cellobello Archives

Best Public Response Letters to WestJet Bumping the Cello — by Paul Katz

I want to thank the 200 or so people who have emailed me in support of my dispute with WestJet Airlines and I apologize if your comments were not used below. Don't want this blog to be too, too long! Only 1 email was critical of me and I include it below. The responses are worth reading...illuminating, useful...and a couple are hilarious! —Paul Katz ------------------------------ Dear Paul, I felt absolutely sick when I read your story. I am a flight attendant for XXX Airlines and my husband a Captain of 32 years. I am dumbstruck by the stupidity of airline staff and ultimately airline management when it comes to the handling of priceless instruments on flights. Our twins, a cellist and violinist, experienced similar treatment at the Canadian National Music Competition in [...]

By Paul Katz|2019-05-29T01:23:44-04:00September 5th, 2012|Categories: Cello Travel|Tags: weight, safety, height restrictions, cello, Travel, American Airlines, cellobello, musicians, travel with instruments, Katz, space, traveling with a cello, Paul, media, airlines, news, stowage, FAA, WestJet, FAA passenger bill of rights, restrictions, regulations, size, rules, passenger rights|

Bumping the Cello: An Exchange Between WestJet’s Robert Barron and Paul Katz

Shortly after my "Airline Nightmare" story appeared in the Boston Globe, WestJet representative Robert Barron wrote a letter of explanation to the Globe. It is reprinted here, with my personal reactions injected. – PK Robert Barron - West Jet Customer Service Agent: First of all, I'd like to say to Mr. Katz that I'm sorry he had such an unpleasant experience flying with us. All of us at WestJet are very proud of our company and its caring culture so we take it personally when we hear people are unhappy with us. The second-last thing I would want to do is cause a guest any upset, but the very last thing I want to do is to jeopardize anyone's safety. While many airlines do permit musical instruments to fly in the cabin, [...]

By Blogmaster|2017-10-30T05:20:30-04:00September 1st, 2012|Categories: Cello Travel|Tags: flying with a cello, stowage, regulations, weight restrictions, safety, WestJet, weight, Travel, restrictions, cello, musicians, size, cellobello, space, transportation, Katz, musical instruments, carry-on, Paul, flying with instruments, passenger rights, air, height restrictions, FAA, media, purchasing extra seats, FAA passenger bill of rights, news|

NPR Podcast of Paul Katz Interview: Skies Less-Than Friendly When Packing A Cello

Reprinted from NPR - National Public Radio Paul Katz bought two tickets — one for himself and one for his cello — in the cabin of a flight from Calgary to Los Angeles. But the captain told him his centuries-old cello had to fly as checked baggage. After an agonizing flight, Katz cried when the captain returned his cello, unharmed. Listen to the Podcast on National Public Radio TRANSCRIPT Copyright © 2012 National Public Radio. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required. NEAL CONAN, HOST: On a flight from Calgary to Los Angeles, cellist Paul Katz did everything right. He bought two tickets: one for him, one for his instrument, just the same as thousands of flights before. When he showed up [...]

By Blogmaster|2021-12-23T10:18:03-05:00August 29th, 2012|Categories: Cello Travel|Tags: carry-on, flying, news, NPR, regulations, stowage, passenger rights, safety, weight restrictions, weight, Travel, WestJet, cello, cello case, extra airline seats, cellobello, space, restrictions, Katz, musical instruments, carry-on baggage, Paul, flying with instruments, size, airlines, baggage, transportation, flying with cello, bill of rights, FAA, media|

Flying with Your Cello? Print the FAA Passenger’s Bill of Rights to Carry With You

WHEN TRAVELING WITH AN INSTRUMENT, BE SURE TO PRINT THE FOLLOWING PASSENGER'S BILL OF RIGHTS AND CARRY IT ONBOARD WITH YOU! DOWNLOAD PDF The United States’ FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act - SEC. 403 § 41724, adopted by the US Congress on 6 February 2012: H.R.658 - FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2011 SEC. 403. MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. (a) In General- Subchapter I of chapter 417 is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘Sec. 41724. Musical instruments ‘(a) In General- ‘(1) SMALL INSTRUMENTS AS CARRY-ON BAGGAGE- An air carrier providing air transportation shall permit a passenger to carry a violin, guitar, or other musical instrument in the aircraft cabin, without charging the passenger a fee in addition to any standard fee that carrier may require for comparable carry-on baggage, [...]

