In our inbox, we found all these convincing reasons to attend the performance of Beethoven's 9th symphony of the Symphony Parnassus tomorrow night: Our conductor and Music Director is Stephen Paulson, who by day is the San Francisco Symphony's principal bassoonist; Anyway, Symphony Parnassus rocks, we're a well-kept secret in the local performing arts community, and our goal is to let the secret out. Plus, you haven't lived until you've experienced the B9 live....

We're (sort of) proud to admit we used to play in a youth orchestra ourselves, in our misbegotten youth. Oh, the drama! The miserable attempts to rise in the ranks of the seating chart, the sinking realization that you're two pages behind the rest of the string section in the music, the haughty unfriendliness of the principal trumpet player and his bevy of giggling flautists..... oh, it takes us back. Well, we can't speak for......