American Giant and Bangor Symphony bring local talent to life

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here in America work is in trouble we've offshored our manufacturing sent away good jobs and lost so much ability to make things American Giant is a company that's pushing back against this tide they make highquality clothing sweatshirts jeans dresses jackets and so much more right here in the USA visit american-giant docomo 20 a checkout that's 20% off your first order at american-giant dcom promo code staple 20 can off our 7:00 hour at uh 7:02 in fact 33° outside we're on our way up to 50 it feels like it's about 24 and like I said things kind of a little on the icy side depending on where you are here in the Bangor Brewer area not too bad at all it's I95 Bangor classic rock station Cory here with you I have conductor Lucas Richmond here with me from the Bangor Symphony Orchestra good morning to you good morning I'm excited that you're here I I was really excited that you picked Queen uh because there was some of my faves and obviously I being from the musical background that you have I can understand that choice completely I feel like uh for those who are unaware of kind of what you do you landed here in Bangor how uh well there was um actually the first time I conducted the Bangor Symphony um uh the former music director um uh just suddenly left okay and there was um the the reopening of the Colin Center um uh the the executive director of the Bangor Symphony knew me and said we need a conductor to come in and and conduct this concert for the reopening of the Colin Center so that was actually the very first time that I experienced working with the orchestra and where were you located at that time I was um music director for the Knoxville Symphony in Tennessee okay wow um and then there was a an official search for a new music director and uh I was um awarded the position nice um so for 5 years I was commuting back and forth between Tennessee and Maine wow um but every time I got off the plane in Bangor I felt this this uh just um I I could breathe again and um we knew that when I my time in Tennessee was finished uh that we would move to Bangor nice and here you are and you have had such a career and I can't wait to Deep dive into it between what you've done here I mean I was reading you were at the Vatican last year in October yes you've done some movie scores I mean there's a lot of really neat things and what I like to do with this position sometimes is be able to bring people in who people might not realize are sitting right here in Bangor main with all this Talent so uh we're going to talk about that but first we're going to rock out it's Rocking In The Free World sending that out to Garrett at Circle K today rock on my friend I'd like some danishes it's on edx 7 FM is 712 and Bangor Symphony Orchestra conductor Lucas Richmond is here with me so all right I want to get into some of your background because you spoke the reason why I I had you in here is because you spoke of the John bap's graduation if it was last year the year before I can't remember but I just this past uhing yeah that's so cool first of all when I graduated we were on the stage of baps and all of us fit there and now it's the cross Center and it's like a thousand gazillion people and it's a little bit of a bigger deal I feel kind of chipped from that but uh and we didn't have cool speakers like you I'm pretty sure ours were like hurry up let's get it done and then the kid in the back passed out because it was so hot on the stage was very much more pleasant experience having you come in but uh I was listening a little bit to where you've lived and what you've done and then I was checking online too uh some of the things the first that popped out just yes last year was the the Vatican you've been all over the world tell me about how you you know kind of got into this and what you've been able to do some of the highlights of the the great things you've been able to do with this career how much time do you have I know well I mean keep it to four minute segment and we're good no I I've been very lucky uh I've known from a very early age that I wanted to be in music um since I was five or six um uh and it's led me on an incredible journey um with u u people both in the classical world and in Pop um uh I conducted for Michael Jackson um which is nut I just named drop that little guy you remember him I don't know anybody know him and uh doing film scores and and uh all kinds of things and then yes I've had a chance to work with um um people in orchestras around the world um one of the first experiences was traveling uh being on tour with Lenard binstein wow in the schester kolstein music festival and we did concerts in Germany um London and Moscow um so in 1988 your passport book must be crazy uh well I can't even imagine that's not and you were talking about the scores and stuff that you've done I mean I was looking through was like seven I've seen that movie y As Good As It Gets I've seen that movie what like I mean the village which I thought was a great movie you you've done for those how did you end up doing scores