Research on cultural ecosystems suggests that institutional collaboration is crucial to sustain vibrant arts production. This is especially the case as music and the arts face increasing pressure from shifting funding models and post-pandemic austerity. - The Conversation
A chance encounter fifty years ago "helped fuel a lifelong quest: mapping a musical route that mirrored the trans-Atlantic slave trade and birthed nearly all of the popular music that we now take for granted, including rock ’n’ roll and hip-hop." - The New York Times
For a jury that has spent weeks listening to experts debate market definitions, vertical integration and other fine points of antitrust law, the testimony about Irvine’s failed amphitheater, and other disputes, has provided a perspective on how all the abstractions play out in real life for taxpayers, industry insiders and concertgoers. - The New York Times
The Colombian-German conductor, who turns 30 next week, is a former Dudamel Fellow at the Phil and currently assistant conductor at the Boston Symphony; she begins this fall as chief conductor of the Ulster Orchestra and artist-in-residence at the Beethoven-Haus Bonn. - Los Angeles Times (Yahoo!)
Less than two weeks after summarily firing director Markus Hinterhäuser, the festival’s board has named Karin Bergmann, most recently director of the Salzkammergut Festwochen Gmunden and previously chief of Vienna’s Burgtheater, to lead the festival for the 2026 and 2027 seasons. - Moto Perpetuo
“The choir is part of a wellness program at (a D.C.) hospital that uses music to stimulate neurologic change in the brain and help patients with speech, movement, coordination and mood.” - The Washington Post (MSN)
“Students will sit in on Opera Philadelphia rehearsals and attend master classes by opera artists, and emerging vocalists will have the opportunity to audition as cover artists (understudies) for small or non-singing roles in Opera Philadelphia productions.” - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
Independent venue closures, social media algorithms, streaming royalties and the rise of generative AI have contributed to a wider ecosystem that artists say is becoming increasingly difficult for working musicians to weather — and which they say makes the sustainability of touring more crucial than ever. - NPR
“At a time when women did not yet have the right to vote, but were playing in women's leagues and filling the stands at occasional Ladies Days, ‘Take Me Out’ celebrates a fictional young woman's deep and abiding passion for baseball.” - NPR
Next month the hipster harpsichordist is doing the cycle three different ways: the usual manner, for solo keyboard; arranged for strings, flute and continuo (the scoring of Bach’s Musical Offering; and as a new composition, UNDR for piano, percussion and electronics. He explains here in a Q&A. - Bachtrack
Arts philanthropy is essential but elusive. Even so, there is a curious — and hopefully not delusional — optimism in classical music, L.A. style. We have lively leadership at all levels. “Accessibility” isn’t the term bandied about; “adventure” is. Full houses are common. - Los Angeles Times (Yahoo)
Composer Chris Rogerson will lead the summer festival in the Colorado resort town, taking over after the 16-year tenure of pianist Anne-Marie McDermott. Rogerson is the first composer to direct the event: before McDermott were flutist Eugenia Zukerman and violinist Ida Kavafian. - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
“Nearly half a century on, although performances on period instruments (let alone fortepianos) are hardly the norm, historically informed performance has increasingly moved toward mainstream acceptance, picking up new repertoires, time periods, and styles along the way. The movement’s relative success may seem surprising.” - Early Music America
Bach never knew the modern piano or its flattened-out tuning, so any pianist who plays the Well-Tempered Clavier on a Steinway is making a version of the piece that Bach wouldn’t have even imagined. - The Guardian
“No monies were paid to settle the litigation or to secure Mr. Carney’s signature,” the violinist wrote. “There has never been a personal campaign to defame Mr. Carney or to damage his reputation. An individual creates their own reputation and they just need to own that fact.” - The Violin Channel
