We in Canada are operatically underserved. Our so-called second largest company offers its patrons the grand total of three mainstage productions annually and this season, shockingly, so does our largest company. So where does this leave Verdi, Puccini and Wagner? Out in the Canadian cold. - Toronto Star
James Blake’s new album, “Wind Down,” is created in collaboration with the A.I.-powered app Endel, which collects data on individual users from devices like the Apple Watch and generates personalized ambient music in real time. - The New Yorker
Even a hardened civil liberties advocate would have to down a stiff drink and say a prayer or two before defending someone’s right to publically mock murder victims and their families. - The Critic
The Italian conductor, who became music director in 2017, has extended his term through the 2026-27 season. (As of last September, he is also music director of Zurich's well-funded opera house.) Says NSO principal flutist Aaron Goldman, "However long we can keep him, we want to." - MSN (The Washington Post)
With 60 million active users, Boomplay is the most popular music streaming service in Africa. Leading the pack, it is one of a bevy of homegrown music streaming and content platforms that are offering alternatives to the on-demand global streaming model. - Global Voices
"I disagree that any orchestra has a maximum quality level that can’t be exceeded... It’s a never-ending task, but if we look at it in the long run—if the job has been done well—after a couple or many years of working together, the orchestra will be objectively better than when we started." - Van
In many ways, the orchestra can reflect the society we live in and the teams we inhabit at work or at home. Several parallels can be drawn between a business and an orchestra. Both require listening to each other, supporting each other, and working in unison. - The Guardian
The versatile singer-instrumentalist-composer, whose opera Omar is about to have its world premiere at Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, will head the 2023 edition of the Southern California contemporary music showcase. - San Francisco Classical Voice
"Within the Vijaya Vittala Temple in Hampi, South India are 56 pillars, each 3.6 metres high, which when gently tapped produce delicate musical notes. ... The pillars, named SaReGaMa, are so-called after the first four notes (svaras) of the standard scale in Indian classical music – similar to Western solfège." - Classic FM (UK)
"As Nascimento nears his ninth decade of life, the inimitable Afro-Brazilian vocalist is preparing to retire from the stages that have made him one of South America's most venerated troubadours." - The Guardian
Composer Tom Coult: "There’s a lot in Violet about just how quickly society can break down. It was very odd to see that happening and have that as the reason our production was cancelled." - The Guardian (UK)
James Conlon wants to pass the torch to a new generation so he doesn't hear, "'I never heard of this person. How good could it be?' ... That’s not the people’s fault. That’s not our fault. That’s the fault of the Nazi regime. It’s a cultural war crime." - Los Angeles Times
A nonbinary composer gets their debut with a piece called "Ode to Liberty." Subtle? No (nor were Tchaikovsky or Beethoven in their day). "That a piece written by a young, Black, queer composer debuted in Florida could be taken as a political statement in itself." - Tampa Bay Times