uh well so living in Los Angeles um a dear friend of mine was um working with the contractor who hires the orchestras for these a lot of these film scores and at various times they needed a conductor who um who could do like in um The Case of the Village um they needed a conductor who could uh knew all the technology of how to synchronize music to film but also um could work with a world-class soloist like Hillary Han the violinist um so you know so rooted in the classical world but also understanding the film world uh and so that's that's how that came to be that they they called me and said Lucas can you do this kind of thing um and one thing led to another so I did a number of films um and uh more recently uh did the the SK uh film score White Noise with Danny Elfman oh yeah and um also uh I am now officially in the uh Marvel Universe um having conducted the score for Madame Webb no how cool is that I mean that's pretty neat and and you so and then tell me how you ended up playing at the Vatican so I've got dear friends um who this uh incredible uh uh a woman named Anora foa uh has created these um chamber operas that she calls them um all about the myth of creation and one of them is uh uh they they had this opportunity to present a Chamber Opera at the Vatican and they asked me to compose it to write a score so um uh it was very last minute and I wrote about 80 minutes of Music in about six seven weeks um for a small chamber Ensemble two singers and two actors and and uh we were in a chapel to the left of St Peter's Basilica did that did you ever sit back and go this is my life that's just an incredible experience to have opportunity inredible yeah I you know um I I do pinch myself at times and I'm so grateful uh and and at this point I'm just very um fortunate to be able to say I I only want to work with the people that that with nice people um and uh and and I can choose pick and choose my experiences um and and that's that's fabulous and one of them uh that I absolutely love is the Bangor Symphony Orchestra and the members of the orchestra and you have got some really cool things that are going to be coming up and I want to talk about some of the the um the project that you have because one in particular I was really excited I was telling you the Star Wars project but we're going to talk a little bit more we got Lucas Richmond in the the studio with us today from the Bangor Symphony Orchestra we're going to rock out a bit and then talk out some more right here on I9 the in the I95 Bangor classic rock station at 95.7 FM 7:31 as I said I should be somewhere in the mid-50s today says Todd Simcox it looks like it's going to brighten up across the region here sooner or later but right now a little on the Cloudy side so just beware uh I am Corey in the studio with me right now Lucas Richmond from the Bangor Symphony Orchestra we're just talking about well it's funny cuz Metallica just did a big symphonic performance and uh I was wondering if you have ever had the the occasion to conduct for any rock groups or or or you know that kind of you just said you did you did The Grateful Dead Symphony right so this is the premiere of a of a a whole like major symphonic work taking 12 Tunes uh Grateful Dead tunes and turning into a it's called um dead Symphony Number Six you can look it up um and uh it it we actually did it um in I conducted in the premiere in Baltimore the the Baltimore Symphony and um Carolyn Mountain girl Garcia came herself um and then at the very end of the the evening um just I mean when I came out um to do the the piece I I was wearing tie dye and everything uhhuh um and it you could there was a certain atmosphere in the could you could you see it with it the atmosphere was thick yeah and and very very thick and then uh at the end of the the the piece um I came up for another bow and this guy came up to this came up to me and he said um he had this very special box and he said this is one of Jerry Garcia's um guitar picks and I'll trade you this for your baton I oh no so I did did you really I would think that the Baton of a conductor is kind of a sacred piece do you have one specific one that you could do over or do you have many is it like a wand well that that particular one was like I can let that one go wow wow so you are in possession of a Jerry Garcia guitar pick well theoretically I know I don't know I think they're pretty trustworthy people I would believe so yeah absolutely well it's funny because I've seen you know like I said Metallica is on tour I think sticks did something lovely with a bunch of their work before uh and you have more and more uh I think people that have come up with this uh you know anemic these really great big pieces like Metallica so great it lends itself to that and you hear it in in a completely different way absolutely I mean they're they're big sweeping things I mean that's why I like you know the music of Queen because um uh Freddy Mercury was just I mean he fought on a much larger scale I mean that's one of the the reasons there was so much push back um right you know but um because what are you doing you're pushing the boundaries it's you know it's