Young Musicians

The great are sometimes very great and sometimes very small. Inthe soaring space of a symphony hall, the violinist Midori looks momentarily lost. But on any stage, she has presence.In her presence, a roomful of young musicians at the Peabody Conservatory last spring grew silent as Dean Eileen Cline and Rebecca Henry, chair of the preparatory string department, introduced Midori. She had made her concert debut at age 11. Now 19, Midori Goto (she never uses her last name in public) stood at the foot of the stage in North Hall with its high windows and bare wood floor to talk with schoolchildren, high school boys, adolescent girls, at least one of whom, like Midori, hopes fervently to grow taller than her mother.

The world according to RenoTHEATER Reno, the outrageous New York comedian, is on stage at the Theatre Project with a one-woman production titled, appropriately, "Reno's New Show." The show tackles serious topics such as the AIDS crisis and racial and sexual discrimination. The artist's sardonic rapid-fire delivery has been compared with that of the late Lenny Bruce. Reno's hourlong comedy hour on HBO last year garnered her an Emmy nomination and won cable's ACE award for "best entertainment writing."

Art in the Park to feature exhibit, music entertainment The Carroll County Arts Council will hold its annual Art in the Park 2005 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday on the grounds of Westminster City Hall, just off East Main Street on Locust Street. About 50 artists will participate in the juried art show and sale. On display will be paintings, drawings, collage, photographs, fine prints, sculpture and stained glass. Featured entertainment will include Jerry Haines (guitar and vocals) at 10:30 a.m.; Tim Jenkins and David Sheets (jazz duo)

Orchestra seeks young musicians The Chesapeake Youth Symphony Orchestra is seeking young musicians for its coming season. The CYSO has seven ensembles, including two all-strings orchestras, two full orchestras, a wind ensemble and two flute choirs. Musicians of any age and ability should call or e-mail to schedule an audition. Auditions will be held Aug. 29 to Sept. 1 between 5 to 9 p.m. and are by appointment only. Information: 410-263-2664, cy so@verizon.net or www.cy orchestra.org Volunteers wanted to share experience The Maryland Business Roundtable for Education needs volunteers from the Anne Arundel County business community to share their work experiences with area eighth- and ninth-graders and show them the connection between what they're learning in school and the real world.

The worlds of punk rockers, folk musicians and ukulele players converge this Saturday night at the Patterson Center for the Arts in Rock That Uke, a documentary on the personality of the ukulele. Four live acts will follow the film, showing at 7 p.m. ($10, $8 members). For Rock That Uke, William Preston Robertson, with the help of co-director Sean Anderson, set out to find out why young musicians continue to be attracted to the ukulele and what possesses some of them to electrify it. Ukulele playing is "both sort of absurd and comic, yet touched with a certain vulnerability and sadness," Robertson says.

Phil Woods, the legendary jazz saxophonist who jammed with Charlie "Bird" Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, walked into the auditorium of Towson High School yesterday, amazed that a water main break that closed area schools hadn't canceled his appearance. "Did you get special dispensation from the emperor?" Woods asked music teacher Barry Karow. "Sir," Karow replied, "you are the emperor." Woods, wearing his customary bebop cap, proceeded to educate and entertain 22 students and their teacher for two hours, spinning yarns about the days of avant-garde jazz, tinkling at the piano and playing an alto saxophone.

TRUE MAPLE SYRUP, fresh from the tree, will be yours at the annual Maple Sugarin' Festival from 10: 30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at Hashawha Environmental Appreciation Center. For 15 years, families have attended for the making and tasting demonstrations, the pancake brunch, and full slate of family activities. Hashawha is at 300 John Owings Road, next to Bear Branch Nature Center. It is easily reached from Route 97 north of Westminster or from Bachmann Valley Road. Several sugar maples will be tapped for sap, which is gathered and boiled into syrup.

Jane Kenworthy, the energetic, enterprising executive director of the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra for the past three seasons, said last night that she is resigning her position effective early January. Kenworthy, 54, said she is leaving to accept a post as executive director of the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies, an organization that oversees eight young people's instrumental ensembles in the Minneapois-St. Paul metropolitan area. Kenworthy, who began her career in arts administration managing the Greater Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, expressed her delight at the prospect of working once again with talented, young musicians.

It was around the time Miles died that my friend Quincey and Imade our pledge to see the giants before they all left.Miles Davis passed away in 1991, and suddenly we realized more and more of the old jazz giants -- people we held as heroes, trailblazing geniuses of America's only home- grown art form -- were dying off.In '90, Art Blakey, Dexter Gordon and Sarah Vaughan made their exits. The year before, Roy Eldridge. The year before that, Chet Baker and Gil Evans. The Eighties also saw the huge losses of Thelonious Monk, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Earl Hines, Bill Evans, Cootie Williams and Philly Joe Jones, to name several.

Like most seniors, Kimberly Bergstrom has been busy squeezing as much as she can out of her final high school days before graduating next week. Bergstrom, 18, who attends Southern High School in Anne Arundel County, has played the flute since fourth grade and once dreamed of making it a career. But because reality tells her she has a "million-to-one" shot of landing in a symphony orchestra, she plans to enroll at Towson University this fall and major in music education. Yesterday, however, she lived her dream for a day, playing with a professional orchestra to a sellout crowd at Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall.