RECENT NEWSMetTalks Discussion Series Kicks Off on Sept. 22 with Lepage and Terfel on Das RheingoldSeptember 02, 2010 MetTalks, a series of panel discussions with the casts and creative teams of the Met's new productions, will begin Sept. 22 with a conversation about Das Rheingold. Director Robert Lepage and star Bryn Terfel chat with Met General Manager Peter Gelb.
Van Cliburn piano competition unfolds at the keyboard and behind the scenes in new documentary August 31, 2010 This isn’t "American Idol." It’s more like "Global Idols at the Ivories," a glorious mix of virtuosity and great music documenting 29 young pianists in their drive to win the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. The outcome of this 90-minute film (airing Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. EDT on PBS; check local listings) is hardly a secret, despite its coy title, "A Surprise in Texas." The contest, closely followed in classical music circles every four years, took place in May 2009.
Rugby choir attracts 10,000 fans for no-frills anthem August 31, 2010 A choir of former rugby players will take over the field at a Tri-nations rugby test in Sydney next month to sing the Australian national anthem after successfully accumulating more than 10,000 supporters.
Santa Fe Opera Preps for 2011 Season, With New Chief Conductor Frédéric Chaslin August 25, 2010 Santa Fe Oper will stage five productions during its 2011 festival season: Faust, Boheme, Griselda, Last Savage and Wozzek. Frédéric Chaslin will assume the Chief Conductor role starting Oct. 1, 2010.
From Zero To Hero: Seraphic Fire's Viral Monteverdi August 23, 2010 Last week, a recording of Claudio Monteverdi's 1610 masterpiece, Vespers of the Blessed Virgin, was released on iTunes. It promptly landed in the Top 10 classical recordings on iTunes, sandwiched between the London Symphony Orchestra's Beethoven and Yo-Yo Ma's Bach. What makes this surprising is that the recording is by a little-known Miami-based professional choir called Seraphic Fire — and the musicians released it themselves.
NYC Opera to Feature Works of Schwartz, Bernstein et al. in '10-'11 August 23, 2010 Today New York City Opera released full casting, creative team, and production details for the company's 2010-2011 season. The season spotlights American composers and 20th-century works, world premieres, New York premieres and new productions. Offering audiences the opportunity to experience new and rarely performed operas as well as modern interpretations of traditional repertoire, the 2010-2011 season also will feature the launch of a new concert series showcasing the non-operatic works of several of the composers whose operas will be presented on the mainstage.
Midori's Far-Reaching Message Of Music August 18, 2010 Near the end of my conversation with violinist Midori, I was running down the astonishing list of her musical and community outreach activities when I joked, "You might be the most productive person I know!"
More critics weigh in on the Rosenberg/Cleveland Orchestra/Plain Dealer case August 18, 2010 You're all tired of my ranting about the trial of music critic Don Rosenberg versus the Cleveland Orchestra and Cleveland Plain Dealer -- he sued his paper and the orchestra after being reassigned and forbidden to write about the orchestra, which had objected to his reviews of music director Franz Welser-Most; Rosenberg lost his case in court. So I thought I'd direct you to some commentary from a couple of other critics -- one from music, Pulitzer Prize-winning Martin Bernheimer; one from film, the Chicago Tribune's Michael Phillips.
A Fortissimo First for the Philharmonic August 12, 2010 Ever since the New York Philharmonic was founded in 1842, the orchestra’s brass section — horn, trumpet, trombone, bass trombone, tuba — had been a man’s world. Then Amanda Davidson auditioned. A graduate of the Juilliard School with a passion for Mahler, Brahms and ESPN, Mrs. Davidson, 28, became the brass section’s first female member last September, having previously been principal trombonist of the San Antonio Symphony. (She competed for the Philharmonic job with Mark Davidson, 27, whom she was dating and later married.) Her title is associate principal trombone, an instrument with which she is familiar. She has been playing it since she was 6.
Donald Rosenberg, ousted Plain Dealer classical-music critic, talks about court loss August 08, 2010 Critics, as it is often said, like to have the last word in an argument. But on Friday, one outspoken critic lost his war of words with the very newspaper that employs him.
George Shangrow, well-known musician, killed in crash August 03, 2010 A well-known Seattle music director was killed Saturday when a car driven by a teenager crossed the centerline and slammed head-on into his car on Highway 20 during a driving rainstorm.
Plain Dealer rests case in lawsuit filed by reporter against paper, Cleveland Orchestra August 03, 2010 Today, attorneys for reporter Don Rosenberg and defendants The Plain Dealer and the Musical Arts Association will make their closing arguments before turning the matter over to the jury hearing the case, now in its fourth week.
DSO contract talks break down, musicians say July 30, 2010 The musicians of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, whose contract expires Aug. 31, said Thursday that management has ceased to negotiate in good faith and that talks have reached an impasse.
Show Boat, Sweeney, Il Postino to Play Théâtre du Châtelet; Gilfry, Domingo, Arand, Jennings to Star July 28, 2010 The Théâtre du Châtelet will stage Show Boat, Sweeney Todd, My Fair Lady and an opera based on the film "Il Postino" in Paris as part of its 2010-2011 season.
Carreras returns to La Scala Oct. 10 July 21, 2010 La Scala says the Spanish tenor Jose Carreras will sing at the famed Milanese opera house for the first time in 14 years for a benefit concert later this year.
$18 Million Violin Looking For A Home July 20, 2010 A rare violin is up for sale, with an unprecedented price tag of $18 million. If it goes for its asking price, the violin will be the most expensive instrument on Earth. One might assume it's a Stradivarius, the closest thing to a household name when it comes to valuable violins, but it's not. Though Stradivari's reputation is more widespread, many violinists prefer the sound of violin maker Giuseppe Guarneri, known as "del Gesu."
Classical composer Charles Mackerras dies at 84 July 15, 2010 Charles Mackerras, a gifted musician who conducted some of the world's leading orchestras, has died at the age of 84 after suffering from cancer, his agent said today.
Jury Selection Begins in Music Critic’s Suit Against Cleveland Plain-Dealer July 13, 2010 Jury selection began on Monday in a music critic’s lawsuit against his employer, The Cleveland Plain-Dealer, and the Cleveland Orchestra in Ohio’s Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas. The critic, Donald Rosenberg, filed the suit after he was removed in September from reviewing the orchestra. He said orchestra management pressed the newspaper into sidelining him because it objected to a string of negative reviews he gave to the orchestra’s music director, Franz Welser-Most. He remains on the paper’s staff.
Orchestra musicians file grievance July 13, 2010 The musicians union has filed a labor grievance over the Honolulu Symphony's declaration that its musicians have rejected its "best and final offer."
Arroyo, Glass, DiChiera and Queler Receive NEA Opera Honors Award July 01, 2010 Soprano Martina Arroyo, general director David DiChiera, composer Philip Glass and music director Eve Queler are recipients of the 2010 NEA Opera Honors.
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