beyond 3 minutes what what you doing and then it was symphonically um conceived it it it's he he had a larger Vision um and the music is is extraordinary yeah and you've got some really cool things that you're doing here with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra coming up you've got a a big special fundraiser at the end of this month sare on the 29th yes and and is that open to everybody can you just support the BSO by buying tickets to that or is absolutely and also we have a a live a an auction um on online oh our silent auction is available um so you can even if you can't attend you can um go through the the silon auction it's a lot of fun the the event itself and we've got a wonderful singer Mickey suen who's going to come in and sing a um I'll be playing the piano and nice all right yeah it be a fun fun evening at the cross Center people I think sometimes take for granted because I think you know you have different genres that you enjoy for sure and I don't know that they understand what you know how much of an impact you guys have on the community being here and I we were just kind of sharing a little bit earlier so my son Noah this was his first year dancing The Nutcracker uh and you guys were at the two perform or three performances of the Colin Center and I had seen the first couple with the recording and it's you know I grew up watching The Nutcracker so it was it was fun it was interesting to have you there and to have him be able to dance to that was such a different experience it elevated the entire thing I mean the work of Robinson was great and and and Keith and the crew over there did a really great job with the choreography and the dancers but then to have that just be so in your face in such a great way it's something that I hope that if people even if they're not fans necessarily of classical music and they think oh Symphony it's it's classical there's so much more that you do in this area well uh listen there's a reason that that we are in our 129th season um or part of the fabric of this of this community and um the the fact is that that our music um goes just be it goes Way Beyond what we do in the concert hall um we have our musicians playing in uh in healthcare facilities we have a music and wellness program um we're we're regularly interacting with um homeless shelter um uh activities and um bringing music to places that it's where we feel it in our daily lives yeah um so yeah I get that I get that that's what I do too and you've got some really cool uh things coming up in in April and in May that we're going to talk about next break we're going to rock out for a little while longer come back and and talk again uh we've got some Metallica on the way I don't know if I'm going to actually play it we'll see if we have time but I feel like I feel like we need to play something Metallica based on this conversation so that's on the way right here at 995 I'm Petty on 995 Bangor classic rock station at 95.7 FM 752 Lucas Richmond here with us from the Bangor Symphony Orchestra this morning now you have we talked about the Suare coming up on the 29th of March you have other things that are very interesting that are coming down the pike as far as performances go and the one that caught my eye and I was like I got to have you in to talk about this uh because we were just talking about how different it was to watch The Nutcracker with the live Symphony you're going to be doing that for Star Wars yes May 3rd and fourth at the Colin center of the Arts May the fourth be with you exactly exactly um uh yeah we're really excited to bring um the the the first the original Star Wars movie number four A New Hope uh and what I what I find so fascinating is that you when we do this kind of thing you hear the the full score that John Williams wrote which you very often don't get to hear because it's squelched by and and other sound effects um but when you but the orchestra uh the the music that he wrote is so vital to the the um the the the film um and I did have a chance to um go I conducted the Star Wars and concert tour in 2010 oh no way um yeah had John selected me to be um the conductor for John Williams John Williams yeah that that guy that guy that changed the entire soundtrack of like most of the generation of the people that are listening to the station right now yeah that guy that guy uh and it was it was really extraordinary because I I um the orchestra it was an 82-piece touring Orchestra MH um we had clips from the first six films um that were were shown with the music but the audience was coming to hear an orchestra they weren't coming here to hear a pop singer a band they were hearing an orchestra playing symphonic music yeah and I cannot tell you how many people came out of those con those um events saying hey Mommy I want to play the violin yeah oh oh yeah it was amazing and Orchestra was like they were they were rock stars yeah and he's a huge person to be credited for that because he he managed to take the those soundtracks that were more Poppy and integrate more of the the symphonic sound to it and now you hear those I mean you need two I get Goose I'm getting gooseb