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music to history to museum to Portugal
Jun. 6th, 2006 07:43 pmPrior to writing my recent article on Symphony Silicon Valley, I had hoped to do a little research on the history of the old San Jose Symphony, as I was discussing that as well. I realized that I had no knowledge of this orchestra prior to George Cleve's appointment as music director in 1972. Yet it claimed to date back to 1879.
Today I was finally able to meet with some boxes of the orchestra's archives, now at the San Jose History Museum. Where I found that the 1879 date is stretching it. A group calling itself the San Jose Symphony, but having only about 15 players, did perform in that year, but its continued existence was more than spotty. Its continuous history only goes back as far as the founding of a Symphony Association in 1937, and for years afterwards the orchestra was an unpaid scratch group that played only one or two concerts a year, much like some of the obscurer orchestras around today.
I did get to see some of the old programs, including ones from concerts I remember in the 70s and 80s, and yes, Aaron Copland and John Cage, as well as Alan Hovhaness, Virgil Thomson, and Cesar Chavez, came for the bicentennial season in 1975-6, which is what really put the orchestra on the map.
The History Museum, out on Senter Road, is an interesting place. Tucked in the back of a park, it's a re-created downtown neighborhood of olden days, with replica or possibly original buildings moved there, and a couple streets with old streetlights, and everything. But too many vacant lots, and a lack of street life, make it look a bit unreal, like the western town in that terrible Star Trek episode. The central building is an old hotel, and the museum archives are in the non-public area on the second floor.
Things may be livelier there on Saturday, when according to a flyer I picked up they're holding a Dia de Portugal Festival. Portuguese food, it says: that means linguisa. I may go to this.![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
cynthia1960, how about you?
Today I was finally able to meet with some boxes of the orchestra's archives, now at the San Jose History Museum. Where I found that the 1879 date is stretching it. A group calling itself the San Jose Symphony, but having only about 15 players, did perform in that year, but its continued existence was more than spotty. Its continuous history only goes back as far as the founding of a Symphony Association in 1937, and for years afterwards the orchestra was an unpaid scratch group that played only one or two concerts a year, much like some of the obscurer orchestras around today.
I did get to see some of the old programs, including ones from concerts I remember in the 70s and 80s, and yes, Aaron Copland and John Cage, as well as Alan Hovhaness, Virgil Thomson, and Cesar Chavez, came for the bicentennial season in 1975-6, which is what really put the orchestra on the map.
The History Museum, out on Senter Road, is an interesting place. Tucked in the back of a park, it's a re-created downtown neighborhood of olden days, with replica or possibly original buildings moved there, and a couple streets with old streetlights, and everything. But too many vacant lots, and a lack of street life, make it look a bit unreal, like the western town in that terrible Star Trek episode. The central building is an old hotel, and the museum archives are in the non-public area on the second floor.
Things may be livelier there on Saturday, when according to a flyer I picked up they're holding a Dia de Portugal Festival. Portuguese food, it says: that means linguisa. I may go to this.
cynthia1960, how about you?