By Blogmaster|2019-05-26T04:28:40-04:00August 29th, 2012|Categories: Cello Travel|Tags: carry-on baggage, cello, space, size, cellobello, musical instruments, transportation, airlines, flying with instruments, air, FAA, media, flying, news, flying with a cello, stowage, regulations, weight restrictions, safety, WestJet, Travel, extra airline seats, weight, Instruments|

WQXR Podcast of Paul Katz Interview: the Pitfalls of Taking Musical Instruments on Planes

Listen: Reprinted from WQXR.org U.S. airlines are more punctual and less likely to lose your bag than at any time in more than two decades, according to a recent Associated Press analysis of Bureau of Transportation data. Fewer than three suitcases per 1,000 passengers were reported lost, damaged or delayed from January through June, a record low. But a recent spate of stories concerning musical instruments on airplanes suggests that the skies aren't always friendly for musicians. Paul Katz, a former member of the Cleveland Quartet, recently experienced a particularly dramatic incident involving his 1669 Andrea Guarneri cello and a flight from Calgary to Los Angeles operated by WestJet, which partners with American and Delta, among other carriers. "I was even pre-boarded. I got the royal treatment,” Katz tells host Naomi [...]

By Blogmaster|2017-10-30T05:21:17-04:00August 28th, 2012|Categories: Cello Travel|Tags: stowage, traveling with cello, FAA, traveling with instruments, flying, weight restrictions, flying with a cello, WestJet, Travel, checked baggage, weight, Instruments, extra airline seats, cello, musical instruments, restrictions, cellobello, flying with instruments, carry-on baggage, Katz, media, size, Paul, news, airlines|

Paul Katz’s Airline Nightmare Awakens Public and Media Attention: CBC News

Reprinted from CBC News, Aug 23, 2012 Musicians call for clarity when flying with instruments Students pay for four extra seats only to be told two cellos not allowed on flight The director of Mount Royal University's Conservatory is calling on airlines to set a firm policy when it comes to transporting musical instruments. Paul Dornian said a group of students from Poland returning home from Calgary earlier this month were told their four cellos could not all take their paid seats on the plane. Air Canada told the students it had a policy of no more than two cellos per plane. Dornian said he’s never heard that rule before and says the students had no problem flying with four cellos to Calgary. He said musicians always tell the [...]

By Blogmaster|2019-05-29T01:56:37-04:00August 27th, 2012|Categories: Cello Travel|Tags: Travel, traveling with instruments, cello, attention, WestJet, cellobello, flying with instruments, checked baggage, Katz, air, extra airline seats, Paul, flying with cello, restrictions, airlines, instrument restrictions, instruments on flights, FAA, media, FAA passenger bill of rights, news, flying, stowage, safety, traveling with cello|

Airline Nightmare

Reprinted from the Boston Globe of August 20, 2012 In a state of panic and fearing catastrophe, I am writing this midflight as I travel from Calgary, Alberta, to Los Angeles on American Airlines. I thought I did everything right: bought two seats, a ticket for myself and one for my Andrea Guarneri cello made in 1669. I checked in, got two boarding passes, and went to the boarding gate without problem. It all went smoothly—the cello and I were even pre-boarded—one of the easier of the literally thousands of flights we have taken together. Until . . . As the cabin begins to fill, the flight crew informs me that this is a “code-share” flight, and that although I have an AA ticket, the plane is operated by WestJet, and my [...]

