Conducting Some Changes by Deke Cutter

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“Look, I really need this job. I know I seem overqualified, but I assure you that I do not have many options and I am the kind of person that needs to work. It isn’t a question of money. You know I have enough to live comfortably, but no matter what the investigations proved, my reputation was destroyed. I can perform now in small venues, pubs and clubs that friends own and where they know the clientele, but that is not the same as doing something meaningful. This job is something I can do. These are people who can use my help." With those words, Victor Collins looked at the woman who was president of the university and the one with the ultimate authority. He had met with administrators, deans, professors, even students, and all had agreed that he could add some strengths to their school and that he deserved a chance.

He had been a legendary young conductor and a virtuoso on violin and guitar-both classic guitar and electric. He could play any genre of music and conduct a symphony or lead a rock band and had done both. He had been conductor of the city symphony for about a year. Rochelle has been brought in when her predecessor decided to join a military band. Rochelle had been obsessed with Victor since she first saw him conduct. He was handsome and strong. She loved his long hair, but only to have it for her own. She had decided that long hair was for women and her goal was for Victor to fall in love with her and then he would cut his hair as a tribute to her. One of the flutists, a rather silly young man had noticed Rochelle’s interest in Victor and his hair. He had attempted to befriend her and had even go so far as to discuss his own admiration for the conductor’s hair and how he wished he could braid the hair…how it would give him such pleasure. The very thought of one man getting “that kind" of pleasure from touching another man’s hair seemed very unpleasant to Rochelle and she asked the man why he simply didn’t grow his own chin-length bob to a length he could braid himself. The flutist became red in the face and stammered something about having had long hair but succumbing to a desire to try wearing it short. He started in on what sounded like an endless and pointless story to her, and she cut him off. “I am sure that there are those who will find this interesting, and you should look for them to tell this story. I think men should have short masculine haircuts. When you get a decent haircut, then come back and talk to me." Rochelle had few friends in the orchestra before this encounter and the flutist made certain that she had fewer afterward.

It had been Rochelle, after her embarrassing attempts to gain his romantic interest had failed that accused him of assaulting her after “putting something in her drink." He recalled her asking for some help with the difficult piece that the orchestra was playing. He never tutored her alone. However, his hair had then been very long, and worn in a ponytail could easily have left some strays on her clothing as he sat next to her going over the music, with his assistant Julia, always just a few feet away. The only time he was ever alone with the woodwind player was the one night he had driven her home when she claimed she had missed her bus. She had asked him upstairs to meet her aunt who was visiting and was “a huge fan." When he got to her apartment, there was no sign of anyone there, but a note, that he did not read. She told him the note said her aunt had come down with a migraine and asked not to be disturbed and so he left almost immediately. Rochelle offered him a drink. To be polite, he accepted a glass of water, drank it quickly and left. This was a Thursday. On Friday, she missed the matinee performance, and the police were waiting to take him in at the end of the performance.
His fall from grace had been swift. Someone had notified the media. A close female friend stepped in for him that evening. When it became clear that the case would not be quickly resolved, he recommended that this fine young conductor replace him for the remainder of the season.

Rochelle had the water glass with his fingerprints, several of his long hairs on her clothes and a second glass with remnants of one of the so-called date rape drugs in it. There was no trace of a note, and she denied the presence of an aunt. Victor had been furious when his lawyer explained the evidence to him. Because he had no previous history with the police or of sexual assault, he was released on bail.
The next morning, he called his hair stylist and had the trademark ponytail chopped off. When his lawyer saw him, looking like Grant Goodeve from ‘8 is Enough,’ he burst out laughing. He also scolded Victor for not warning him. “You know Vic, if you were some 18-year-old rock wannabe or some kid running a meth lab, I would have made you get a haircut if this thing gets to trial. But you a well-known, well-respected conductor and artist. What gives? Your ponytail is part of your signature style."

