Highs and lows - the Cleveland Orchestra experience

My initial plan was to write a simple review of last night’s Cleveland Orchestra concert at Severance Hall, but a litany of issues which have recurred with the concert planning and concertgoing experience over the last several months have led me to conclude that there are issues with the organization which must be addressed. 

First, the concert: Daniel and I attended last night’s Summers at Severance concert with a special guest, Daniel’s younger sibling Asareel.  This was Asareel’s first experience with a Classical music concert and it's always a thrill for me to introduce a young person to a more elevated cultural experience.  The concert featured guest conductor Petr Popelka and solo violinist James Ehnes.  The proceedings began about 15 minutes late due to a medical issue with a patron on the main floor.  Of course, such unfortunate events take place and once the EMT’s arrived, the patron was brought out on a stretcher and the concert began.  For an unknown reason, the EMT’s did not take the patron into the main foyer, but remained in the area behind the main floor where their work and chatter were plainly audible.  As a result, I was unable to gain much from Cesar Franck’s Le Chasseur maudit (The Accursed Hunstman) – a symphonic poem which was unfamiliar to me. 

After a quick stage change, the concert continued with Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Violin Concerto, Op. 35.  I only know this work through the Heifetz recording.  Although it incorporates several themes that Korngold used in his film scores, it deserves to be heard more often.  There are fewer violin concertos in the active repertoire than there are of, say, piano concertos.  So why not include a 20^th century concerto with such memorable tunes and virtuosic writing?  Ehnes’s performance was resplendent with soaring lyricism and musical virtuosity, receiving a deserved standing ovation.  Ehnes generously performed two encores, including a slow movement from a Bach Sonata. 

Following intermission, the concert concluded with the Symphony No. 6 in D major, Op. 69 by Antonín Dvorak – and here is where the real trouble began.  There were three unruly audience members in the center section of the last row on the main floor – right near our party.  (I did not see them during the opening half of the program.)  During the opening movement, they were chatting and giggling as they looked at videos on one person’s cell phone.  At one point, an usher intervened, whereupon they got up and went to the standing area behind the seats.  By the second movement, they were back in their seats and up to their hijinks again.  Once more, an usher appeared and they left – this time for good, I thought.  Then I saw one member of their party making her way to another seat in the far left near the front.  I was only able to marginally enjoy the remainder of the Symphony, including the Scherzo which is one of Dvořák’s most memorable movements.  As we left the concert, an astonished Asareel asked “what was up with those people?  How rude!”  There you have it: an 18-year-old who had never been to a Classical music concert knew more about appropriate behavior than the offending parties, who appeared to be in their 30s. 

Most of the ushers seen last night were unfamiliar to me.  Perhaps the regular ushers were on summer break.  I could plainly hear two of the ushers conversing during the Korngold Concerto.  Certainly, they should be advised by whoever trains them that sounds carry at Severance. 

Further, there is the orchestra's website.  It’s slow.  It times out – so that pages do not load or payments are not processed.  This happens about half the time I try to buy tickets online.  When it occurs, I receive a popup advising me to call the box office, during which I navigate through their 1990s style phone tree, and am invariably routed to a voicemail.  Eventually, I am called back and, if I’m not busy doing something else, can finally get my tickets.  Otherwise, we end up playing phone tag.  Cleveland is hardly short on IT resources who would be happy to assist the orchestra in improving the website performance (which is probably a question of server capacity) in exchange for some free tickets. 

 

The orchestra received a $50 million dollar donation from the Mandel family a few years ago.  Has it occurred to them to use some of that money to, say, fix the website, train the ushers (or replace them if necessary), and reopen the restaurant – which has been closed since COVID? 

 

It is incidents such as those above which leave me giving serious consideration to cancelling my Cleveland Orchestra subscription.  Anyone who knows me can affirm that one of the main reasons I stay in Ohio is due to the cultural amenities Cleveland has to offer – our orchestra is first among those amenities.  I certainly don’t stay in Ohio for the weather or the state’s backward politics.  I happen to work from home and could relocate to anywhere within the United States.  Daniel’s job means he is in great demand (he’s constantly being contacted by recruiters) and there are states where we be paid to move due to the demand for Daniel's skill set.  Over the last season, incidents such as those described above have led me to reevaluate whether it’s worth the time and expense to see live concerts or if I should just content myself with broadcasts and recordings – the latter of which I have plenty.  We still plan on attending numerous concerts in the upcoming season – but if the concertgoing experience does not improve, it may well be our last season doing so. 

