The orchestra, which was known for improving access for students and low-income folks in the Minnesota, will play its swan song concert this weekend. Why? Conductor and AD Jay Fishman says to follow the (lack of) money. - MinnPost
"(Jeanine) Tesori knows that it takes more than a familiar name to entice audiences to a show, especially in a medium that is unfamiliar to them. So she has taken the time to clear up some misconceptions about opera, in the hopes that it will encourage theatre lovers to become opera lovers." - Playbill
Royce Vavrek, Brooklyn-based but Canadian by birth, has been appointed artistic director of Against the Grain Theatre, an experimental opera company in Toronto. - Ludwig Van
By the numbers, that refers to $49.7 billion in paid streaming gross revenue for 2030, nearly double 2023’s $26.4 billion, and a cool 647 million paid subscribers in emerging markets (up from 300 million in 2023), per Music in the Air. - Digital Music News
In a lawsuit filed in California, attorneys representing Durst, Limp Bizkit and Flawless Records accused UMG of using software “deliberately designed to conceal artists’ (including Plaintiffs’) royalties” so it can pocket the profits. - The Guardian
The story they want to tell, in an emphatically triumphalist tone, is that the early pirates were David and the music industry was Goliath. But then the industry realized that David was actually pretty cool: All turned out well, and music was solved forever. - The New York Times
The artistic director of Dresden’s Sinfoniker, Markus Rindt, said the intention was “not to replace human beings” but to perform complex music that human conductors would find impossible. - The Guardian
A Four Corners investigation has found Live Nation has expanded its reach to every part of the Australian music industry and its practices are angering some of the country’s most talented musicians. - ABC
There was simply no way to keep the jazz fest going in the devastated region this week, organizers said. They "called the decision ‘heart wrenching and devastating,' but said they are 'committed to rebuilding, and carrying on the tradition.’” - Tampa Bay Times
Less than a year ago, “‘my goal was 20 to 25 kids,' Pieken said. ‘(I thought) if we don’t have at least like 15 signed up to audition … then we probably might want to rethink some things.’ … Now, the groups boasts 94 players.” - KCUR
LA Phil Dudamel in New York, offering a glimpse of what is to come. “You have the vision of a maestro who at least wants to try, who isn’t content with the base line of a symphony concert. And that is something to be excited about.” - The New York Times
Andrew Mellor: "At best, he looks like a bitter fool. It’s a shame for him, for anyone who has a modicum of respect for his talent and for anyone who has done good work with him. But it’s shameful for an industry apparently happy to sweep his abuse under the carpet." - Classical Music (UK)
Chris Strachwitz — who purchased the building in 1976 with money earned from the publishing royalties on Country Joe & the Fish’s “I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-to-Die” — died in 2023, but prior to his death, he wrote into his will that Harrod Blank has first right of refusal to buy the property at market value: an estimated $2.4 million. - SFGate
The 56-year-old is best known for his decades-long career as a solo violinist, but he has been conducting for years and has been music director of the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields since 2011. He will be the New Jersey Symphony's first-ever Principal Guest Conductor. - The Strad
