Down On The Corner

By Paul Moffett

As we go to press, the situation with the Louisville Orchestra is looking more and more dire, with the former musicians rejecting the latest offer from the LO and further complicating the situation by asking the national office of the American Federation of Musicians to put the Kentucky Opera on the "Unfair" list, joining the LO as organizations for which union musicians will not work.

The sticking point seems to be that the LO Board insists that the Orchestra can afford only 55 players, while the Union insists that there must be 60. The final offer from the board had left the weekly payment the same as in the previous contract.

Efforts are underway to create a downtown park, to be called "Happy Birthday Park," on 4th Street named for the composers of the tune we know as "Happy Birthday To You," sisters Patty and Mildred J. Hill., who were born in Anchorage. Originally titled "Good Morning To You," they published the tune in their songbook Song Stories for the Kindergarten in 1893

Five members of the Louisville Metro Council have agreed to provide a total of $7,000 to help pay for the park's design and consulting fees.

The question of the copyright status of the lyrics and the melody of the song is in dispute.

CODAS

Cohen, David Michael, 53, died in Louisville on October 9, 2011.He was a bass player who played with various bands in the Louisville area in the 1970s, including Crosstown Traffic.

Kayrouz, Nassar V. "Tony ", 94, died in Louisville on October 10, 2011. He was a drummer known as "Tony the Mad Mad Drummer.

Tyler, Wayne Paul, 76, died in Louisville on October 1, 2011. At 16,he began teaching accordion lessons at The Music Center in downtown Louisville. In the mid-1950s he became the Director of Music for Jefferson County Recreation. While there, he led the annual show called "Chuckles" and formed the "Note-ables" band. In 1960 he organized and led "The Chordians," a concert band featuring accordionists.

During the late '60s and early '70s (before television stations had stereo sound), he and his brother, Dr. Larry Tyler, developed "The Wayne Tyler Show," which featured a big band orchestra and entertainment in a new format they called "Stereovision." This was aired on a television station while the stereo sound track was broadcast simultaneously on an FM radio station. It was syndicated on television and radio stations throughout the Southeast.