Franklin Foer recounts how Mikhail Voskresensky, an 87-year-old éminence grise whose last political act was in 1963, realized he couldn't stay in a Russia that was deliberately destroying Ukraine — and how he overcame sanctions to get himself, his wife and toddler son from Moscow to the Bronx. - MSN (The Atlantic)
Spotify reported 456 million monthly active users, up 20% from a year earlier and above the company’s guidance. Paying subscribers, Spotify’s most lucrative type of customer, climbed 13% to 195 million, also exceeding the company’s expectations. Spotify shares fell nearly 6% aftermarket. - The Wall Street Journal
"We all were very destroyed because at a certain point we thought no one needs us anymore. Their life goes on. The concert halls are closed. The theaters are closed. Some people are making their jobs, but we are sitting at home." - AP
The presentation demonstrated a greater use of theatrical lighting, improved amplified sound, and video technology in what had been a temple to un-enhanced instruments. David Geffen Hall is embracing these technologies, given its ambition to broaden its repertoire and appeal. - Architectural Record
Original sources indicate that J.S. planned to have 164 chorale preludes in his Orgelbüchlein (Little Organ Book), but he only wrote out 46 of them. Organist William Whitehead decided to commission preludes on the remaining 118 chorale melodies — in each composer's own style, not in Bach's. - The New York Times
Afton Battle, one of the few Black women to ever run a U.S. opera company, is resigning from the Fort Worth Opera. She will be Fort Worth Opera’s second consecutive general director to resign after three seasons or less. She held titles of both general and artistic director. - KERA
My initial impressions, after three performances, were mixed. The sound is bright and clean, with excellent separation of instrumental voices. When the entire ensemble kicks in, though, the sonic picture seems to flatten out and lose lustre. - The New Yorker
The argument for me as groupie is more complex than the definition of the term. Groupies were women who hung around bands. They were crucial to any music scene, alongside musicians and bands, other fans, and the inevitable young music writer trying to make a name for themselves. - The Walrus
In 2017, the Spoleto Festival asked musician Rhiannon Giddens if she wanted to write an opera about Muslim scholar Omar ibn Said. She'd never even heard of him - and she certainly hadn't written an opera. - Los Angeles Times
And will it ever, ever be fair to musicians? In August, Congress member Rashida Tlaib's office calculated that "it would take more than 800,000 streams a month to equal a wage of $15 an hour." - USA Today
The hall "seems to have achieved a rare distinction in its engineering for sound: consistency. No seat in the hall ... is appreciably better or worse than any other." And the sound, which is cool, has a "lack of sonic plumpness." - The New York Times
The trip would have marked the 50th anniversary of when the Philadelphians became the first US orchestra ever to visit China. The stated reason for canceling is the country's strict COVID quarantine rules, which would require anyone infected to quit the tour and remain in place for weeks. - The Philadelphia Inquirer
There are more English songs to be discovered, past, present and future. Seams of gold run through those blue remembered hills and our modest three-day festival will carry on mining them. - The Guardian
For instance, this season the Philadelphia Orchestra has four Black guest conductors in its main subscription series — and, in Philly and elsewhere, they're finally getting to do programs that aren't for MLK Day or Black History Month. But few people yet trust that the change is permanent. - The Philadelphia Inquirer