right now just thinking about the opening measures of that I cannot tell you the the visceral reaction that every time that the audience just I know I can't that's why I am so excited to go and to check that out but it's it's kind of like the soundtrack of Our Lives you know because because um those of us who who saw the movie originally and you know back then uh I mean because the the way that the films were released over decades um it's been so much a part of our life in growing up and becoming adults um or or new generations discovering these films so it's it's just been intrinsically like part of our DNA now yeah yeah that's crazy that you were able to do that now that's coming up and that's going to be right at the Colin Center at the Colin Center for the Arts May third and fourth yeah and I would say anybody that has any interest at all in checking that out especially I mean if you can bring a younger generation with you into that I mean I think you're going to have a great time I'm already like so excited to go but I will warn people um that that when you when you at the end of the movie I've had people say oh we didn't hear the The Imperial March we didn't hear Darth V them that's because it's not introduced until The Empire Strikes Back there you go you hear that just be aware you're not going to hear that but you are going to hear the Cantina Band The Cana band oh that's got to be fun too oh awesome awesome do you have to scoot in this in the 8:00 hour you can you stay around I can stay oh okay we're going to we're going to rock for a bit and then come back and talk some more because I want to hear all about that that's going to be awesome all right let's do it it's on 95 that today actually and we're going to get somewhere into the mid 40s maybe 50 close to it at least tomorrow tomorrow is going to be sunny and milder but today we'll get little patches of that here and there which is really nice we have had in the studio with us today Lucas Richmond from the Bangor Symphony Orchestra we were just talking about how you're going to get to do uh Star Wars on May 4th a new hope that's going to be super fun what else is going on that you have uh in the works for the next month or so well we have uh coming up actually this this coming Sunday um the Masterworks with music of shastovich incredible Symphony um and and uh on the same program we have a side by side uh the members of the Bangor Symphony Youth Orchestra will be playing our first piece the Elgar PP and Circumstance number one which people know as the graduation theme um and so we're going to have musicians from our BS yo philarmonic on stage with the uh uh counterparts exactly exactly very excited so we'll have a that stage will be completely filled I love that you guys do the musical petting zoo when you're out sometimes and I I remember uh we were just talking about homeschooling kids in particular there was some I think you guys had done something years ago back at the Bangor Public Library and that was one of the the places that my kids first were able to put their hands on an instruments where they weren't told hey don't touch that right right and it's there's such an inspirational part of that you can hear it and be that's really cool and you can see it and go ah yeah that that looks really cool but I think when you have an instrument in your hands like that it changes something and your wiring and really becomes kind of inspiring I would say so um you know that look music is um travels on waves and it's sound and when you physically pick up a a violin a cello or or a wind instrument and you're feeling the vibrations that that uh are created by your you're moving the bow or breathing into an instrument that's um it's an extension of what we have inside a voice I know you're a singer um you know we all have a voice we all can sing but then when we can externalize it with a with an instrument it's extraordinary you let that out and it's amazing I had I going to give a shout out to my neighbors the bridges so uh they I came across a little video the other day they are are husband and wife and their son um Grafton and their daughter Blake go to school down the road and I said what are they doing there and they were at a little church function so there the husband Josh was playing the piano uh Blake and her mom uh Megan were playing clarinet and then little graph was on the trumpet and they all performed together as a little family and I thought that is awesome that's the that is so neat to see and and they all sounded pretty great I got to say so shout out to the bridges for that but if you can introduce you know music at a young age to to kids and I think everybody out there understands this to to some degree you know you tap into that certain something and there's something different about being in a concert hall being in uh performance uh space and hearing it and feel you do feel it you feel that big bong of the drum when hear it or you know if the Piccolo's playing there's something in your brain that kind of goes oh that's such a neat sound so if you're able to come out and see any of these performances that the Bangor Symphony