MyAuditions Performing Arts News

Bankruptcy!

9 Nov 2009 09:56:12 GMT

Citing mounting debts and lackluster revenues, the Honolulu Symphony said it will file for bankruptcy protection and may lay off half of its musicians. The 109-year-old symphony said it will cancel all of its November and December concerts and made no guarantees that the rest of its 2009-10 season would go on. "We cannot spend money we do not have," said Majken Mechling, the symphony's executive director. Mechling said the symphony has accumulated a debt of more than $1 million and has struggled in recent years to meet its $4.1 million-a-year payroll.
Honolulu Advertiser

Virtuoso pianist a dying breed?

9 Nov 2009 09:55:21 GMT

The race for ever greater virtuosity began with the technological transformation of the piano. The addition of metal plates, bars and an octave and a half’s more keys produced a sturdier, roomier and more expressive instrument that allowed the Romantic composers to conjure up ever more fantastical and technically difficult musical worlds. It also produced a body of work that demanded the creation of a new type of musician: the virtuoso, whose job was pianistic shock and awe. Today’s virtuosos and super-virtuosos, however, are reluctant members of the club. Many of the younger generation are shunning the repertoire and the older ones are shunning the label. So why are pianists wary of being associated with this tradition?
The Times

Classical music at the White House

9 Nov 2009 09:53:54 GMT

President Obama Wednesday thanked artists for sharing their passion. He was speaking, of course, about classical music, before the evening concert in the East Room that concluded the White House's day of classical music. The event could be said to represent a sea change in the image of classical music at the White House. For administrations past, classical music was the logical, even the only, form of entertainment: socially acceptable, properly high-church. But what becomes clearer, in this presentation, is that classical music no longer automatically holds a position of predominance among today's power elite. The day's message was, "Look, classical music can be fun," even though this message is also a tacit admission of the widespread assumption that it isn't.
Washington Post

City Opera Returns, With Improved Acoustics

9 Nov 2009 09:53:17 GMT

New York Times

Whither Music?

9 Nov 2009 09:52:35 GMT

American Thinker

Villazon says that his voice is back

9 Nov 2009 09:51:56 GMT

Los Angeles Times

The rise and fall of the original Boston Opera House

9 Nov 2009 09:51:15 GMT

Boston Globe

Moonlighting conductors

9 Nov 2009 09:50:31 GMT

Omaha World-Herald

New Conductors: A Measure for a Maestro

9 Nov 2009 09:49:42 GMT

New York Times

Director of Orchestral Studies at Stanford dies during surgery

9 Nov 2009 09:48:55 GMT

Stanford

Bankruptcy looming

5 Nov 2009 13:01:47 GMT

The Honolulu Symphony may file for bankruptcy protection, according to people familiar with the situation. The symphony, the oldest American orchestra west of the Rocky Mountains, has struggled in recent years to pay its musicians. Two months ago it received a $1.8 million cash infusion to cover operating expenses for the upcoming season. A Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization would cast a further pall over the symphony's four-week-old 2009-2010 season and would come at a time when performing arts organizations nationwide have been hard hit by the global economic crisis.
Honolulu Star-Bulletin

London's Phil unveils multimedia project

5 Nov 2009 13:01:06 GMT

Are you into The Rite of Spring? Well, thanks to the Philharmonia and Esa-Pekka Salonen you could, quite literally, step inside this still-astounding score. A new multi-media celebration of Stravinsky’s 1913 ballet score allows you to walk through the orchestra as it plays: a quite amazing experience. Filmed using 29 cameras – some fixed to the players’ heads – Re-Rite presents a rarely glimpsed view of what’s it’s like to be inside an orchestra as it plays.
Gramophone

A return that came sooner, not later

5 Nov 2009 12:59:36 GMT

The Boston Symphony Orchestra seems to be conducting a series of experiments to determine whether absence does, in fact, make the heart grow fonder. Its own music director, James Levine, is said to be testing the patience of the Boston audience with his particular brand of new-music programming, but this season he has been sidelined after surgery for a herniated disc. How fond his audience will be when he returns remains to be seen. But in the meantime, the orchestra ran a second, slightly more complicated test on Monday evening, when it performed at Carnegie Hall with Lorin Maazel on the podium.
New York Times

