“This is an excellent moment to think about why we attach the term ‘greatness’ to Russian, but not Ukrainian, culture. So why do we only know composers who we consider to be ‘great Russian’ composers?” - The New York Times
Simon Woods: “Redefining the canon” strikes me as a fundamentally pointless endeavor, as it still allows that there is some kind of objective set of values available to us that can help decide what’s in and what’s out at any one time. - Medium
WRR — at 101, the oldest radio station in Texas — is owned by the City of Dallas, which wants out of the radio business. Pending City Council approval, WRR's license and operations will be transferred to KERA, which will maintain the station's classical music format and staff. - D Magazine (Dallas)
One of the key promises is that “all allegations of sexual harassment, assault and violence will be taken seriously, acted upon promptly and investigated”. - The Guardian
As a local musician who has put out vinyl (in very limited quantities), I’ve come to realize there are ethics when it comes to buying physical music—it’s best to ensure your favorite musicians are seeing as high a cut from your purchase as possible. - Wired
Nina Yoshida Nelsen took stock of her career after the Atlanta shootings. "She had performed in Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly more than 150 times, but had been cast in non-Asian roles just three times." Now she's working to change those numbers. - Time
In a real shocker that literally everyone predicted, rap/folk Kalush Orchestra won, with a song (originally written for the frontman's mother) that includes lyrics like "I’ll always find my way home, even if the roads are destroyed." - The New York Times
The world’s biggest music event, famed for bringing Europe together, is happening during the biggest threat to unity on the European continent since the Second World War: the war in Ukraine. - Toronto Star
Before Ukraine gained independence from Russia in 1991, it would have been as natural for a young Prokofiev to head off to Moscow as it might be for a young Angeleno composer to go to New York (a trip that happens to be five times larger than the distance between Kyiv and Moscow). - Los Angeles Times
With five companies (the Met, Detroit, Chicago, Omaha, and Seattle) sharing a revival of his X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X directed by Broadway eminence Robert O'Hara (Slave Play), attention is being paid to Davis's other operas and his work as a jazz pianist. - The New York Times
Some say it was overdue, some lament that it remains a missed opportunity, but the truth of the matter is, the iPod has left us, after years of neglect. - Tedium
Variant 6 does strange new music and even stranger old music in art galleries, ballets, and repurposed sawdust factories. And they know each other very well: says one tenor, "Jimmy and I have played a game where I'd offer his opinion and he would offer mine." - MSN (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
CRB’s recent listener data suggests that a growing share of younger listeners are responding to that sense of discovery. In February 2014 the median age of CRB listeners was 74; as of this past February, it was 54, with 24 percent of listeners under age 35. - Boston Globe
"(They are a) miracle that brings in throngs, as many as 3,000 or maybe more, of people out on a Saturday night" — in Miami Beach, no less — "to sit on aluminum chairs or picnic blankets and listen to music that is centuries old." - MSN (The Miami Herald)