By Paul Katz|2017-10-30T05:22:01-04:00August 22nd, 2012|Categories: Cello Travel|Tags: Katz, flying with cello, Paul, instrument restrictions, airlines, instruments on flights, media, FAA, news, FAA passenger bill of rights, nightmare, flying, stowage, Travel, traveling with cello, flying with instruments, traveling with instruments, cello, air, weight restrictions, cellobello, baggage, WestJet|

That Sound — by Selma Gokcen

"Musical training is a more potent instrument than any other in the integration of the human being because rhythm and harmony find their way into the inward places of the Soul on which they mightily fasten, imparting grace, and making the Soul of him who is rightly educated truly graceful." – Plato I wonder whether most of us, performers and listeners alike, fall in love with the sound of an instrument before we even know how and why it has such an effect upon us. The primacy of sound—its essential fascination—indicates a deep internal need for the connection to life, first of all in the womb where the heartbeat of the mother is heard, then after birth as the newborn is attuned to the sound of its mother’s voice, and [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2017-10-09T01:59:27-04:00July 15th, 2012|Categories: Alexander Technique for Cellists, Artistic Vision, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: creativity, Selma, cello, Production, cellobello, Alexander, performers, Sound, the Juilliard School, emotion, Vibrations, Technique, perspective, Alexander Technique, Gokcen|

The Power of Quietness — by Selma Gokcen

The place to find is within yourself. I learned a little about this in athletics. The athlete who is in top form has a quiet place within himself, and it’s around this, somehow, that his action occurs...There’s a center of quietness within, which has to be known and held. If you lose that center, you are in tension and begin to fall apart. – Joseph Campbell True quiet means keeping still when the time has come to keep still, and going forward when the time has come to go forward. In this way rest and movement are in agreement with the demands of the time, and thus there is light in life. The hexagram signifies the end and the beginning of all movement. The back is named because in the [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2017-10-09T01:48:34-04:00June 15th, 2012|Categories: Alexander Technique for Cellists, Beyond the Traditional, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: balance, Alexander Technique, artistry, Gokcen, power, movement, cello, cellobello, Selma, Preparation, training, accomplishments, performance, quietness, Technique, unlearning habits|

The Tools of Embodied Music® – the Feldenkrais Method® for Musicians (Part 2)

The tools of Embodied Music® – the Feldenkrais Method® for Musicians: 1. Movement 2. Awareness 3. Reeducation of perception 4. Learning to change habits 5. Learning to use the whole self in playing Movement Dr. Feldenkrais used to say: “Movement is life. Without it, life is inconceivable. Improve your movement and you improve your life”. One can use the word “music” instead of “life” and the meaning will be as true. Playing an instrument is a succession of movements. The properties of movement are the properties of sound as well: time, space, weight, rhythmical impulse, gesture, momentum towards an action, the process of speeding gradually and slowing down gradually. Improving these properties in our movements will make it easier to achieve the sounds we want. We derive meaning from [...]

By Aliza Stewart|2019-03-04T03:02:03-05:00May 31st, 2012|Categories: Beyond the Traditional, Performance, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: improvement, perception, movement, gestures, cello, Injuries, cellobello, Aliza, music, Dr. Feldenkrais, Awareness, movement lessons, Stewart|

The Tools of Embodied Music® – the Feldenkrais Method for Musicians (Part 1)

Before discussing what the Feldenkrais Method is and how it can help you make better music without injuring yourself, let me start by asking a few questions. Have you ever observed how very young children respond to music – with rhythmic movement, with sounds, with all sorts of other movements? Do you remember how you felt as a child, when you wanted to make music? Do you ever feel something akin to ecstasy when you hear a piece of a performance you really love? Is the sense of ecstasy only a thought or is it a feeling also in your body? Where in yourself do you feel it? Do you feel the rhythm? Can you feel that sometimes music makes you feel light and sometimes heavy, sometimes it is [...]

