ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

MUSIC

Using Public Domain Songs As Fodder For Something New

With support from a wide cast of collaborators, Angry and Katherine McMahon are taking songs from the public domain — a class of creative works whose copyright protections have expired or been otherwise forfeited, making them freely available for public use — and reimagining them for the present moment. - The New York Times

The Year Of Singing Dangerously

The wildfire-like spread of the coronavirus over a couple of hours of choral singing inside a Washington church was enough to send shockwaves throughout the singing community in California. - KQED

On The Rediscovery Of Black Composers Of The Past

"Black composers have been emerging over the past year at a dramatically accelerated pace that's particularly rare amid the normally glacial progression of the classical music world. Young figures such as Valerie Coleman – whose highly appealing Seven O'Clock Shout for the Philadelphia Orchestra was an instant hit – shouldn't be such a surprise, but what about figures from...

How The Met Opera’s Telemarketing Strategy Backfires On Itself

"Dialing for dollars may be a skill that some sellers of products and services profitably employ. But when it comes to deepening a level of patron loyalty that would get a major cultural institution out of a pandemically induced shutdown, it’s done more harm than good." - David Rohde

The Mystery Man Who Now Controls The World’s Largest Classical Music Management Company

After wresting control of IMG Artists in an internal power struggle, Russian-born tycoon Alexander Shustorovich has kept the agency alive through the pandemic to become the world’s largest manager of classical music talent. - Billboard

Simon Rattle Asks UK Ministers For Help With Brexit And The London Symphony Orchestra

Brexit regulations are not great for the LSO, which had 99 tour dates booked in Europe before the pandemic canceled them all. "It’s all so obviously ludicrous, even in the area of haulage regulations. Touring concerts have to be planned in a different way – the truck has to return to England after two venues – we cannot go...

The Video Game Platform That Spawned Its Own Music Genre

You might this it's Nintendo - the soundtracks to Super Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong sure can linger in one's brain - but instead it's Roblox, and the music (which took off in popularity with the addition of, you guessed it, TikTok), created the genre robloxcore. "Mostly made by young teenagers, it’s a strain of chaotic, profanity-laden rap that’s...

The Dictatorial Polish Conductor Who Changed The Sound Of American Orchestras

The tale of Artur Rodzinski is not a charming one, and yet, "arguably no man had more of a hand in turning American orchestras into the technical marvels they became in the mid-20th century — whether through those he led himself, or through the example he set. He jolted up the standards of some of the great ensembles of...

Bob Koester, Of Delmark Records And Chicago’s Jazz Record Mart, 88

Koester funded his recording company by selling jazz and blues records at his store. He "was a pivotal figure in Chicago and beyond, releasing early efforts by Sun Ra, Anthony Braxton, Jimmy Dawkins, Magic Sam and numerous other jazz and blues musicians. He captured the sound of Chicago’s vibrant blues scene of the 1960s," among many other achievements. -...

How Spotify’s Podcast Dance Around Music Copyright Constraints

Basically, it owns both: Some shows use "a hybrid format, which Spotify calls 'shows with music' or 'music and talk, that allows creators to incorporate full songs from the service’s vast catalog into their podcasts free of charge. (Spotify takes a 30 percent cut of ads set up through the service.) The format gives podcasters easy access to music that would...

Behind The Scenes At The Reopening Of The Hollywood Bowl

 "If reopening the Bowl is like riding a bike," the L.A. Phil president and CEO says, "the organization has swapped out a Tour de France Cannondale for a unicycle." - Los Angeles Times

Paul Meecham Named Executive Director Of The Tucson Symphony

Paul Meecham comes to the job after leading the Utah Symphony & Opera for three years and a 10-year run as CEO of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. His résumé also includes two years at the Seattle Symphony. - Tucson.com

Analyzing The 17-Year Cicadas’ ‘Grand Magic Insect Symphony’ — And Joining In

"Only the males can vibrate a section of their abdomen called the tymbals to make either phaaaaaroah drone sounds or chchchchhwhhhs noise waves, depending on the species. For any mating to happen, though, the females must respond with a quiet but audible flick of their wings, leading the males on to successive sounds only if this flick happens at...

San Diego Symphony Has A New $85 Million Outdoor Venue

The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, located on the downtown waterfront, seats up to 10,000 people and (because it's San Diego and they can) will be used year-round. It hosts a livestream with selected orchestra members on May 21 and will have its first full orchestra concert, under music director Rafael Payaré, later this summer. - The San Diego...

Bayreuth Festival: Christian Thielemann May Have Lost His Other Job, Too

At the beginning of this week it was announced that the conductor (who was, when he was younger, hailed as a new Herbert von Karajan) was not offered a contract renewal at the orchestra and opera house in Dresden. It turns out that his term as music director at Wagner's own opera house in Bayreuth expired on Jan. 1,...

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