I was reading in the today’s New York Times as this weekend the NY Philharmonic played in Center Park and accepted the pre-announced encored from the 63.000 audiences via text messages and thought that is was such a cool idea.

A few years back I have a “similar” experience. I went to some kind of job interview and walking back through Boston I saw a large symphonic orchestra playing right on street. It was perhaps 130-140 musicians in the orchestra, mostly teenagers of 15-18 years, perhaps some kind of music academy as they play rather good for a regular high-school band. There were perhaps a few dozen of walkers who stop by to listen so did I. The orchestra played a few classical pop peaces and it was kind of surreal to listen the famous repertoire live in the middle of the city. Then a conductor (a woman) turned to a few of us what were there and asked what we would like them to play. It was so nice. A guy proposed the William Tell Overture; she turned to the orchestra and they play the Overture - juts like that. She turned back asking what next.  I race in my mind across the pop repertoire and ask for the Rimsky’s Scheherazade. The conductor asked: “Which movement?” I replayed: ”The third”. Believe me or not but she turned back and they start to play. Sure it was not the perfect play but it was so much fun…

How little I knew about the craziness and eagerness that lives in the lungs of tanagers. Being me I decided to walk around the orchestra to listen it from different time-delay points.  I was on the further right what the music approached the famous ship wrack moment. The orchestra had 4 tubes and one evenly-enthusiastic tanager behind each of them. When this 6 tubes kicked in with the “wave thyme”.  I got that re-birth experience. It was like a cat suddenly wakes up and jumps 6 feet in air…  I did not have a hard attack but I was so close…

I had need to calm down and ask them to play Vocalise… she shad that they do not play Vocalise…