Archives for October 2009

I'm working on the US press for the new Cecilia Bartoli album, Sacrificium, which not unlike Michael Jackson's new album, came out this week. Buy it here to support this blog. Just kidding: album sales have nothing to do with this blog, but it's a good album so buy it anyway. Somewhere along the line we came up with the idea for a "virtual archeological dig," and today the thing actually happened. SO, La Cieca over at parterre.com kicks things off. Follow the clues to 8 other sites and answer questions to reveal puzzle pieces here. Last clue is … [Read more...]

So this happened: Kanye West mentions (cute and good) Norwegian pianist Leif Ove Andsnes on his blog. Here are the comments:No one ever comments about "all that coke" on Life's a Pitch. Lame, team. Lame.Let's just hope this doesn't go to LOA's head. His management probably doesn't want him showing up two hours late to summer festivals. … [Read more...]

We have this thing "Site Meter"--which is exactly what it sounds like--set up for our ArtsJournal blogs, so we can see how many people are reading us, from where, at what time, so on, so forth.One of the intriguing aspects of Site Meter is that I can see what people have Googled to get to me. "Amanda Ameer" Google Image searches crop up every once and a while and totally creep me out, but most Google searches that get you to home sweet Life's a Pitch are "how to find a publicist," "classical music publicity," etc.. This one, in addition to the … [Read more...]

I carry around big purses a lot, so sometimes I'll see a cute dog on the street and actually think I can scoop him or her up, mush him or her into the bag with my computer, lip plumper and blotting tissue, and continue on my way. These are the things that drift through my head, and for a split second I'm certain I can pull the off the dog heist without getting arrested. If I suddenly stop blogging, it probably means I've actually done it and, in fact, gotten arrested; apologies in advance. I lugged this white leather and plastic Jill Stuart … [Read more...]

Knowing my penchant for quotes, my friend Abigail sent this over this afternoon from Bloomberg News: [Clive] Gillinson, who came from the London Symphony Orchestra in 2005, made less in 2007-08 than two other New York performing- arts leaders with more complex tasks. Lincoln Center President Reynold Levy made $1.1 million to oversee a 16-acre complex that houses 12 resident companies. Metropolitan Opera General Manager Peter Gelb earned $1.5 million to produce 219 opera performances...Gillinson oversees management, raises money and … [Read more...]

Many thanks to @cjpr: Christina Jensen, Christina Jensen PR; @CarnegieMatt: Matt Carlson, Carnegie Hall; @dotdotdottweet: Steven Swartz, DotDotDot Music; @SarahBaird: Sarah Baird, Boosey and Hawkes; @BklsweetMedia: Amanda Sweet, Bucklesweet Media;  @glennpetry, @seanmgross, @PhilipWilder: Glenn Petry, Sean Gross and Philip Wilder, 21C Media Group; and @mlaffs: Maura Lafferty, New Century Chamber Orchestra for their help with this. Now stop Tweeting and answering blog questions and revise some bios!These interviews were conducted via … [Read more...]

About a week ago, I had coffee with an arts marketer from out of town. She mentioned going to the opera with a prominent critic, and having--a meal or a meeting, I don't remember--with a prominent New York presenter. She was by no means bragging about these things, just telling me what she had been up to during her trip. No judging, I started, but if you've never worked in the city, how do you know these people? "Through Twitter!" she said. I've never joined Facebook, and I had no burning desire to join Twitter. It's Thursday at 11:40pm, and … [Read more...]

I went to Christine Brewer's Zankel (Carnegie) Hall recital tonight and now, over a glass of strawberry milk, I will tell you what it made me think about. Spoiler Alert: it's marketing and PR. 1. One of, if not the, best things about working at IMG Artists was getting to meet the clients in a non-formal setting when they came into the office. I'm not sure if he remembers, but I remember Eric Owens coming in and suggesting we rearrange the furniture in the lobby. I was all-too-happy to offer my two...dollars...on the lobby design, as was my … [Read more...]

Author, blogger and New Yorker classical music writer Alex Ross has a new blog on the New Yorker website. Here's his description:This blog, which takes its name from a part-song by the English Renaissance master John Dowland, will consist of short commentaries, addenda to New Yorker pieces, audio excerpts from recommended new CDs, links to novelties and oddities around the Internet, and the like. My old site, with its library of twentieth-century audio samples, will remain intact, and perhaps expand from time to time. Unquiet Thoughts won't be … [Read more...]

(photo from here)Strictly FYI, this is what classical music reads like to the rest of the music world. From BrooklynVegan re: the recent Hope Sandoval show:LA Weekly spent a considerable portion of their Hope Sandoval cemetery show review talking about the NO-photo policy. Now I know why. Hope Sandoval didn't just deny photo passes. She didn't just post warning signs all over the venue (see above). She didn't just have someone give a stern, pre-show announcement. Hope basically had her own security detail on hand to blind and humiliate … [Read more...]

According to You've Cott Mail according to The Stage News, Sadler's Wells across (le) pond launched movie theater-style previews for upcoming productions last night at the Peacock Theater. From The Stage News:Sadler's Wells director of marketing and communications Kingsley Jayasekera said: "At Sadler's Wells we're always looking for new ways to tell our audiences about what we have coming up. Cinemas do this very effectively to flag up forthcoming film releases, so why shouldn't theatre?"I blogged about this here and endured some criticism from … [Read more...]

When soccer moms in army-grade Hummers would double-park on New Canaan's already-narrow Elm Street, my mother would always mutter, or sometimes shout, "Some people think the rules don't apply to them."  She would declare a similar sentiment when we'd be in line for the movies and would hear a parent tell his or her child "just say you're 7" to get a cheaper movie ticket. Some people think the rules don't apply to them...and by all means teach your child to lie. I sent out a press release last night with extremely specific instructions on … [Read more...]

From my intern, happy Monday at 3pm.I'm fairly certain I went to college with this guy. Several versions of this guy. … [Read more...]