Author: Courtney Lewis

Cat Links Jacksonville Symphony

A season of firsts

Posted on Courtney Lewis

Last week we announced the 2015/16 Jacksonville Symphony season. This is a big moment in every orchestra’s year. It’s a manifesto for the future, not just outlining the music that will be played, but also giving a glimpse of long-term vision. As the first season I’ve planned since taking the music directorship, I think it’s fair to say that there has been a certain degree of anticipation about what’s in store. So here’s the inside story. Let’s start with the series of concerts for which we’re best known: Florida Blue Masterworks on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. This is our flagship series, presenting the widest range of repertoire. I’m excited about playing music that our audience knows and loves, like Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Holst’s suite

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Cat Links Conducting Electricity, Jacksonville Symphony

The constant quest for the unattainable, or Being a Professional Musician

Posted on Courtney Lewis

Over the last few months I’ve been delighted to discover great interest in what goes on behind the scenes at the symphony, especially in regards to the auditions I described last month. That has made me think about the bigger picture: what exactly leads some of us to become professional musicians, and what’s it like living the dream? It starts in childhood. I have friends who remember the first time they held a violin and immediately felt a tactile connection with the instrument and its sound, and others who can’t remember a time when they didn’t sit in front of the piano every day. My earliest memories are before I played an instrument – of music itself – which is perhaps why I chose to

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