run, forrest, run!

I just got home from AYS's Gala Concert, honoring Alan Silvestri this year. We played music from Back to the Future, What Lies Beneath, Beowulf, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Mouse Hunt, Cast Away, The Polar Express, and Forrest Gump. Since it was a fundraiser, we all played for free, and there was a dinner afterwards (so I guess not totally free--we did get a good meal out of it!) with an auction for donated items, including wine from the Silvestri Vineyard. It was great fun. I know sometimes musicians complain about doing movie music, but I enjoy it, and I feel like it's a great way to introduce people to classical music. Maybe some musicians dislike it because it's often the same movie music done over and over again (John Williams, Lord of the Rings--both of which, in my young and unjaded state, I still LOVE to play!). I think there's loads of good movie music out there, and if arranged well (I believe ours was put together with the help of David Newman, AYS alumnus, parent, and composer himself), it can make for a really good concert. Free wine afterwards doesn't hurt, either :)