Victor explained that he had been thinking about his interactions with his accuser and he remembered something Julia, his assistant, had said to him about Rochelle having an unhealthy interest in him. She told me that she had seen Rochelle handling my sweaters a couple of times when he left them hanging over his chair. Julia said, it looked like she was picking at them, but when Julia asked her what she was doing, Rochelle insisted she was just folding them so they wouldn’t get wrinkled. “I’m pretty sure she was collecting more hairs for her trap. I remembered that I overheard her say something about how dangerous long hair could be. Now I know she was right. I am not letting that happen again. I have faith in your legal skills, but I am going to need a new look anyway, because you and I both know that mud sticks, even if we prove she is a liar or a psycho."

Luckily for Victor, Rochelle’s story slowly fell apart when other members of the orchestra could vouch for details of the story that he told, and several women stated that she had a demonstrated obsessive interest in the conductor. One of his neighbors with a colicky baby had seen the woman lurking around his house on several occasions. When it was shown that the date rape drug could be traced back to Julia, she finally admitted to fabricating the whole story and voluntarily committed herself for psychiatric in-patient care. But, as he predicted, the damage had been done to his reputation due to social media and the paparazzi. Hiring him had become an expensive public relations distraction for orchestras already on shoestring budgets. Some ‘influencers’ on the extremes of the left and right wanted him cancelled. Then there was the “no smoke without fire crowd."

Victor had never been an extravagant spender so he was able to pay his legal expenses and still have money in the bank but, he realized he would be living off his investments for a while, until this terrible event was just a bad memory. Now that a full year had passed, he was seeking the opportunity to head the music department at this unique private college that accepted students who passed not only academic standards, but could sing, dance, or play an instrument proficiently, and were physically fit enough to participate on a sports team. Dr. Margaret Obergarten looked at Victor thoughtfully. “My father was the head of Political Science at one of the colleges in the New York City suburbs in the VietNam War era. A brilliant young professor got fired from one of big named Universities in the city for being involved in the protests that shut down the campuses in 1968. The guy hadn’t really done anything terrible, he participated in a “teach-in." Basically, he hooked his students into doing more work and handing in papers that he tried to get the school to accept so that some of them could get credit for the semester. But the president was a jerk and got him fired and sent his name to J. Edgar Hoover. Anyway, he changed his name, cut his hair (a big thing back then) and dad convinced his school to hire him. They guy won several national awards and put the school on the map. What I’m telling you is, I am offering you the job. In addition to being head of the department, you will be in charge of the symphony orchestra, and soccer assistant coach in the fall?"

“Sounds great!"

Victor’s first stop on his way home from the interview was the barbershop he had seen about a block off of the campus. Margaret’s story had reminded him of the reason he had got the big chop of the ponytail over a year ago and he hadn’t looked back, but he knew it was now time to get rid of this over the ear, on the collar, long bangs, mop and get something practical and as unlikely to garner interest from young students as possible. He walked into the shop, and it looked to him like the kind of barbershop he had seen on TV shows and movies. One wall had a row of chairs for waiting customers and on the other side were substantial looking barber chairs. There were mirrors on both walls. There were also posters at the front and back displaying various men’s and boy’s haircuts. There were three barbers working. All seemed to Victor to be close in age to the students, but he noticed that there were men waiting of all ages. He thought he would see what kind of work they did. He didn’t want an overly trendy fade cut that made him appear to be trying to look like a student. He saw a man who was in the kind of uniform he associated with a trade like plumbing or electrical work but couldn’t quite see the writing on his shirt pocket. His haircut looked like the kind of thing Vick was looking for. Another one of the men waiting seemed to be casually dressed but his hair seemed to be a little longer, like he had a very overgrown crewcut. The uniformed guy was the next up and Vick watched and listened carefully as the guy told the barber he wanted his usual. The second fellow, when he got in the chair was more explicit. He told the barber that he enjoyed having the crewcut for the summer, but he was growing it out to a nice, tapered cut. He asked the barber to keep the length on top.

