Blog

Back in July, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution declaring this week as Arts in Education Week. To that end, umsLOBBY.org will post a series of articles this week focused on arts education. This first post features UMS President Ken Fischer talking about UMS’s arts education focus, which was virtually non-existent when he arrived in Ann Arbor in 1987.

I’m here in Ann Arbor to present my show Susurrus in the Matthaei Botanical Gardens. The gardens at the Matthaei are particularly special and I’m thrilled with how the piece works there. This is the perfect time of year too. UMS has done such a great job in presenting the piece very carefully and making sure that audiences get a great experience.

This week’s news includes the announcement of the 2010 Kennedy Center Honorees; a preview of UMS’s opening production, Susurrus; and a new music program for Detroit students offered by MSU.

Come visit the UMS table at Festifall (on the Diag, in front of the library) to get information on all of our incredible student ticket programs, inlcuding $10 Rush Tickets and the Fall Half Price Sale!

This year, the Institute for Humanities gallery opens with John Cage’s installation, “Lecture on the Weather,” a multi-media presentation based on the writings of Thoreau that brings together speech, music, lighting, and a weather soundscape. The installation sets the stage for a year of fantastic presentations and programming university-wide that will consider experimental music, dance, and performance, and the value of revisiting and re-creating time-based work.

Rather than solely relying on our own ideas, we consult quite a bit with our UMS Teacher Advisory Committee, an invaluable and indispensable resource to us. Its members (about 40 educators from throughout southeastern Michigan) represent the range of K-12 stakeholder and service providers: classroom and retired teachers, administrators, school board members, university faculty and staff, and others.

This week’s news includes an update on the Detroit Symphony Orchestra contract negotiations, an interview with jazz pianist Vijay Iyer, and a debate about the impact of live cinema broadcasts by the Met and others.

This week’s news includes a behind-the-scenes look at the folks who make those Steinways sing, a look at Brazilian dance troupe Grupo Corpo, and the announcement of a new ballet company in metro Detroit.

UMS had nearly 40 student workers last season, assisting us in all areas of our organization: the ticket office, production, programming, education, marketing, development, and administration.