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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   Related Stories • Try to take Keanu seriously 4/11/08   CONTACT THE HERALD Melanie Munk, Features Editor munk@heraldnet.com   Published: Friday, April 11, 2008 Seattle Symphony gives guests a taste of conducting Herald Staff "The Virtual Maestro" has come to Seattle. Through April 27, Seattle Symphony Orchestra offers anyone who has ever wondered what's involved in leading an orchestra a chance to test out that experience with a virtual conducting kiosk. The kiosk is located in the Boeing Company Gallery in Benaroya Hall, at 200 University St., Seattle. The kiosk is available for public use from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, as well as during evening and weekend events at the hall. Its use is free of charge. The kiosk will be shared with other orchestra venues across the country, such as Los Angeles, Boston and Philadelphia. Visitors use an electronic controller to pace the musicians -- the faster the controller moves, the faster the musicians play, for example -- and choices of music including pieces by Berlioz, Rossini and Tchaikovsky. Symphony staff members say the recorded pieces last about 1½ to 2 minutes. "It's really a chance for the average person to just get up there and get the experience," said Elizabeth Ferlic, the symphony's public relations manager. "There are just so many people who attend such concerts who might wonder what it would be like to be the controller of all that sound, and the kiosk shows them exactly that." Call the symphony at 206-215-4700 for more details on being a virtual conductor.

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