Musical Ethnography

The World of Dallas Symphony Orchestra

Introduction

The Dallas Symphony Orchestra, or DSO, encompasses an ensemble of professional classical musicians that perform a variety of public concerts and programs, permeating innovative and yet timeless genres of classical and pop music to inspire the minds of music appreciators in the Dallas community and beyond. In this musical ethnography of one of the largest performing arts organization in the Southwest, the firm ideology rooted in a century of history, the performance and its communal connection between the stage and audience, the vast array of repertoires of music, and the practical material culture of the DSO are determined based on direct participation, research, and interview.

Methodology

The main bulk of the research was conducted from the Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s official website, which provides several links for finding historical facts, ideology, activities, material culture, past and upcoming events, as well as ticket information of the musical organization. Field notes on performance elements were taken as an audience member of one of the live concerts. The DSO presented “The Music of Pink Floyd” featuring vocal soloist Randy Jackson and guest conductor Brent Havens. A fellow audience member, who had attended the same concert as well as some of the previous ones, was interviewed in person right after the concert. Interesting perspectives as an active participant of this music-culture could be obtained through the one-on-one interview.

Aspects of the Music-Culture

Ideas About Music

According to Douglas Adams, the president and CEO of the DSO, the ideology behind the workings of this musical organization rests on "the pursuit of uncompromising musical distinction through innovative and classical programming, seeking to enlighten and inspire the broadest possible audience (Dallas Symphony…)." Since the start of the twentieth century, the unwavering belief of the power of music as well as the importance of preserving both classical and pop music for generations to come has kept the orchestra and its board members intact and well-tuned to the purpose of stimulating the world of music across the local boundaries. One could say the on-going goal of the DSO is to enthuse, entertain, and educate as many audiences as possible via concerts and programs for as long as possible.

Activities Involving Music

Under the current musical direction of maestro Jaap van Zweden, the DSO offers numerous concert and program opportunities at the world-renowned Meyerson Symphony Center located in the Arts District in Dallas.

The DSO provides distinct educational programs for music students of elementary, junior high, high school, and college and beyond. For example, free Performance Preludes, which are informal presentations designed to help the audience gain an enlightened concert experience, are offered to ticketed guests before every Classical concert. Students who wish to see how the Symphony preparers for a performance are welcomed to select open rehearsals. The Symphony holds competitions contests such as the Lynn Harrell Concerto Competition and North Texas Young Composers Project as well.

Charity and scholarship programs such as Heartstring Program, established to provide complimentary concert tickets to those with limited incomes, and Young Strings, created to find and grow the musical talent of exceptional young African American and Latino string players.

The DSO performs not only at the Meyerson Symphony Center. The Parks Concert Series – a series of free outdoor performances by the Symphony in Dallas-area parks held throughout the spring – makes this organization one of a kind for the local community since it is in conjunction with the City of Dallas Parks and Recreation. Even going far beyond the local areas, the DSO has recently been led by Jaap van Zweden on the fifth European tour to England, the Netherlands, Germany, and Austria from February 27 to March 11, performing ten consecutive concerts in nine different cities.

As far as the details of a DSO concert goes, the incidence of The Music of Pink Floyd concert held at DSO’s home, the Meyerson Symphony Center, makes up a great example of describing the extent of the interaction between the performers and the audience in this particular kind of environment. This concert was a tribute to the music of the popular British rock band named Pink Floyd. The tickets were already sold out a couple of days before the day of the concert; therefore the enormous concert hall was absolutely filled with people. The demographics of the audience were generally made up of white adults with semiformal outfits. When the concert started at 8:00 PM on March 3^rd, 2010, pink and purple lighting effects were provided on and around the stage where all of the musicians were seated and ready to perform at the queue of the conductor’s baton. The Symphony was situated neatly around the inner side of the stage surrounding the special Pink Floyd ensemble in the middle, facing the conductor in the middle front. The special guest ensemble included electric guitars and bass, electric keyboard, a drum set, a saxophone. At the beginning of the first song, vocal soloist Randy Jackson came up to the stage with a microphone and showed off his vocal virtuosity along with the accompaniment of the orchestra behind him and occasional instrumental solos among the ensemble. After every solo performance, the crowd cheered and applauded accordingly, showing visible enthusiasm towards the stage. In between songs, Randy Jackson would briefly introduce the upcoming song and verbally interact with the audience by asking questions and rounding up the crowd. The audience of course was responsive and courteous throughout the rock-and-roll vibe program that lasted for roughly three hours, including a short intermission.

When asked why he would attend such a concert and what it means to attend one, York Wang replied that not only he considers himself a huge fan of the DSO concerts and what the organization does to spread the cultural and educational value of music to the people in the community, he believes that such an experience is a worthy opportunity to learn to appreciate the wonders of music – how it brings people together for what they enjoy. He plans to continue participating in this music-culture in the future and is excited for what repertoire the DSO will bring onto the illustrious stage next.

Repertoires of Music

The DSO performs and introduces classical music from the baroque era all the way to contemporary pop music. The most frequently played repertoire includes that of the classical, romantic, and contemporary periods, composed by famous composers such as Mozart, Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, and Tchaikovsky. The DSO has presented in the past repertoires of American film music, Christmas carols, 50’s dance music, jazz and blues, classic rock and roll, latin and Spanish pop music, and even mainstream pop music such as Good Charlotte, Daughtry, Jonas Brothers, and Jordin Sparks intended for young audience. Because of the diverse array of musical repertoire, the DSO is able to attract a various selection of audience members from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds for a series of concerts. Also, collaborations with renowned guest artists such as legendary violinist Itzhak Perlman, or international superstar singer Julio Iglesias help the DSO achieve a full-house crowd.

Material Culture of Music

The vast material culture of Dallas Symphony Orchestra is produced mainly from the Dallas Symphony Store, which can be shopped online or directly at the Meyerson Symphony Center. The store provides all kinds of products including apparel, home and office ware, jewelry, accessories, music, and even toys and games. DSO logo merchandise is also sold as souvenirs for the fanatics. Tickets to every single concert are sold at different prices depending on the location of the seats at the Meyerson Symphony Center. Ticket sales and donations, or endowment funds all contribute toward cultivating future ticket sales, salaries for the employees including the orchestra members, and other renovations or needs within the organization. In another perspective, the material culture of the DSO on stage includes sheet music, music stands and chairs, the conductor’s podium, baton, microphones – usually for recording purposes, and of course, western classical instruments composed of string, woodwinds, brass, and percussion groups. Depending on the event, there may be other types of musical instruments, as mentioned above about the Pink Floyd concert.

Conclusion

All in all, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra is more than just a group of paid professional classical musicians. It is a highly organized musical entity that seeks to contribute music, entertainment, and education to its local surroundings and beyond through a series of unique cooperation of music, performers, audience, time and space.

Works Cited

Dallas Symphony Orchestra: Listen, Buy Tickets, Plan Your Visit. Dallas Symphony Orchestra, 2010. Web. 9 March 2010.

The Music of Pink Floyd. By Pink Floyd. Dir. Jaap van Zweden. Perf. Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Randy Jackson. Cond. Conductor Brent Havens. The Meyerson Symphony Center. Dallas. 3 March 2010.

Wang, York. Personal interview. 3 March 2010.