The Winchester Orchestra of San Jose

My love and I used to faithfully attend performances of the Winchester Orchestra, conducted by Henry Mollicone or Dale King. The music ranged from good to excellent, especially when a star soloist would take over and catapult the experience out of this world. There’s always a bake sale with yummy treats accompanying, and it was a nice reason to dress up and feel charitable. We didn’t get the full admission price’s worth of entertainment, but felt good about supporting musicians. (My partner is a musician, and I paint portaits of them.)
However, the last show was a waste of time. The performance was sub-​mediocre and it sounded like the players just didn’t give a damn. They snickered and giggled in between their parts, couldn’t stay in time, and basically mocked the whole situation. I felt bad for the conductor! What a bunch of brats!
We’d paid $ 18 per head, driven all the way out to Timbuktu (ok, somewhere out in San Jose, but I’m being dramatic here) to show our support and buy a cookie, and vowed not to do it again. It would have been better to go to the movies and let the brats play to a smaller audience.
I’m all about supporting the arts, but the participants have to give a damn. Especially now that the price is up to $ 20 per person!