A Musical Introduction

I was introduced to the opera by this record, played many times on my childhood record player.

It presentented snippets from The Barber of Seville and Hansel and Gretel, as I recall. It was interesting enough, but not compelling. As a child I didn’t understand how much I was missing by not having the visual component to enrich my understanding. It wasn’t until I was in college that I was introduced to the joy that is live opera - - an entirely different animal than a child’s record album.

Fast forward to today (as the cliché goes) and you can introduce your child to opera in a much more engaging way. Merriweather Park in Symphony Woods is presenting a free program this Saturday as a part of their Chrysalis Kids series. Here is the link to their event page on Facebook.

Aimed at PreK through 5th grade, the program by Baltimore Concert Opera is an interactive way to introduce the multifaceted world of opera. Tickets are free, parking is free, and snacks and drinks will be available for purchase.

Since I’m both a fan of the Chrysalis and a music teacher, I’m hoping to see a huge turnout for this event. Do me a favor and share this with your friends. It’ll give you more folks to meet up with on the lawn on Saturday.

Comments

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents. When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday. Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018. 2018 . But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest. In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...

F ³: We Are Not Entitled

A college student went missing. His family and friends were distraught. The community was encouraged to be on the lookout and spread the word. Days passed. They must have been agonizing days for those who cared about the missing student. Thoughts that foul play had been involved cannot have been far from their thoughts. Then, at last, the student was found. Alive. The news was shared with the public. So. Much. Relief. A family had been reunited with their child. Even though we know that life is complicated, I think it is okay to accept this as a happy ending and leave it at that. But the world of social media says no. For every expression of joy at the news came questions and even judgement. It became clear to me that some folks felt entitled to an explanation. They wanted the backstory. It’s as though they felt that, by enlisting the help of the public on social media, the authorities now owed them all the details. Television dramas often weave curr...

Village Green/Town²

Search This Blog