This week's congrats

Morphing from a music critic into a more programmatic role, Marc Geelhoed will be joining the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as coordinator of CSO Resound, the ensemble's in-house recording label.  I wish him all success in guiding this great orchestra as it documents itself in the coming years. 

And from Sunday night, two Grammy winning discs--both superb--are poles apart, yet both of today.  Joan Tower's Made in America is an exuberant use of traditional orchestral forces, framed by expert playing from the Nashville Symphony Orchestra.  And contemporary sextet eighth blackbird won for strange imaginary animals, its exhilarating compilation of works from the last fifteen years, all played with commensurate electricity.