The first guy’s hair had just touched his ears when he got in the chair and the barber was not cutting much off. Like Vick, his hair was thick enough that it could be cut so that it lay flat against the head without being stubbly or showing skin. The barber carved the slightest one eighth inch arch around the ear. The back was tapered in a similar way with only the very lowest part showing the traditional tight stubbled taper. The top was cut to a length that blended with the non-parted side. The bangs/fringe were cut quite short, so that they gave the illusion of being brushed to the side, but (really) just lay along his hairline. The man with the grown-out crewcut was out of his chair first and his barber asked Vick if he wanted to take a seat. Vick asked if he could give him the same haircut that the other guy was getting. The barber replied, “the dad special?" sure, I perfected it."

“The Dad?" Vick asked. Why is it called the dad?"

The man getting the haircut looked in the mirror at Vick’s reflection and said, “my hair used to be as long as yours until I had my first kid. Then, I saw how hard it was to get time for a shower or get out of the house. The baby was always getting her hands in my hair and messing with it. I tried fades and things, but I hated the way they looked once they started to grow in. So, I had seen some guys here with this cut and I asked for it. You would be surprised how easy this is and it looks good if you are too busy to get in for a regular cut. It is perfect for dads and guys who just can’t be bothered with fancy ‘salon jobs’ but want to look good for their wives or girlfriends."

“Andy pretty much explained it sir, my name is Rick, by the way. I take it that’s what we are doing for you today?" Vick nodded yes and was quickly caped up and his haircut commenced. Because his hair was much longer than Andy’s, he saw more hair falling onto the cape. His sides were pared down to a much shorter length, but as was the case with Andy’s haircut, the hair remained just long and full enough to cover the scalp, The process was repeated on the back, and it was something of a thrill to feel the clippers rising up the back of his head to remove the bulk from there. He got a bit of a chill as the very bottom was tapered, smiling to himself as he remembered his ponytailed days. When the barber started to spray the top, he told Vick he would have to thin it out a little. “Your hair is very thick, I’m just going to razor off a layer or two, don’t worry, It will help make the whole look." It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation to feel the razor and comb go across his head. When the barber was happy, he commenced reducing the length and blending what was left into the side. He then took the look bangs and cut them quite short, point cut them and combed the short hair slightly to the right, so that it appeared to blend into the curve of Victor’s hair line in a very traditional but masculine look. He took a small amount of product and worked it through the hair and recombed it. After cleaning up the neckline and making that slight arch around each ear, and cleaning up his sideburns to about mid-ear, the barber turned Vick toward the front mirror and asked, "What do you think?"

Vick stared in surprise at a guy who looked pretty average. The haircut gave him the kind of “everyman" appearance that he hoped would make him less of a target for his students. “This is great, just what I wanted," Vick told him. Little did Vick know what his first year of teaching had in store for him.

Vick found that he enjoyed all aspects of his work at the college. He adapted his wardrobe to his new haircut with khaki slacks, checked shirts, and comfortable shoes, unless there was a performance. He was surprised that most of his male students had hair as short as his or shorter. Several of his colleagues were fans of classical music and recognized him from his previous career. Lou Albano (known as Captain Lou, like the old-time professional wrestler Captain Lou Albano) and Valerie Becker both made a point of greeting him and telling them what a pleasure it was to have him as a department head. Lou was the first to bring up the question of the missing ponytail, specifically. “So, Vick, my wife and I saw you with the symphony many times and mostly we saw your back and that incredible ponytail that hung down your back. What caused the huge change?"

“It’s a long story Lou, and I may tell you the whole thing someday, but the short version is I got tired of young girls thinking that long hair meant I was looking for groupies and easy hookups, as they say. Good grief, I hate that term. So, I had the barber cut off the tail. Then, just before I started here, I got it cut to this shorter length. I’ll let you in on my plans, though. The way Jack Milton has me running around as his assistant coach of the soccer team, I am soaked from head to toe after practice. I thought I was in better shape. I’m going shorter for the rest of the season!"