2023 in review

2023 was an active year which included adventures, challenges, and triumphs.

I continued with my quest for fitness and, although I still have a bit of a belly, my weight is at its lowest level since the late 1990s and my waist is six inches smaller than in 2020.   I've also become a bit more muscular although I have no desire to become overly pumped.  

Since 2020, my life has been increasingly centered at home, as I’ve been a remote worker since then.  Daniel and I celebrated 17 years as a couple and 15 years in our South Euclid home.  What we’ve learned in the last decade and a half is that the work on our 83-year-old house never ends.  This year we had new storm windows installed – the previous ones were probably about 50 years old and rattled whenever a large truck or music blasting car drove by.  Our primary reason for replacing the storm windows was for better protection from the extremes of hot and cold one encounters in our region.  It will take several more months before we can gauge the impact on our utility bills, but the reduction in street noise was immediately noticeable and most welcome.

A new storm window being installed.

The storm windows held up well against the massive storm that struck in August, which left us without electricity for 86 hours.    

No review of 2023 in Northeast Ohio is complete without the state’s voters resounding endorsement of Issues 1 and 2, which guaranteed reproductive rights and allowed recreational cannabis, respectively.  Although Issue 1 is a constitutional amendment, Issue 2 was a ballot issue and state Republicans have been trying to restrict its impact.  It will be interesting to see how Ohio voters react to political interference in 2024.    

Sadly, 2023 also saw the resurgence of the odious Donald Trump, to which I can only respond: Have the American people forgotten the non-stop issuance of virtual diarrhea during the four years he was in the White House?  Have they forgotten how badly he mishandled COVID?  How the economy suffered?  How the Federal deficit exploded?  How he enabled and even encouraged the most flagrant racism and even insurrection?  How many times must people hit their own heads with a hammer before they realize that they’d feel better if they stopped?  Sure, the last two years have had a few challenges, mostly due to the emergence from the COVID crisis and the revival of our supply lines.  The biggest challenge was inflation, which slowed throughout 2023.  The economy is strong, unemployment is low, and the Fed has indicated they are about to start cutting interest rates.  Life is not perfect, but it’s arguably better.  Even the problems at our Southern border are largely because America is the land of hope and opportunity – and it would be even better if right-wing obstructionists would just get out of the way.  

Cleveland’s Classical music scene has now fully recovered from COVID, and in some ways is even stronger than before 2020.  The Cleveland Orchestra continued with its savvy programming approach which included plenty of newer and unfamiliar older music alongside Classical favorites.  I went to too many concerts to go into detail here, but a highlight included Michael Sachs playing Wynton Marsalis’ new Concerto for Trumpet.   

Local business developments included the long overdue demolition of the Richmond Mall, to be replaced by Belle Oaks, a mixed-use development. 

Danny and I traveled to Palm Springs in the winter and New Mexico in the autumn, along with quick trips to Saugatuck in the spring and New England over Labor Day weekend.  The New Mexico trip was in part to scope out a potential winter home for when we retire, but the more I travel, the more I feel centered in Cleveland.  Life is so affordable here; everything we need – high culture, sports, cuisine, medical care – is within easy access; even the winters are becoming easier to manage.

Enjoying Maple Creemees in Vermont

I also made four solo trips: one trip to London which was, to be honest, not very enjoyable; and three trips to see family members from which I brought home happy memories.

In Florida with my niece and her son

With my sister and her husband.

This year also saw the continued evolution of a meaningful relationship with someone who had been in the periphery of my life until about two years ago.  We had some ups and downs in 2023, but the year ended on a high note and my friendship with this person has had a profound impact on my life – and I hope it has a positive impact on this person’s life.

On to 2024!

Ohio’s terrible politicians can’t keep it from moving forward

 

Yesterday, Ohio’s voters handed a decisive victory to those who believe that individual humans should have the right to control their own bodies. 

Both Issue 1 (guaranteeing reproductive rights) and Issue 2 (legalizing Cannabis) passed with 57% voting in the affirmative.  Doubtless most who voted “Yes” on Issue 1 voted the same on Issue 2; and there were some who split their vote.  But the issues both passed by a substantial margin, in the face of misleading claims from the opposition that bordered on hysteria.

