CEO Robert Kyncl wrote in an internal memo, "We’re in a position of strength, and that’s the smart time to change, innovate, and lead. … Today, we’re announcing a plan to free up more funds to ... accelerate our growth for the next decade. … Our plan includes reducing our workforce by approximately 10%." - Billboard
Shortly after the Russian invasion began, "the orchestra filed a request with the Ministry of Culture to go abroad. Military targets were under attack, but so was Ukrainian culture. The war’s ‘cultural front’ and Ukrainian culture’s fight for its continued existence was on minds throughout the country." - Classical Music (UK)
"The number of partnerships between an American orchestra and a music director that have been so productive for so long is vanishingly small. … This partnership has officially come to an end. So it’s a good time to outline and celebrate the scope of (Michael Tilson) Thomas’s achievements." - San Francisco Chronicle
Spano — currently music director of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and the Aspen Music Festival and School, principal conductor of the Rhode Island Philharmonic, and from 2001 to 2021 music director of the Atlanta Symphony — begins an initial three-year term at the WNO in fall 2025. - The Washington Post (MSN)
Throughout her tenure, Cadeau oversaw the recruitment of Kent Nagano in 2006, the opening of the Maison symphonique de Montréal (the OSM's then-new home) in 2011, the creation of the education program "La musique aux enfants" in 2016, and the hiring of current Music Director Rafael Payare in 2021. - The Violin Channel
The key questions, Harvey Mason said, center on how AI is creating its new generative output and how the industry can identify whether an artist’s voice or music was misused. - Yahoo!
For Thomas Coesfeld, these and other recent gear-shifts at BMG all come in preparation for what he calls “tectonic shifts” affecting the music rights business. - Music Business Worldwide
Spotify narrowed its loss to 70 million euros, equivalent to about $75 million, in the final quarter, from €270 million a year earlier. Revenue grew 16% to €3.67 billion, in line with its guidance, helped by a price increase in the second half of 2023 and a growing ad business. - The Wall Street Journal
"Orchestra After 5" concerts begin with a cocktail hour in the Kimmel Center lobby, followed at 6:30 by a one-hour concert with an informal chat afterward. "If the goal was to lure listeners beyond the traditional base," writes Peter Dobrin, "it was a wild success." - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
"While the ensemble will remain the same in size and membership, it has a new name, a new music director and a program aimed at drawing more diverse audiences. The Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center ... will convene in July for its first season under conductor Jonathon Heyward." - The New York Times
Elaine Martone won Producer of the Year, Classical, for a bouquet of albums including Third Coast Percussion’s Between Breaths, Seth Parker Woods’ Difficult Grace, and the Cleveland Orchestra and Franz Welser-Möst’s Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5. - WRTI
“Half my drafts are muted now,” says Madeline Macrae, a Swift fan and TikTok creator. While initially frustrated by the change, Macrae thinks there might be positive impacts. Even though many ardent fans value the online community built through social media, some are also uncomfortable with the flattening of poetic songs into 60-second memes. - Wired
While you might look at your daylist and think that Spotify knows your music tastes intimately, it is equally the case that the algorithm has shaped those tastes over time. - The Conversation
It could be argued that Williams is the best friend American orchestras have ever had. His orchestral film scores are many Americans’ first encounter with the sound of a symphony. - Symphony