Slatkin recovering after heart attack

5 Nov 2009 12:58:59 GMT

Washington Post

LA Radio to pass on NEA Opera Honors

5 Nov 2009 12:58:27 GMT

Los Angeles Times

Illness silences chamber orchestra

5 Nov 2009 12:57:49 GMT

Montreal Gazette

Play the Oregon Symphony video game

5 Nov 2009 12:57:11 GMT

The Oregonian

Soprano Sylvia McNair is back

5 Nov 2009 12:56:40 GMT

Baltimore Sun

Parents want music program with Mississippi Symphony reinstated

5 Nov 2009 12:56:02 GMT

WAPT

Baku to host International Rostropovich festival

5 Nov 2009 12:55:49 GMT

News.Az

Slatkin suffers heart attack on stage

4 Nov 2009 15:30:48 GMT

St. Louis Symphony Orchestra Conductor Laureate Leonard Slatkin, 65, suffered a heart attack while conducting a concert by the Rotterdam Philharmonic in the Netherlands on Sunday night. News reports say that Slatkin suffered chest pains during the concert, but finished the performance. From there, he was taken to a hospital in Rotterdam, and where he had surgery to insert two stents.
St. Louis Today

Scribbles for Juilliard archives

4 Nov 2009 15:30:05 GMT

The Juilliard School has finished the construction of a secure archival storage space for its collection of valuable music manuscripts, and you have to hope that the designers left a little extra room in the shoulders and hips. For at a concert-lecture event celebrating its completion — and with it, the completion of the school’s three-year, $200 million renovation and expansion — at Alice Tully Hall, Juilliard announced the acquisition of two additional manuscripts, and there appear to be more to come. The new acquisitions are a manuscript of Beethoven’s “Kreutzer” Sonata for violin and piano and an engraved proof copy of the piano-vocal score of Mendelssohn’s oratorio “Elijah,” each with scribblings by the composer.
New York Times

Composers in Cyberspace

4 Nov 2009 15:28:33 GMT

A 'composer-in-residence' for an orchestra will have to sign a proper contract, obliging him/her to produce a big piece or two per year, while juggling lots of other commitments to supplement the far-from-munificent fee. It also involves chatting to the audience, who will probably have a lingering fascination for 'genius' and want to see what a real live composer actually looks like. That classical music website Dilettante.com is about to take the process of democratisation one step further, by appointing its own 'composer-in-residence'. The aim, they say, is to redefine the composer-in-residence for the digital age. He or she will win a modest prize of £1000, and a year-long residency on the website, allowing them to engage with web-site members through a Composer’s Corner blog, a podcast series, online forums, and masterclasses. It will culminate in 2010 a live event with a performance of a new work.
Telegraph

The Conductor Reflects

4 Nov 2009 15:27:48 GMT

Wall Street Journal

Kids' favorite classical composer

4 Nov 2009 15:26:57 GMT

Guardian

From Mao to Mozart, 30 Years Later

4 Nov 2009 15:26:21 GMT

China Daily

Jail time for former manager of Queen’s composer

4 Nov 2009 15:25:45 GMT

Times

Vienna greets Armenia in music festival

4 Nov 2009 15:25:03 GMT

Armenian Reporter

The Max factor

4 Nov 2009 15:24:20 GMT

Scotsman

Professor honored for 40-year music tenure

4 Nov 2009 15:23:13 GMT

Daily Tar Heel

Orchestra hero

2 Nov 2009 12:51:07 GMT

What is the hottest thing in music right now? A pair of video games - Guitar Hero and Rock Band. Anyone can play. The games allow you to become a member of the band. Each game offers a range of pop music hits on game controllers that look and feel like guitars and drums. What makes these video games so much more impressive than “air guitar” is that through the use of something called the instrument game controller the player actually experiences the visceral feeling of performing music. You can even improve if you practice. So, why not Orchestra Hero?
New York Times

Former Cliburn head to help Tchaikovsky competition

2 Nov 2009 12:49:50 GMT

Just a few days before the April telephone call, Richard Rodzinski had read a lengthy profile of famed Russian conductor Valery Gergiev. The maestro, described as tireless and charismatic, was the head of the prestigious Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg, principal conductor of the London Symphony and frequent guest conductor at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. He was also a close personal friend of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.So when Gergiev himself placed the call to Fort Worth, he had Rodzinski’s full attention. The Russian master, as it turned out, was asking for help. The Tchaikovsky International Music Competition, once a premier cultural event where Van Cliburn made his name a half-century ago, had recently fallen into disrepute and it was Gergiev’s task to restore it.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Good conduct

2 Nov 2009 12:48:25 GMT

The public face of American orchestral music changed radically this autumn. For the first time, conductors from ethnic minorities have taken the helm at two of the country’s most important ensembles. Alan Gilbert, a half-Japanese native New Yorker, has been appointed musical director of the New York Philharmonic, while over in California the dashing Venezuelan classical idol Gustavo Dudamel has picked up the baton at the Los Angeles Philharmonic. These two appointments – each for arguably the best orchestra on the respective coasts – are an exciting sign of changing times in the classical world. While both conductors have arrived in a scene still largely dominated by white Europeans and North Americans, they are not entirely isolated examples.
National