Valerie was a bit more discreet. “Vick, I wasn’t sure it was really you; I like your haircut. I’ve always been a fan of shorter no-nonsense haircuts on men. I’m head of Romance and Classical Languages and Women’s Soccer, we should have lunch some time and compare notes. Oh Gosh, that sounds like a pickup line. I apologize.

“No need to apologize. I am a free agent, and I would like to compare notes with you some time." Vick was really starting to like this job. Before he knew it, the first two weeks of classes were done, and it had been a month Since his dad special.

Back at the barber shop, he was in Rick’s chair. “Another dad’s special Vick?"

“I love it, but we’re going short this time Rick. I’m coaching soccer, in addition to my other duties, and this is too long with all the running and sweating. I think we’ll go with a three on top and a two on the sides, maybe just taper it slightly on the sides, no bare skin if you can avoid it." Rick didn’t need to be told twice. Before Vick knew it, he was covered in a cape and Rick was running the clippers over his head. Rick knew his way around a head with a pair of clippers. After Vick’s hair was reduced to a uniform 3/8 inches all over. Rick switched to the Number two blade and starting at the bottom of his sideburns he went up to about an inch below the top of the head, doing this all around the head, then open the level fully, he blended the slightly longer hair on top with the shorter sides. Finally, Rick took Number one and gently made a slight taper at the back bottom of Vick’s hairline and on the sides, carefully outlining around his ears. He carefully cleaned up the front hairline and made sure the short sideburns were straight. Some shaving cream and a straight razor finished off the cut. Rick turned him around to face the front mirror. “Whoa, looks good, Rick. I hope this will take me through the season and we can be back to my dad special by the start of the next semester." The soccer team loved their Assistant Coach’s new cut. The Coach did too. Seeing a Department Head (and a big-time musician at that) showing that kind of dedication told the coach that Vick was something special. From that moment on Coach Milton had Vick’s back. Somebody else liked Vick’s buzz.
When he got into his office, he called Valerie, “Bon Jour Madame la Directrice. Voulez-Vouz déjeuner avec moi?"

‘’Very impressive Mr. Conductor, I’ll bet you could ask me to lunch in French, Italian and German too. And yes, I would like to have lunch with you. How is 12:00?"

‘’Great, I’ll see you in the staff lounge then."

When Valerie arrived at the staff room and saw Vick, her eyes nearly popped out of her head. As they were alone in the room, she walked right up to him and rubbed his head and said, “now that is what I call a masculine haircut. Wow, you look fantastic with that new haircut."


Vick was having a confused reaction. He had been attracted to Valerie from the first time they met. He had appreciated that she had an interest in classical music and thought it was interesting that they both were coaching soccer. He didn’t quite know what he thought about her earlier statement about “being a fan of shorter no-nonsense haircuts on men." After all, he had originally gone with short hair because he thought it would make him less attractive. Granted, he was attracted to her, and she was about his age. But when she brushed her hand across his closely cropped head, his bugle started playing a very happy tune. He realized Valerie was waiting for him to say something. “Er, um, thanks. I have never had it this short before. It is perfect for soccer coaching. Those boys give it their all and I have always tried to do that as a conductor and a musician, and I want to try to do that for these students too."


Valerie smiled and her cheeks glowed in the most wonderful way. “Vick," she said, “you just described the kind of young men and women this school is here to produce. You could have fought your way back to a top conductor position. I followed your case closely, what was done to you was horrible. But you chose another path. Captain Lou would never tell you this, but Mary, his wife, had a huge platonic crush on you. She cried when she saw the picture of you with your ponytail gone. She and I discussed why you might have done it. When I saw you here on the first day of class, I was stunned. I knew that here was a man who was devoted going to be in the moment. And now, no vanity, no concern for yourself, but only to give your best. And when I say you look fantastic, I mean it." Now, let’s eat our lunch, we only have 20 minutes left."

