Our Virtual Fourth of July — from Music in the Mountains to the Baltimore Symphony

Happy Fourth of July! I am looking forward to enjoying some musical performances when our son Mitchell starts school at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore this fall. The Baltimore-Washington metro area, including Peabody Institute of the John Hopkins University, is rich in musical culture. The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra went “virtual” this weekend, with a special performance of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture that we enjoyed:

Meanwhile, “back at the ranch,” last night we enjoyed watching Music in the Mountains’ annual “Happy Birthday U.S.A.” concert and “virtual picnic” in Grass Valley. Executive Director Jenny Darlington-Person and Artistic Director and Conductor Ryan Murray led an entertaining program.

It was an inspiring production (viewed on our 27-inch Apple monitor with a glass of local chardonnay). The MIM concert offered a mix of new music via Zoom video conferencing, along with recorded video productions from past July Fourth concerts at the Nevada County Fairgrounds. (We have attended those). A “chat” feature provided with the virtual concert allowed us to communicate with each other. “Thank you,” we wrote:

Author: jeffpelline

Jeff Pelline is a veteran editor and award-winning journalist - in print and online. He is publisher of Sierra FoodWineArt magazine and its website SierraCulture.com. Jeff covered business and technology for The San Francisco Chronicle for 12 years, and he was a founding editor and Editor of CNET News for eight years, among other positions. Jeff has a bachelor's degree from UC Berkeley and a master's from Northwestern University. His hobbies include sailing, swimming, and trout fishing in the Sierra. View all posts by jeffpelline