MUSIC

Chicago Symphony Rebrands

The changes come as the CSO prepares to welcome its new, buzzy music director, Klaus Mäkelä, who will officially step into the role next fall. - WBEZ

2026 BBC Proms Saw Record Digital Audience Figures

“The organisation has reported … 8.3 million streams across BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds. Proms content generated 65.8 million views across BBC social media platforms. ... The Last Night of the Proms achieved 505,000 live plays, up 12% on 2025’s figure of 450,000, and in total 10.2 million users watched Proms broadcasts on television.” - Gramophone

Financial Crisis At Nashville Symphony, “Restructuring” Is Being Planned

Money troubles aren’t new to the orchestra, but in the wake of the recent death of longtime benefactor Martha Ingram, “the organization does not have sufficient cash on hand to sustain operations at its current level. The Symphony's executive committee is developing a restructuring plan designed to stabilize the organization.” - Nashville Scene

Toronto Symphony Reports A Banner Financial Year

The TSO closed its 2026 fiscal year with an operating surplus of approximately $34,000, thereby increasing its accumulated surplus to nearly $1 million—putting it in its strongest financial position ever. - Colin's Column

What Exactly Does An Orchestra’s Artistic Planner Do?

“Artistic planning involves putting together an organization's programming, both in the near term and the long term. Members of the artistic planning staff work with the organization's music director, guest conductors, visiting artists and their agents, as well as the orchestra's finance, marketing and philanthropy departments and donors.” - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)

Costume Designer Rampages Through Met Opera’s Closets And Attic For Two New Productions

“When he was hired to costume back-to-back productions for the Met this season — something no designer has undertaken in decades — Montana Levi Blanco’s survival instincts kicked in. It would be virtually impossible ... to create 800 costumes from scratch given the time, energy and resources needed. So he wouldn’t.” - The New York Times

Deutsche Oper Berlin Needed Some Shaking Up, So Its New Boss Is Going Big

Attendance at the DOB has been disappointing in recent years; it was time for something different. Aviel Cahn, who became the company’s general director this year, is making major programming changes. His first new staging there is nothing less than Stockhausen’s Mittwoch aus Licht, complete with camel and helicopters. - The New York Times

Apple Opens A New Live Music Venue In London

Located in Battersea Power Station, Apple Music Hall is a state-of-the-art venue “designed to connect artists and fans through bespoke, intimate performances unlike anywhere else,” Apple said in its announcement on Tuesday. - Variety

How Superfans Are Reshaping The Concert Industry

Fans are paying thousands of dollars not just to see their favorite artists live, but to get closer to the performance and have a more exclusive experience. - The Guardian

Musicians Of DC’s National Symphony Ratify New Contract

“With their new agreement running through September 2, 2030, the NSO musicians will be compensated for the increased amount of local travel as the orchestra is splitting its 2026/27 season across multiple venues during the Kennedy Center’s planned closure.” - The Violin Channel

When You Get Offered A Met Opera, But At The Last Minute, Do You Take The Job?

Louisa Proske: "It was insane and thrilling. … It was like, ‘the director has to assemble a team, and we kind of need the design yesterday.’” - The New York Times

Ireland Is Staying Out Of Eurovision Again To Protest Israel’s Participation

The boycott is because of “the ‘appalling’ ongoing killing in Gaza, the national broadcaster has said.” - The Guardian (UK)

How One Woman Helped Secure The Future For Kansas City’s Struggling Lyric Opera

“It was Sandler ... who both came up with the idea that they could create an income source by building opera sets and renting them out to other companies, and also Sandler who sold that idea,” including to Missouri’s Republican governor. - Kansas City Stack

Ravinia Festival Starts On A Second Renovation Project

This summer the Chicago Symphony’s summer home re-opened its concert pavilion after a $70 million revamp. Next on the to-do list, with work starting in October, is a $38 million makeover of the Martin Theatre, the last remaining structure from when Ravinia’s park-like grounds first opened in 1904. - WBEZ (Chicago)

Pittsburgh Symphony’s Manfred Honeck Gets Big Jobs In London And San Francisco

The 68-year-old (as of Thursday) Austrian will become Principal Conductor of London’s Philharmonia Orchestra in 2028, succeeding Santtu-Matias Rouvali.  That same season he starts as the San Francisco Symphony’s Festival Director, a new title in which he’ll program and conduct a three-week festival for each of the next five seasons. - Moto Perpetuo

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