“Wait a minute, you can’t lay all that on me without a rebuttal. How soon are you free for dinner? We both have games on Friday. How about Saturday? And thank you. We have much more to talk about, I think."

On Sunday morning, Valerie sleepily raised her arm from where it rested on Vick’s bare chest and gently rubbed his head. “That was some dessert you served me after dinner last night. Please sir, may I have some more."

“Only if you promise me, you’ll still be as hungry when I grow a little bit of hair back when the season is over," joked Vick. After the pair spent some time enjoying and exploring each other and discovering the wonders of a budding new relationship, they lay together in the bed. “Seriously, Vick said. I don’t want this to be a one off. Since the whole horrible experience with that unbalanced young woman, I’ve been celibate, and you are the first woman who I have felt that I could open up to. I know this sounds crazy," he said, this time him rubbing his rapidly growing stubble," but would me with some more hair, not the ponytail, but maybe something that covered my ears part way cause you to turn away. Wait, before you answer, I ask because if I ever decide or get asked to conduct a major orchestra again, even my “dad special" may seem inappropriate to them."

“You silly man! It is early days for us, but I would be a fool to let something as minor as the length of your hair come between us. I think that a person’s appearance is their own decision. I won’t lie, I hope you’ll consider going back to this cut, maybe in the summers, maybe if you keep up this coaching gig. But, if we become a couple, we will have mutual respect, period.

And so, Victor and Valerie had basked in the glory of seeing both of their soccer teams make it to the Division III NCAA Finals and Vick saw his first class graduate. It was also a time of a bit of sadness because Victor Collins had been asked to return as conductor of the orchestra, he had left several years before. His work at the college had brought him great respect and his reputation as both a role model for student musicians and student athletes was well known. His marriage to a highly appreciated scholar and the birth of their twins had also made him known as a family man.

Monday after graduation, Vick was up and out early, taking the twins, Louis and Julia Mary to their godparents, Lou and Mary Albano, so Valerie could sleep in and have the morning to herself. After a quick cup of coffee with the Albanos and seeing the kids settled (they loved Uncle Lou and Aunt Mary, who spoiled them rotten), Vick was off to his next stop.

“Hey, Vick, so what’s it to be today, trimming up the dad special, or are you going to let it go for your new gig?"

“I love the way news travels, Rick. But I promised the soccer team, Jack Milton, and most of all, my wife, that I wouldn’t ‘go Hollywood’ too fast. No, this time, it’s my 3-2 soccer special. It may shake things up at Symphony Hall, but it will be a real aid in chasing my two little terrors around. Between you and me, some musicians are real head cases, the guys who knew me with long hair will really freak out when they see me with a buzz cut. Don’t be surprised if you get a few long-haired fellows carrying instrument cases in for short cuts in the next few days. I won’t say a word about my hair, unless asked. If asked I will make a big deal about how practical it is in the summer."
Vick picked up the kids at the twins at the Albanos. Captain Lou just shook his head and smiled as Mary showed mock anger, “Victor James Collins, you got that buzz cut just to annoy me didn’t you?!"

Vick laughed heartily. “Yes Mary, you know how much I love your baking and the free childcare. I couldn’t think of another way to stop you from making me fat and spoiling my kids. With that, he gave her a bearhug and a big kiss on the cheek. When he and the twins arrived home, the response from the lady of the house was quite different. “Hey mom, took the kids to see their godparents and went for a little trim," Vick called, as the toddlers rushed into the house.

Valerie stopped to kiss each child and settle them with their toys. She walked into the kitchen, looked at her husband and gasped. “Oh my gosh, I-I-I."

“Come over here and kiss me," Vick said. She did and she gave his newly cropped head a rub. It was clear the directions would have taken had the little ones not been a few feet away.

“Vick, what on earth possessed you?"

“You, my love. I won’t have soccer as an excuse and I thought I might shake up the orchestra a bit, if I show up looking like a soldier rather than musician. And if the kids will let us, I thought we might have some fun."

Will, the male musicians respond, will Vick keep it short, time will tell.

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