Buzz: Divas, Documents, and Dodgy Forecasts

And where in the world is JoAnn Falletta?

Pitcher at Amvets we’ve just got to have. A slice of summer! Photo by the Author.

Stormy weather

These storm predictions — who knows what to believe? Sometimes the snow arrives right on cue; sometimes it never shows up at all. Either way, we might as well enjoy the theater of it.

Last week, the St. Louis Choir threw in the towel. Choirmaster Frank Scinta sent out a note explaining the cancellation, and it was a masterpiece of weather-related wit: “Rather than have only a portion of the choir present — and watching them freeze through the music of William Byrd (or is it ‘Brrr…d’) — I think it’s best to take the evening off.”

Where in the world….

Back at The Buffalo News, Buzz used to have fun with a recurring feature: “Where in the world is JoAnn Falletta?” The globe-trotting maestra was everywhere, and readers loved trying to keep up.

Let’s bring it back. Where is JoAnn Falletta this week? Here are your clues: the largest public space in the world… a 30-hour journey to get there from North Carolina, where she last landed … a country where a major music magazine recently ran a feature on her — stressing the long and lively musical friendship between our two nations.

The answer: China! Falletta writes: “People have been open and warm, the food is delicious, and Beijing is beautiful in the snow.”

Under the bright lights

It’s fun to live vicariously through Jay Dref, currently on tour with Sarah Brightman. He recently posted a video of the two of them singing together — microphones in hand — beneath a cascade of rainbow-colored lights, God knows where. It looked like the Northern Lights had taken a gig.

The comments section, naturally, went to work. “Sarah Brightman, Josh Groban,” someone ventured. “Not Josh,” another replied. Then came the correction, loud and proud: “That is the amazing JAY DREF!”

Dref, for his part, kept it simple. “She is amazing,” he wrote. “Love working with her.”

Fancy meeting you

Buzz recently paid a visit to the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra archives — and there, among the dusty boxes and folders, we ran into former The Buffalo News colleague Jeff Miers. We used to sit next to Miers back in the day, with Jeff Simon kitty-corner. It was heaven. All day long, we talked about music. So it felt exactly right to find Miers back at it again — this time in the archives, alongside Michael Jackson, son of UB prof Bruce Jackson, doing research for a project we are absolutely not going to give away.

But here is what we will give away: their assigned “office” for the day was the ladies’ room in the balcony — complete with those cool, curvy vanities. Archival research, Buffalo-style.

The buzz

In the archives, looking at old letters, there was a time when the plural of Stadium was “Stadia.” Let’s bring that back! … Buzz walked to the mailbox in zero-degree temperatures and howling winds. And we forgot that the mailbox doesn’t even open anymore! It opens two inches. We had a pile of letters to mail, and we had to mail them two by two. While the wind threatened the blow us away, and passing motorists looked at us pityingly….Thrift shop item we just want to own …a pitcher shaped like a piece of watermelon, seen at Amvets, and pictured above. It must be gone by now, sigh. But what can we say? It’s a slice.

Further Reading

Click here for the last Buzz column: “Twinkle Lights, Big City.”

Click here for “We’re Going In: A Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra Coffee Concert.”

Click here for “Cappuccino, Vivaldi, Sunlight, Suzuki” (another classic Buzz)!

Thank you for sharing the fun with me! I am grateful for all my subscribers, free and paid. I will you see you on Sunday for our Sunday edition!

Questions

Did you see that watermelon pitcher at Amvets? Did you buy it? Were you aware of where in the world was JoAnn Falletta? What was your storm experience? Was it an actual snowstorm where you were, or was it a Nothingburger?