of both professional and amateur musicians. The band’s mission is to celebrate and preserve America’s musical heritage through professional level performances of music for concert band, including major symphonic works and a wide variety of traditional contemporary and popular selections.

Mark Your Calendar

The remaining concert this season include:

Saturday February 17, 2018 at 6 PM. UCF Symphony Orchestra. Rising Star a Local LegendChung Park Director with guest composer Stella Young.

Sunday March 18, 2018 at 3 PM.  Lutheran Cantata Choir and Chamber Ensamble. A Voice from Heaven – Claire Hodge, Director. Reception for the audience after the concert.

Saturday April 14, 2018 at 7 PM. Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra. Mozart and DvorakBenjamin Hochman, Pianist and guest Conductor.

Free admission to all concerts. For more information.

The Chinese New Year Dragon Parade.

Orlando will celebrate the Year of the Dog on February 25, 2018. The 2018 Dragon Parade is a celebration of Unity, Harmony and Diversity. It starts at the corner of North Thornton Ave and Oregon Street and will end at North Thornton Avenue and Colonial Drive. The Year of the Dog marks the 7th annual Central Florida
Dragon Parade Lunar New Year Festival held in Orlando, Florida. This
event has received overwhelming response from local and distant
communities alike.

I love getting to the parade start early to sketch the parade before it gets started. Dragon handlers practice bringing the dragon to life, and once the parade starts, the dragons weave and slither side to side. Everyone wears bright vibrant colored clothing. As the parade marched off, I was still struggling to get down all the colors on the sketch.

The parade will be followed by five hours of the
Lunar New Year Festival that will take place at 728 North Thornton Ave., Orlando,
FL 32803. The Lunar New Year Festival will feature Asian entertainment
including Dragon dancing, Lion Dancing, cultural dances, martial arts,
taiko drummers, arts and crafts and Asian food. In 2017, over 8,500
patrons attended the event.

History in a Glass: The Grand Finale.

The Orange County Regional History Center (65 E Central Blvd, Orlando, FL 32801) hosted three previous History in a Glass competitions.  At the final installment of the 2017 History in a Glass series, the winners from the previous competitions competed for bragging rights by creating one-of-a-kind libations. The drink recipes were inspired by the theme of “The City Beautiful.” Guests learned how Orlando chose our nickname as they enjoy great food and music, plus three hand-crafted cocktails.

Pom Poms Teahouse and Sandwicheria (67 N Bumby Ave, Orlando, FL 32803) catered the event and the food disappeared in an instant. The caterer returned to their restaurant and made a second batch of sandwiches to the sold out crowd. A hand crafted trophy was created by the History Center art department. The trophy consisted of a model of the lake Eola Fountain with a swan perched on top. Above the swan, was a pig and a bottle of whisky. The entire tower was painted gold. Each item referred to the stories told in past History in a glass competitions. The swan was based on Billy the swan who murdered his mate. The pig was from “Hog Wild” which told the story of how Winter Park had to pass an ordinance banning wild hogs from it’s streets. A similar ordinance was passed last year banning artists from the streets of Winter Park. The whisky bottle referenced the story of the murder in the San Juan Hotel in which a man a man was given a bottle of whisky which was then offered to the woman he was trying to impress that evening. She died after one sip.

The History Center Chief Curator, Pam Schwartz entertained the crowd by explaining how Orlando became “The City Beautiful. Once referred to as Mosquito County, the Central Florida region was considered a nightmarish place my many of the early explorers who couldn’t stand the bugs and insane heat. They denouncing the region as a “hideous,” “loathsome,” “diabolical,” “God-abandoned” mosquito refuge.

In 1908, an Orlando beautification drive inspired city leaders to find a
more suitable name than “The Phenomenal City.” Residents planted trees
and shrubs, and a contest was announced to find a new nickname. A number
of candidates were submitted, including “the Queen City,” “the Magic
City,” “the Picturesque City,” and “the Health City.” But Jessie Johnson Branch, formerly from South Dakota, won the prize
with “the City Beautiful.” The new name sparked a wave of interest in
beautification that soon made the Orlando an even more fitting setting
for its name.

With an event like this I always hope to sketch the winner. I sketched Dan Lynch in his baseball cap and bib overalls, and he did indeed win the coveted trophy for his delicious “City Beautiful” cocktail. 

The Uke Jammers in the West Wing.

I joined a bus load of Orlando Arts advocated on a trip to Tallahassee to convince legislators to stop cutting funding for the arts. The top floor of the capitol complex had windows overlooking the Tallahassee skyline in all directions. Groups of advocates went office to office to meet with legislators. Around lunch time there was a meeting on the top floor to discuss how arts funds might be allocated in the following year.

In the West wing, the Uke Jammers set up on folding chairs and began to perform. It was a lively informal jam session meant to show that arts are still alive in Florida.  It was a visual reminder that arts, arts education, and culture
are part of the solution and matter to Floridians and tourists. It was also a toe tapping good time.

There is going to be an Arts and Culture Day in Tallahassee on January 24, 2018. State appropriation investments were fully restored in 2014-2015 for all Division of Cultural Affairs (DCA) grants; however, Florida’s
investment in the DCA grants’ programs have been reduced over the
last three years as the demand for them has increased.  Art Advocates must work collaboratively and strategically to restore state-appropriation investments needed to fund  matching grants. They also must  demonstrate that these are wise state investments with
substantial economic and social impact throughout the region and
state. It is an opportunity for you to go the state Capitol to unite with arts,
arts education, and culture advocates from throughout Florida to step up and share our unified voices in Tallahassee with our legislators and their staff. It is a fascinating process and your voice could make a difference.