Orchestra does I'll tell you what if if nothing else I know that the yearly The Nutcracker is a thing a lot of people sign up to go and and check out um you know for Nostalgia purposes to to see it with you guys performing it like again just get out there and check it out we are lucky to have uh an organization like that in this area and you never know what it'll do I'm a walking talking example of what happens when you put music in front of a kid and you let them kind of tool around a little bit and uh so do that for yours cuz it's a gift that even if they don't do it as a career uh will impact their life forever and maybe bring you Joy abely absolutely you know um you mentioned off air that you saying lullab to your kids I did um and um I recognize that my mom gave me the gift of music I'm associating music with Love by singing lullab and so um when our son was just one uh one years old we created an album of lullab with members of the Pittsburgh Symphony it's called it's called day is done it's an album um I'm singing on it my wife is singing on it and members of the Pittsburgh Symphony it's um a really neat album called day is done that is cool I'd like to hear that sing to your kids that's right even if you don't think you can because you're absolutely right you have hardwired your child to associate music with love and I love that so I love that you've been able to come in and play it with us Lucas thank you so much for taking the time this morning it's been awesome and again a treasure in the BSO go and see them live it's so neat to have somebody of your caliber up here in the Bangor area and uh break all the legs I guess that applies for you right don't break the bow of the batons but break all the legs and if anybody has a you can check out um www. Bangor symphony.org yeah they're pretty easy to get a hold of and that you guys are real active on Facebook and whatnot too so if you uh hear that something's going on take your kids take your grandkids take your take your loved one do a date night with it isn't like Netflix and chill go out and do something fun and and check out some live music here in Bangor we're going to play more classic rock coming up I've got stuff to give away too speaking of live music 95 I'm bangor's classic rock station at 95.7 FM I want to thank Lucas Richmond from the Bangor Symphony Orchestra for coming in today and taking some time to chat with us about all the cool things they've got going on we've got a lot of it going on here in the Bangor area in fact we've got a wonderful looking and shaping up to be even better are now a concert series that's going to be taking place at the main savings Amphitheater and one of the really great acts that's coming Melissa ethd and the Indigo Girls and if you want to win tickets to go check them out you can do that right now 991 9713 call into the studio and I'm going to give you an opportunity to guess which famous Melissa I'm talking about and if you can do that then you're going to end up winning so 991 9713 if you want to win some tickets to go check out Melissa e and the Indigo Girls I'm sure at some point in the next week or so we'll be giving away those de leopard tickets cuz that was the big announcement yesterday Live uh Collective Soul de leopard in the struts coming too so lots of great stuff but this one is for Melissa ethd and the Indigo Girls call now on I95 a nice nice day today I'm excited about that so if you need to get out and do anything it looks like it's going to be fairly nice mid 40s a little bit of a brighter day today tomorrow going to be really really nice but here's the thing it's going to dip down between the two in the evenings that's where it's going to get kind of tricky to next couple of days because all it's going to melt it's going to freeze and anybody that's got overnight commutes or in the early morning commutes those are going to make for some tricky tricky walks out to the car and tricky drives in the early early morning before the temperature startu to rise so uh what else do we have going on today is today Tuesday it is that means we have two for Tuesday happening coming up in about half an hour my favorite favorite day of the week because you get your backtack faves right there so all right I I see how it's going to be uh appreciate that and making winners left and right and giving you all sorts of great information don't forget keep that app handy because that's going to be the way that you find out when the next concert announcements come down not saying it's going to be today but soon enough right now it's stacking up to be beautiful I'll have to take another look through and give you the full rundown of who's coming uh next break so that you can just uh have it freshen your memory because I know a lot has been released we always have it up online too at95 rocks.com so you can check it out there Bangor classic rock station at 95.7 8:45 I hit a gigantic pothole on the way in today like Earth shattering oh there goes my my wheel off my freaking van uh Union Street the ridge guys figure it out dudes I know you were out there a couple days ago with the cold patch but it's a it's van eating