By Aliza Stewart|2019-03-04T03:03:24-05:00May 18th, 2012|Categories: Performance, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: injury, musical imagination, Aliza, phrasing, Dr. Feldenkrais, movement lessons, frustration, spontaneity, Listening, Stewart, expression, organization, Rhythm, movement, cello, cellobello, workshops, music, master classes|

Raising the Arms (Part 2) — by Selma Gokcen

A wheel needs a central point of contact, an axis, in order to turn and spin. One never loses touch with one's central point—the spine—as one moves through life. But society today has lost that core. It has no idea where it is going. - Svami Purna When I was well into my studies as a young cellist, I became fascinated with the question: How does one raise the arms to play? My naive mind wondered: is there a wrong way and a right way, and how does one distinguish between the two? I read a great many books on cello technique and for years I asked this question of my teachers. It seemed to me to be a very important gesture that most people took for granted, and my [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2017-10-09T01:35:06-04:00May 7th, 2012|Categories: Alexander Technique for Cellists, Performance, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: Preparation, gestures, Awareness, cello technique, Primary Control, sound production, injury, energy, connection, Alexander Technique, cello, Gokcen, cellobello, music, Selma|

Playing Audition Excerpts: Yes, the Devil’s in Them — by Brant Taylor

Although the collection of excerpts on an audition repertoire list may seem arbitrary, each one has a purpose: giving the audition candidate an opportunity to demonstrate certain things about his or her playing and artistry. Audition success involves showing a command of certain basic elements—such as rhythm, dynamics, intonation and articulations—as well as conveying a nuanced understanding of the music and the composer. A well crafted audition list will include excerpts that emphasize each of these elements, and a candidate’s ability to demonstrate control and understanding of them will determine his or her chance for success. Let's put these goals into concrete terms using a common cello audition excerpt as an illustration—the opening of the second movement of Brahms' Symphony No. 2: Brahms Second Symphony, 2nd Mvt. [...]

By Brant Taylor|2022-03-28T13:44:33-04:00May 2nd, 2012|Categories: Auditions, In the Practice Room, Orchestra, Repertoire|Tags: cello, success, cellobello, tempo, Auditions, Brant, understanding, Excerpts, dynamics, Brahms, exploration, nuance, Taylor, legato, artistry, control, inflection, goals, shifting, color, fingerings|

Stage-dreaming — by Mickey Katz

A few days ago I was on the Symphony Hall stage, playing Brahms’s A German Requiem in concert. While playing the second movement, I started thinking about what I was going to make for dinner the following night. The last time I cooked it, I thought, it came out a little dry. Maybe this time I should… But wait a second, I was playing one of my favorite pieces in one of the world’s best halls, with a great orchestra and a great conductor, how could I not be completely absorbed in what I was doing? Was I the only one on stage whose mind was wandering, and if not—did anyone in the audience notice? I was aware that I was a part of a great concert, and the audience [...]

By Mickey Katz|2022-04-24T13:11:05-04:00April 26th, 2012|Categories: Artistic Vision, In the Practice Room, Orchestra, Performance, Self Discovery|Tags: Katz, musicianship, Symphony, Practice, distractions, Preparation, Boston, concentration, Mickey, Symphony Hall, Brahms, performers, expression, performance, inspiration, practicing, cello, Technique, cellobello|

Raising the Arms (Part 1) — by Selma Gokcen

You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel. - Pablo Casals Pablo Casals, ever aware of the miracle of life and of how gesture can be informed with thought and feeling, could elicit from his cello or from his orchestra sounds that could penetrate the heart. To watch him moving his arms as he played or conducted was to witness the reaching forth from his inner being to the outer world. Arms are conductors of the energy within. They bear the fruits of our thought [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2017-10-09T01:30:46-04:00April 23rd, 2012|Categories: Alexander Technique for Cellists, Performance, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: Selma, cello, Spine, cellobello, body, music, quietness, musicians, Alexander Technique, Casals, Gokcen, expression, movement, power, anxiety|

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