A Tale Of Two Songs

2 Nov 2009 12:47:53 GMT

NPR

Pianist knows his keys to success

2 Nov 2009 12:47:23 GMT

Tonight

And the beat goes on

2 Nov 2009 12:46:50 GMT

The Australian

Arts groups get funding help

2 Nov 2009 12:46:13 GMT

Peoria Star

A pair of crucial cultural priorities

2 Nov 2009 12:45:34 GMT

The Australian

In a class of his own

2 Nov 2009 12:44:58 GMT

Bismarck Tribune

Revived English opera opens at the Royal Opera House

2 Nov 2009 12:44:48 GMT

BBC Music

Getting to know you

30 Oct 2009 13:14:18 GMT

Every conductor has to learn to finish the job, in concert, without utterance beyond the occasional grunt or wheeze. Leonard Bernstein, famous to audiences for his gymnastics on the podium, was infamous among musicians for his philosophical disquisitions, but the real communication of his musical insights, wishes and afterthoughts to the players may have had little to do with either. Bernard Haitink represents the opposite extreme. He addresses an orchestra, when he has to, softly and succinctly. As a result, the players strain to listen. More often they watch.
New York Times

Orchestras' classroom

30 Oct 2009 13:13:33 GMT

Latest in the never-ending series of orchestras' educational endeavors: the Boston Symphony Orchestra has launched an on-line "Classical Companion" to Beethoven's nine symphonies, with videos, lectures and a "Beethoven Music Lab" that allows you to create your own development section to three of the symphonies. Classical music institutions are widely accepting the idea that it's their responsibility to educate the audience -- to help teach people about why they should be interested in the product that the institutions are offering. It's true that people who love music are often eager to learn more about how it is made, particularly about the ways people who make music think about it.
Washington Post

Classical music at the White House

30 Oct 2009 13:11:35 GMT

Classical music education will get some welcome attention next week when Michelle Obama opens the White House for a special concert. Next Wednesday, the first lady will host a Classical Music Student Workshop Concert, which will feature an appearance by violinist Joshua Bell, guitarist Sharon Isbin, cellist Alisa Weilerstein and pianist Awadagin Pratt. The afternoon concert, which will be held in the East Room, is part of the White House's ongoing Music Series, which was created by the first lady to celebrate the arts and demonstrate the importance of arts education.
Los Angeles Times

Yamaha's new electronic piano

30 Oct 2009 13:11:01 GMT

Slate

Maazel Is Taking Baton for an Ailing Levine

30 Oct 2009 13:10:19 GMT

New York Times

Gould winner receives donation of instruments

30 Oct 2009 13:09:49 GMT

Globe And Mail

Conducting a transformation

30 Oct 2009 13:09:14 GMT

Penrith Press

United Arts gives project grants

30 Oct 2009 13:08:38 GMT

Orlando Sentinel

Orchestra begins new chapter

30 Oct 2009 13:07:50 GMT

Kingston Daily Freeman

Violinist Finds Success at Young Age

30 Oct 2009 13:04:24 GMT

Alexandria Gazette-Packet

Conducting one's business

29 Oct 2009 14:23:25 GMT

To hold up orchestras and their relationship with conductors, as a business model to be applied to business success, is to subscribe to an idealized view of classical music as a happy sphere of beautiful golden tones. It doesn't reflect most orchestras' reality. Orchestras are notoriously dysfunctional places, often filled with talented people suffering from acute frustration at their lack of autonomy or of artistic self-expression. And the conductor of stereotype is an autocratic figure who doesn't care if his musicians are happy or not. This is changing. The role of the conductor is becoming increasingly entrepreneurial, and orchestras are starting to see the need for a new business model.
Washington Post

Rattle to stay with Berlin

29 Oct 2009 14:17:06 GMT

The classical music world is known for planning concerts and events years in advance. But the Berlin Philharmonic takes the cake with its announcement that it has secured Simon Rattle's tenure as head of the orchestra for another nine years. The orchestra said that Rattle has signed a contract to continue in his role as artistic director through 2018, according to a report in the Associated Press. The British conductor has led the Berlin Philharmonic since 2002.
Los Angeles Times

Composers consider unionization

29 Oct 2009 14:13:09 GMT

For the first time in more than a decade, composers and lyricists working in film, TV and videogames are considering unionization. Composers and lyricists are among the few creatives left without a collective bargaining agreement. Services like orchestration, conducting and music performance are covered by American Federation of Musicians (AFM) agreements, but not the act of writing music or lyrics.
Variety

Saint Louis Symphony gala nets more than $800K

29 Oct 2009 14:12:37 GMT

Victoria Advocate

Gillinson Calls $530K Stagehand Pay ‘Old Story’

