The Blog
TMEA Day 3:
The whole convention culminates on Saturday with the All-State concerts - choruses, orchestras, and bands neverending...
At 1:30, we checked out John Mackey's piece, RedLine Tango - smokin' piece. Lila Cockrell Theater kind of sucks the life out of music, though - since they removed the permanent shell, all the low frequencies get swallowed and the music sounds a lot softer and less present than it should. Stampede suffered from the same phenomenon on Thursday night with the UNT Wind Symphony. Regardless, RedLine Tango kicks *ss. I don't have usable pictures - E and I were sitting in the last row of the top tier, so were approximately 1 mile from the stage...
We had a while until Eric's concert at 6pm, so we retreated to the hotel room. Here's Eric in a moment of repose, answering questions on the BCM Discussion Forum:
Eric speaks before the premiere of Lux Aurumque with the 5A All-State Symphonic Band. The band played REALLY, REALLY, WELL. The piece (and their whole concert) was extraordinary. Lux translated surprisingly well for winds, especially for a 165-piece symphonic band...
Afterward, Eric was mobbed for autographs as is standard procedure. After the throngs cleared, Montoya's lovely lady, Sarah, moved in for the kill:
Eric sports the template for his new tattoo. We can't show you the actual tattoo, since this is a family blog. (Note for humor impaired: this is a joke.)
Steve, Montoya, and Eric. Steve needs to practice his hand-signs, as well as his attitude (hey, "B" is a lot harder than "C" or "M"!!!).
Eric and Maestro Gary Green, seconds before we all headed off to Boudro's for some ultra-delicious steak fare and comraderie. Perhaps Mackey will post some pictures of the food on his blog. I was too busy eating it to take pictures...
Conclusion: TMEA 2005 a big success!