Yakima Symphony Music Director Audition Trip - Day 1

I got to Yakima, WA yesterday afternoon, and it was a whirlwind day. I'm trying something new on this trip - video blogging. Along with writing my thoughts down, I'll be recording video snippets here and there, so you can get an idea of what traveling to conduct an orchestra for the first time is like and an idea of what it feels like to audition for an orchestra job. Video 1 - On a jet plane! (I know, I know! Shame it's not a boat!)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UafvkE3N1rU]

The flights to Yakima were fairly uneventful. I had a great time in the Seattle airport for a few hours before my flight to Yakima. Our gate was next to a gate for Vancouver, so I got to people from all over the world trying to get to the Winter Olympics. It was cool to see people in the team gear and countries colors waiting to board their flights.

My arrival in Yakima was pretty neat. We had to fly over the mountains, so the view from the airplane was stunning. Noel Moxley met me at the airport and got me to the Hilton Garden Inn.

Video 2 - The Hilton Garden Inn

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=132uQHVqCQM]

Last night, Noel had a bunch of friends meet for dinner. We ended up at "The Restaurant" or Gasperetti's. The food was great! Yakima is surrounded by vineyards, apple trees, and hops! 70-80% of the hops in the US are produced here in Yakima, and it's 2nd only to Germany in hops production. I got to try some of the wine from the surrounding area. Haven't tried the hops yet!

Stay tuned. Each morning, I'll post some video and write a bit about what happened the day before.