Audiologists say this could make one’s ears howl, create an uncomfortable sensation of density in one’s head, and eventually make it impossible to hear human conversation. Yet I persist . . . Why? - LitHub
Individuals who heard them as babies relied on them, decades later, as parents and grandparents. Not even the symphony or fugue or sonata can boast such endurance or efficacy. - Ted Gioia
Performers fanned out across the city to play Billy Joel's 1976 hit in a new music video meant to improve, er, New York's state of mind. - The New York Times
Jewish artists brought the annual festival to life, before the Nazis swept them away. But even before the Nazis came to power in Austria, "There was much hostility against the ‘theater Jews’ from Vienna." - The New York Times
"Concert promoters, like other arts executives, are hoping that velvet ropes of vaccination requirements around cultural events can serve as an incentive for fans to get the shot." - The New York Times
"Ted Green has been collecting … the telltale chimes — beeps, ding-dongs, jingles and arpeggios that warn riders around the world to stand clear." In Rio, it sounds like a bossa nova guitar; in Delhi, like a doorbell; in Montreal, like Aaron Copland. - The New York Times
The collection of flats and drops had been languishing in the attic of the Tabor Opera House in Leadville. The theater was built by Horace Tabor, whose marriages and financial ruin were chronicled in Douglas Moore's opera The Ballad of Baby Doe. - The New York Times
You'd expect a concert hall to cost 10 or 20 times that amount. What's more, after the bank moved out, the place was, among other things, a Burger King. Now it's the home of Youth Orchestra Los Angeles, the L.A. Philharmonic's Sistema-style program. - Los Angeles Times on MSN
Stats from UK music trade body BPI say that only one in 10 signed artists are expected to succeed commercially, and if the relationship does fall apart, any music an artist has made typically remains owned by the label. - The Guardian
According to one CNN report, a song called "Fart" was blacklisted. The lyrics of the song read: "There are some people in the world who like farting while doing nothing." - BBC
In 2017-18, 2% of works performed were written by women, and 3% by composers of color. By 2019–2020, it was 6% of works by women and 8% by composers of color. This year music by women comprise 12%, and nearly 17% are by composers of color. - San Francisco Classical Voice
The Rady Shell was built to be the San Diego Symphony's summer venue, but, COVID rates and the city's weather being what they are, the orchestra will play there at least through the fall. Acoustically and audience-wise, it appears to be a success. - The New York Times
For centuries, the spruces of Val di Fiemme have been used in the greatest instruments Italy produces, from Stradivari violins to Fazioli pianos. Here's why these evergreens are so good for their purpose — and what threats they face, from bark beetles to wind storms. - Atlas Obscura
That's how Joshua Barone of The New York Times categorizes Robert Carsen: "His work is by no means repetitive, cautious or dull. But in more than 125 productions over three decades in the field, he has been peerlessly dependable." - The New York Times