The anti-Issue 1 group even resorted to illegal tactics, including placing their signs on polling center property, as shown in this video I captured Tuesday morning.

Ohio Republicans from Governor Mike DeWine to Secretary of State Frank LaRose (likely a candidate for Senate next year) to scandal-beleaguered Lake County commissioner John Plecnik beat the drums against these issues.  They lost. 

Ohio’s Democratic and unaffiliated voters must now band together to free Ohio from the iron-grip Republicans have inflicted upon our state.  DeWine is term-limited out.  We must not allow LaRose to defeat Senator Sherrod Brown in November.  LaRose would try to implement the same policies nationally as he was trying to do in Ohio. 

We can celebrate our victory for now.  But the fight is not over, and it never will be. 

2023 Election Endorsements

November 7, 2023, will mark an off-year election in Ohio.  Turnout tends to be low in this type of election, so each vote is especially important.  Vote by mail and early in person voting starts on October 11. 

Issue 1: Reproductive rights – YES

Officially titled "The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety," this proposed Constitutional Amendment is listed on the ballot as Issue 1, having been certified despite the efforts of Ohio’s Secretary of State Frank LaRose and other extremist Republicans and pro-birth activists.  The centerpiece of this issue is allowing women to control their own bodies, including the right to have an abortion. 

These same activists, having failed in their attempt to raise the bar for passage to a nearly impossible level, are kicking up quite the fuss over this proposed amendment.  They are claiming that passage will lead to a rash of partial birth abortions and underage people obtaining gender reassignment surgery.  To use a polite term from another era: Poppycock!  Even Ohio’s Republican Attorney General, Dave Yost, has pointed out that there is nothing in the text of the amendment that even references gender reassignment or transgender people.  Read the complete text for yourself here.  Besides, is there an epidemic of young people in Ohio, or anywhere, seeking gender reassignment?  How would those wanting such a change even pay for it?  I don’t imagine the hourly wages at McDonald’s or wherever young people work would be sufficient.  As for partial birth abortions, the proposed amendment guarantees the right to an abortion during the time the fetus is determined to not yet be viable, as decided by the woman’s physician – unless that physician determines that continuing the pregnancy poses a danger to the woman’s life or health.  Less than .2% of abortions nationally have involved intact dilation and extraction and have generally been performed following a miscarriage.

I’m a gay man.  The chances I would get a woman pregnant are, well, basically zero.  But when it comes to allowing women to control their bodies, I stand with the vast majority of women.  I also believe that, as former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop did, the only way to lower the number of abortions is to lower the number of unwanted pregnancies – which means better access to contraception.  Not coincidentally, this is also something pro-birth extremists are trying to curtail.  Ultimately, whether or not to terminate a pregnancy is a decision best left to the individual woman in consultation with her physician.  Do Ohioans and Americans in general want to align themselves with countries like Yemen, Myanmar, Pakistan, or Nicaragua – or would we rather stand with Ireland, Germany, the United Kingdom, or the United States before Roe v. Wade was repealed? 

I strongly favor passage of Ohio Issue 1.

 

Issue 2: Recreational Cannabis – YES

In 1975, the Ohio legislature passed, and Governor James Rhodes signed a bill decriminalizing cannabis – making Ohio the sixth state to do so. 

In 2016, the Ohio legislature passed and Governor John Kasich signed a bill allowing Medical use for Cannabis to treat 21 health conditions, and setting up rather byzantine regulations for creating Cannabis dispensaries.  It also severely restricted licensing for cultivation of medical cannabis.  By 2021, only 20 cultivators had been licensed and 125,000 patients approved for medical cannabis.

The Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol initiative, to be listed on the ballot as Issue 2, will legalize recreational cannabis within Ohio, subject to the following:

• ·        Legalize the possession of up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis and 15 grams of concentrate for adults 21 years of age and older.
• ·        Allow the cultivation of six plants for personal use, with a maximum of 12 plants per home by adults 21 and older.
• ·        Allow the sale of cannabis at licensed dispensaries, with a 10 percent sales tax imposed.
• ·        Divide tax revenue between social equity and jobs programs (36 percent), localities that allow dispensaries to operate (36 percent), education and substance abuse programs (25 percent), and administrative costs (3 percent).
• ·        Allow landlords and business owners to prohibit use of cannabis within their property.

