A night at the opera
June 12th 2008 03:22
Last night was “SOO II”.
If this is meaningless to you, indulge me with an elaboration.
It stands for “State of Origin Two”.
Still confused?
Probably, so let me take this one step further, at the risk of boring you to death, because I suspect if you don’t know by now what I am referring to, then you will be one of the vast majority of the world (and of several in this fine sun burned nation for that matter), who don’t give a shit about sports.
So, as briefly as possible, State of Origin is an annual 3 match rugby league series contested between players representing New South Wales and Queensland. In short, in Australian eastern seaboard sports terms, it is HUGE, it is a BIG DEAL. I LOVE IT. I don’t think there are many sporting contests to match its ferocity and parochially driven passion. I hate missing it.
Last night I missed it. I was peeved when the missus informed me that she had tickets for the Sydney Opera House and my attendance was required. No excuses, be there. I am not really a culture vulture when it comes to performing arts, so drama and opera, even some live music performances pretty much leave me cold. I was faced with the depressing prospect of a night at the Opera…. House, on the night of a big huge massive football match.
Quick confession, I’m prone to these, and this is a tad embarrassing because I have withheld some information. The event I was attending at the SOH (this one you sports haters will get) was the NSW Public Schools Arts Unit Annual Jacaranda Concert, or something like that. And, um, my daughter was performing there.
It struck me as I walked through the drizzle up the stairs to what is a pretty impressive piece of architecture,
(Quick aside: I gather the SOH has been declared as some sort of world heritage place – sums up how young we perceive this country to be if a seventies building is the best we can come up with for this sort of icon conferring. Maybe the judges should go bush and find something from 40,000 years ago?, maybe they have and no-one has told us, and that says something as well, anyway)
that I was not alone in missing the footy. In fact there were several hundreds of thousands of Sydneysiders going about their business oblivious to what was happening on a football field somewhere in Brisbane. And suddenly I felt better. Bullshit, it actually only lasted about 30 seconds. The fact is I remained peeved.
Long Sentence Warning – Approach with Caution
But, once I had sat down inside the SOH and had been treated to 2 hours of superb performances from school kids from all over NSW (from Cobar to Wollongong and beyond), from all age groups, playing all sorts of weird and wonderful instruments (well to me anyway); and had the privilege (and bristling pride) to see my daughter playing with 699 other recorder players on one of the world’s finest artistic platforms, along with 200 strings players, a didgeridoo player (I swear you could feel the music coming up from deep inside the earth and up through his feet and body and out in that hypnotic growl), a swing band, Japanese martial arts drum players, wind ensembles, percussion groups, duets, quartets and very big orchestra type thingies [deep breath]…
I took stock and realized I would not have missed that for the world. The fact that these were kids out of the public school system (straining under under-funding) trained and coached and mentored and tutored and practiced and rehearsed and composed and counted and organised over and over and over again beyond the call of duty by public teachers made it even more worthwhile. So, yes I had one of life’s little lessons last night.
Incidentally, Queensland absolutely thrashed the pants off NSW in the football. No matter, let those Cane Toads come down here with their violins, oboes, clarinets, cymbals, cellos, double basses, pianos, marimbas, triangles, kettle drums, piccolos, tubas, and what have you and we'll give them a music lesson.
If this is meaningless to you, indulge me with an elaboration.
It stands for “State of Origin Two”.
Still confused?
Probably, so let me take this one step further, at the risk of boring you to death, because I suspect if you don’t know by now what I am referring to, then you will be one of the vast majority of the world (and of several in this fine sun burned nation for that matter), who don’t give a shit about sports.
So, as briefly as possible, State of Origin is an annual 3 match rugby league series contested between players representing New South Wales and Queensland. In short, in Australian eastern seaboard sports terms, it is HUGE, it is a BIG DEAL. I LOVE IT. I don’t think there are many sporting contests to match its ferocity and parochially driven passion. I hate missing it.
Last night I missed it. I was peeved when the missus informed me that she had tickets for the Sydney Opera House and my attendance was required. No excuses, be there. I am not really a culture vulture when it comes to performing arts, so drama and opera, even some live music performances pretty much leave me cold. I was faced with the depressing prospect of a night at the Opera…. House, on the night of a big huge massive football match.
Quick confession, I’m prone to these, and this is a tad embarrassing because I have withheld some information. The event I was attending at the SOH (this one you sports haters will get) was the NSW Public Schools Arts Unit Annual Jacaranda Concert, or something like that. And, um, my daughter was performing there.
It struck me as I walked through the drizzle up the stairs to what is a pretty impressive piece of architecture,
(Quick aside: I gather the SOH has been declared as some sort of world heritage place – sums up how young we perceive this country to be if a seventies building is the best we can come up with for this sort of icon conferring. Maybe the judges should go bush and find something from 40,000 years ago?, maybe they have and no-one has told us, and that says something as well, anyway)
that I was not alone in missing the footy. In fact there were several hundreds of thousands of Sydneysiders going about their business oblivious to what was happening on a football field somewhere in Brisbane. And suddenly I felt better. Bullshit, it actually only lasted about 30 seconds. The fact is I remained peeved.
Long Sentence Warning – Approach with Caution
But, once I had sat down inside the SOH and had been treated to 2 hours of superb performances from school kids from all over NSW (from Cobar to Wollongong and beyond), from all age groups, playing all sorts of weird and wonderful instruments (well to me anyway); and had the privilege (and bristling pride) to see my daughter playing with 699 other recorder players on one of the world’s finest artistic platforms, along with 200 strings players, a didgeridoo player (I swear you could feel the music coming up from deep inside the earth and up through his feet and body and out in that hypnotic growl), a swing band, Japanese martial arts drum players, wind ensembles, percussion groups, duets, quartets and very big orchestra type thingies [deep breath]…
I took stock and realized I would not have missed that for the world. The fact that these were kids out of the public school system (straining under under-funding) trained and coached and mentored and tutored and practiced and rehearsed and composed and counted and organised over and over and over again beyond the call of duty by public teachers made it even more worthwhile. So, yes I had one of life’s little lessons last night.
Incidentally, Queensland absolutely thrashed the pants off NSW in the football. No matter, let those Cane Toads come down here with their violins, oboes, clarinets, cymbals, cellos, double basses, pianos, marimbas, triangles, kettle drums, piccolos, tubas, and what have you and we'll give them a music lesson.
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Comment by Joanne Fedler
Well done for going.
Lesser men may have feigned a migrane.
Jo
Comment by jon
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