29 Oct 2009 14:12:01 GMT

Bloomberg

One-on-one with Osmo Vänskä

29 Oct 2009 14:11:21 GMT

San Francisco Chronicle

State of the arts: Despite recession, optimism abounds

29 Oct 2009 14:10:47 GMT

San Francisco Examiner

'El Sistema' documentary highlights disadvantaged youth in Venezuela

29 Oct 2009 14:10:10 GMT

Los Angeles Times

Finding a musical balance

29 Oct 2009 14:08:51 GMT

Salt Lake Tribune

Canadian Opera dips taps fund to offset deficit

29 Oct 2009 14:08:40 GMT

Globe And Mail

Bright young maestros

27 Oct 2009 14:03:08 GMT

Andris Nelsons. Gustavo Dudamel, Alan Gilbert, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, are Daniel Harding are among a new wave of first-rate, mostly 30-something conductors to garner notable appointments and guest engagements in recent years. Is this just the latest changing of the guard, as middle-age maestros move up the ladder and eminent conductors in their 80s—such as Sir Colin Davis, Kurt Masur, Lorin Maazel and Sir Charles Mackerras—shed important posts? Or are the latest crop of baton-wielders, like tennis phenoms, obtaining expert training and top talent agents earlier than before?
Wall Street Journal

Levine’s return delayed

27 Oct 2009 14:02:25 GMT

Boston Symphony Orchestra music director James Levine will not be back to conduct in Symphony Hall until January, the BSO said yesterday. Originally expected to return from back surgery last week, Levine will now miss the complete cycle of nine Beethoven symphonies that he had programmed and the BSO had promoted enthusiastically. For Levine, 66, this latest setback - he has missed significant time twice before during his tenure for health issues - means he will have missed 27, or 11 percent, of the 247 concerts he was scheduled to lead.
Boston Globe

Aspen Music Fest CEO quits

27 Oct 2009 14:02:10 GMT

Alan Fletcher, the beleaguered president and CEO of the Aspen Music Festival and School, is stepping down at the end of this month. The internationally renowned music festival and school announced his resignation in a stark press release Tuesday that provided no reasons why he is leaving or where he might be going. Fletcher came under fire this summer for the way he cut faculty positions and interacted with the public.
Aspen Times

You Cannot Start Without Me - Valery Gergiev

27 Oct 2009 13:59:53 GMT

Arizona Reporter

Grand Teton Festival Gets $3.5M

27 Oct 2009 13:59:16 GMT

Jackson Hole Daily

Dudamel's young magician-musicians

27 Oct 2009 13:58:38 GMT

Toronto Star

American Classical Music Hall of Fame announces five inductees

27 Oct 2009 13:58:05 GMT

Cincinnati Enquirer

Canadian Opera Company expands broadcast slate

27 Oct 2009 13:57:34 GMT

CBC

Domingo's switches to baritone

27 Oct 2009 13:54:34 GMT

Ottawa Citizen

No doubt, this gal's got pluck

27 Oct 2009 13:54:07 GMT

Tonight

van Zweden re-ups in Dallas

26 Oct 2009 13:47:23 GMT

Jaap van Zweden has extended his contract as music director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra through the 2015-16 season. Now starting his second season here, and a huge hit with musicians, audiences and critics, the Dutch conductor has signed a four-year extension to his initial four-year contract. The signing was to be announced at Thursday evening's DSO concert. The contract extension commits van Zweden to 16 weeks per season, unusually generous in today's orchestra world, with possible additional weeks for touring.
Dallas Morning News

New world on two coasts

26 Oct 2009 13:46:44 GMT

When a music director takes the helm of a major American orchestra, the inaugural concert should be not just a musical celebration but a statement of artistic mission. The recent debuts of Alan Gilbert at the New York Philharmonic and Gustavo Dudamel at the Los Angeles Philharmonic both showed how this can be done. The classical music field is abuzz about the new music directors on opposite American coasts, although buzz hardly begins to describe the scene in Los Angeles since the arrival of Mr. Dudamel, a boyish Venezuelan with charisma to burn. The city is swept up in Dudamania.
New York Times

The cellphone symphony

26 Oct 2009 13:46:12 GMT

A musician and his team have trained 1,000 cellphones to deliver 2,000 text messages in about 40 seconds that sound like Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture – complete with bass drums and crashing cymbals at the end.
Toronto Star

Masterly code of conduct

26 Oct 2009 13:44:22 GMT

Times Online

Dudamel brings Venezuelan youth orchestra to Canada

26 Oct 2009 13:43:47 GMT

Globe and Mail

NYC Charges Against Argentine Diva to Be Dropped

26 Oct 2009 13:43:14 GMT

ABC News

Picking up the baton

26 Oct 2009 13:42:44 GMT

The National

Total eclipse of composer's heart

26 Oct 2009 13:42:09 GMT

Adelaide Now

Pianist stirs emotions behind bars

26 Oct 2009 13:41:35 GMT

Baltimore Sun

A brilliant hall built to last

26 Oct 2009 13:40:51 GMT

Toronto Star