It was Joel Smirnoff's first standing ovation as the solo artist who will be taking charge of the 88-year-old institution. Upon reflection he said that working at CIM will be a good fit for him.
SMIRNOFF: To help young people from a position of responsibility is really just a continuity of what I've been doing, which is teaching and administrating. You know, most of my year has been spent with young people, trying to help them self-master --- which is what this is all about.
Harp major Constance Koo, thinks Smirnoff's reputation will serve the school well
KOO: He brings in a lot of connections that we didn't have before. I'm looking forward to next year to see what he can bring to this school.
As an artist, Smirnoff brings an eclectic set of musical interests, ranging from the pop tunes his mother sang with Jack Teagarden... to the Grammy-award-winning music he makes with the Julliard Quartet ...and the jazz solos he's done with Tony Bennett. And Joel Smirnoff hopes to get the chance to play some jazz somewhere in town, after he gets settled in.