Legalizing recreational cannabis does not equate to approval of same.  It’s simply an acknowledgement that people use cannabis, just as they smoke tobacco and drink alcohol.  Use of these is a decision best left to the individual, and regulations should be consistent: just as one is not allowed to smoke tobacco in public buildings or airplanes, cannabis use should take place where others will not be impacted by second-hand smoke.  Just as one must be over 21 to legally drink, cannabis should be similarly restricted.  The proposed issue makes provisions for all these matters.  As a homeowner, I will continue exercise the right to ask visitors to step outside if they want to smoke tobacco or cannabis.  Who is going to be harmed by passage of this issue?  Drug traffickers who profit over the semi-illegality of cannabis in Ohio. 

I favor passage of Ohio Issue 2.

 

Issue 5 – Cuyahoga Community College tax levy

I have stated elsewhere that I am in support of free community college for all who seek it.  While this property tax levy does not reach that goal, it helps keep the costs of a college education under control for the modest cost of an additional $14 per year for every $100,000 of taxable home value.  It’s a bargain which only the sociopathic would oppose.

 

South Euclid Mayor: Georgine Welo is running unopposed for her sixth term as mayor.  Just in case someone tries to mount a write-in campaign, let us review her accomplishments.  Welo became mayor in 2004.  During the decades before she took office, none of the previous administrations tried to stop the local slide in population, quality of life, or local amenities that began in the 1980s.  Here are just a few of the developments which have taken place since Welo became mayor:

·        Complete replacement of Cedar Center North shopping center.

·        Construction of Oakwood Commons shopping center.

·        Partial replacement of the May-Green shopping center.

·        Creation of the Food Truck Park.

·        Cutters Creek housing development.

·        Removal of several troubled houses on Greenvale Road; additionally, multiple decaying, unoccupied homes were torn down during and after the Great Recession – many since replaced by new homes.

·        Creation of several pocket parks.

·        Multiple infrastructure improvements on Green Road and South Belvoir Boulevard, with smaller improvements on side streets.

For the first time in recent memory, nearly every store front in South Euclid is occupied.  Further, home values are up, and South Euclid is now a sellers’ market.  There was a house Dan and I considered buying several years ago, and in retrospect I wish I had because it is now out of our reach. 

Mayor Welo wants to continue to build on these successes, and deserves to continue in the job.

 

South Euclid-Lyndhurst School Board

There are four candidates running for the two open seats on the South Euclid-Lyndhurst School Board.  I endorse Cathy Covarrubias for one of the two open seats. 

 

Why I still have hope for Ohio

As I had hoped and advocated for, Ohio’s Issue 1 was defeated at the polls.  In the end, the margin was more than a landslide, it was an earthquake: 57% against to 43% in favor. 

My own vote was cast at my local polling place just after it opened at 6:30 am.  Since my driveway is currently under construction, I decided to forego the arduous task of maneuvering my car over the lawn to get onto the road and walked to the polls.  It was a beautiful morning and made for a nice start to the day.  There was a line of people waiting outside, not as large as in Presidential or Gubernatorial elections, but substantial enough to buoy my hopes for the Issue’s defeat.

The obligatory post-vote selfie.

I was recently speaking with a younger friend who, like me, despises Ohio’s politics.  But he has never lived in Ohio, only visited.  So, I had to explain a few nuances: Ohio is really two states: the larger cities of Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and their suburbs - along with smaller cities like Toledo, Dayton, and Youngstown, which are reliably blue; then there are the outer ring suburbs and the country, which are reliably red.  But the voters who really hold the cards in Ohio are neither Republican nor Democrat – they are unaffiliated and tend toward the fiscally conservative and socially moderate.  Social perceptions change with time.  While Ohio’s voters in 2004 were comfortable passing a Constitutional amendment to outlaw marriage equality (subsequently overturned by the Supreme Court), it’s doubtful they would do so today.

Ohio has long had a reputation as a swing state and a reflection of America’s politics in general.  It’s not so much a leader as a follower – about a decade behind the national trend.  During the height of the Reagan era, Ohio’s governor and both Senators were Democrats.  Today, the state leans red, while previous red states, including Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia, have become purple and even lean to the blue.  Ohio’s Presidential vote matched the electoral vote in every election after 1960 and before 2020. 