season and I I say this because I have in the studio with me right now Dave Matson from Twin City tyan service and it is Poole season is it not it is pothole season it's that time of year again a it's so it's sucky it's not fun there are big ones especially like right across the bridge on either side and then I'm and I think to myself you know where it is move over and then there's another person coming I'm like oh crap I can't kill that guy they're everywhere Route 1 a route two Union Street Wilson Street they're everywhere and they're worse this year than ever and I think they're going to get worse before they get better so I would agree with you with that uh so the first thought in my head was oh crap I'm going to have a flat tire which I probably do I haven't checked yet I don't want to if I don't see it it's not happening uh the second was I'm probably going to need a new alignment talk to me this has got to be like your wheelhouse this is like your Super Bowl season is it not uh it is a busy time of year for us we get multiple cars hauled in every day with pothole damage um either a ruined Tire a broken Rim uh bad suspension components because of the pothole and alignments are uh a big thing this time of year you definitely want to check it after a pothole incident and if it needs it we can do it at that time like do people come in every single day I feel like if I had to I'd be like oh Dave back again yeah we have a tow in at least once a day and sometimes multiple vehicles from the same pothole so we urge people to report them uh when they hit them so that they can maybe get taken care of all right here Bangor Brewer Public Works I'm reporting it right now the bridge go look at the bridge the Joshua Chamberlain Bridge has got some issues I bet you you get just a few just from that one pothole on one side absolutely I'm sure that's one of the uh regulars you can report these potholes on our Facebook page too too on your yeah we have a uh face on Facebook we have a pothole contest report the pothole that damaged your vehicle what type of damage and then we're going to draw a winner for a giveaway pack that's going to include uh an alignment special tire balance spring check over some merchandise and swag Twin City Tire I love that I love it I love it uh so yeah when people are is there anything particular they should be looking at when they hit and I'm asking because you know for a friend uh when they hit a pothole like that is it is it going to make a noise is it going to be visibly like screwed up on your wheel you may see no effects of the pothole but there may be some uh you should if you hit a Poole bad enough and there's concern we should check the suspension components check the alignment do a visual inspection on the Wheel to make sure there's no cracker Bend and then obviously look at the tire really good even if you don't have a flat you may get a bulge in your tire which is a sign of failure or you may get a um you know a wobble or a shake afterwards from a bent wheel a wheel or Tire combination being out of balance or a pole or drift that would indicate you're need of an alignment so if you take your hands off the wheel and like Jesus Take the Wheel it and your car starts to pull in One Direction maybe maybe go see you guys absolutely come see us we actually have a pothole special right now for our alignments on our on our website so you can uh take advantage of that and then uh also a good time of the year to get spring check over on your vehicle uh brakes shocks exhaust uh main state inspections and then of course um snow tires have studded tires have to be off by May one and coming up too non-studded snow should come off in my opinion right now we might have that one more storm though stay home all right and you should probably anyway because of the snow tire the potholes out there there well Dave all very good uh absolutely very good uh information and twin City's hire over on Facebook to report this Pooles I'm going to I'm going to put one out there yeah don't look at the van when you go out that van that says Cherry mom on the license point just go just walk past that cuz that was me I hit several things I'll make sure you don't have a flat oh God I probably do it's my luck uh thank you for coming in today and letting us know problem thanks for having us make sure you call them up 20 City Tire and Service if you've got a pothole issue because they've got a pothole special I love that all right we're about to launch into a two for Tuesday 95 minute classic rock free ride if our guy next door would stop yelling uh and uh that but we're going to get after you two and ZZ Top St right here on5 taxes was feeling so stuck sitting in traffic squeezing into a parking spot all to squeeze in getting tax help during your lunch break now taxes is a Turbo Tax expert who does your taxes for you while you go about your day getting real-time notifications about their progress and the most money back guaranteed now this is taxes into it Turbo Tax get an expert now on turbotax.com only available with TurboTax lifeo service real time updates only in iOS mobile apps you guaranteed details at turbotax.com