Ohio’s Secretary of State, Frank LaRose, pushed this issue and worked to put it onto the ballot in August – despite a recent law forbidding such one-off elections.  LaRose and fellow Republicans did so hoping that low turnout would help their cause.  In doing so, LaRose exposed his own hypocrisy for all to see.

"Changing the rules of a game so you have a better chance at winning is what my daughters try to do when they are losing Candyland.  It is not what responsible leaders do when their Agenda is failing."  -  Frank LaRose January 11, 2022

Ohio’s Secretary of State now has egg on his face, as does Governor Mike DeWine – who has styled himself as a moderate-conservative, but is substantively a right-winger.  DeWine is term limited and will likely retire from public life after his term expires. 

The winners: First, the women of Ohio, who now have a fighting chance to control their own bodies.  Second, those in Ohio who support the principle of one person, one vote.  Third, those active in Ohio politics – whether officeholders or not, Republican, Democrat, and unaffiliated – who opposed this Issue, including former Cuyahoga County commissioner Lee Weingart, former governors Bob Taft and John Kasich, and two former Ohio attorneys general.  Those listed here are all Republicans, battling to pull the state party toward sanity.  Whether they will emerge victorious in the war for their party’s soul remains to be seen – but last night they won a significant battle, and in doing so all of Ohio’s women won.

I have no illusions: Ohio leans Republican, despite having a Democratic Senator in Sherrod Brown – who is up for reelection next year with LaRose trying for the Republican nomination to oppose him.  But the redness of Ohio is exaggerated by gerrymandering, which has continued despite numerous court rulings and citizen initiatives.  The defeat of Issue 1 is a good step in preventing Ohio’s redness from becoming all but permanent. 

The work continues.  A proposed Constitutional amendment protecting women’s health choices will be on the ballot in November – now eligible for passage with a simple majority.  Another amendment, not yet approved for the ballot as signatures are being authenticated, would have Ohio join states including Michigan in allowing recreational cannabis.  More on these amendments in a future post.  

Vote NO on Ohio Issue 1

August 8^th will mark Ohio’s most important election in recent memory.  There are no federal or state candidates on the ballot.  Instead, there is only one item: Issue 1, a proposed Constitutional Amendment which would do the following:

• Raise the bar for getting an amendment on the ballot from 5% of voters in the last general election in 44 Ohio counties to 5% in all 88 counties. 
• Eliminate the 10-day time period to correct petition signatures deemed faulty from the Secretary of State’s office.  In other words, signatures deemed faulty by the Secretary of State (a partisan, elected office) will be thrown out with no opportunity for redress – forcing petitioners to begin the entire process again.
• If an issue gets on the ballot, the threshold to pass will be raised from 50% plus 1 to 60%.

In simplest terms, Issue 1, if passed, would make future Conditional amendments a virtual impossibility. 

The hypocrisy of those pushing this amendment is stunning.  Extremist Republicans were content with majority rule when it came to passing a Constitutional amendment outlawing marriage equality – which was later overturned by the U. S. Supreme Court.  They’re also fine with a simple majority to pass this amendment.  But with the prospect of an amendment protecting women’s reproductive rights looming, Ohio’s right wingers, funded by out of state interests, want to raise the bar.  It’s understandable why the pro-Issue 1 cadre is wary of an amendment protecting choice: most Ohioans are pro-Choice, as is the majority of Americans.  Issue 1’s backers are resorting to the usual odious scaremongering: they are claiming Issue 1’s opponents are trying to “destroy the family unit”, and they're airing ads claiming Issue 1’s defeat will lead to forced gender reassignment of children and “post-birth” abortions – whatever those are.  This is a classic case of the uber-religious trying to drum up hysteria to impose their values on everybody, regardless of one's religious choice. 

The pro-Issue 1 people have the gall to suggest that Issue 1 is really about protecting Democracy, while touting an amendment that violates the sacred democratic principle of “one person, one vote.”  Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who pushed to get this amendment on the ballot, has been caught in his own lie. 

The pro-Issue 1 campaign has become so odious that numerous Ohio Republicans, including former Cuyahoga County commissioner Lee Weingart, former governors Bob Taft and John Kasich, and two former Ohio attorneys general have come out against it.  In addition, a broad coalition of groups from across the political spectrum oppose Issue 1.

This issue will not be decided, however, by card carrying Republicans or Democrats.  It will be decided by unaffiliated voters, which constitutes the largest voting bloc in Ohio.  It is up to them to show up and vote NO on Issue 1.