The stereotype of country music lovers being only Southern and Midwestern conservatives isn't really true — yet. As some industry stars take controversial stands on some issues (e.g., vaccines) and keep silent on others (George Floyd and BLM), some fans are turning away. - MSN (The Washington Post)
Stutzmann, a former contralto from France who's currently principal guest conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, will start an initial four-year term at the ASO's helm next fall. She'll be the only woman currently serving as music director of a year-round orchestra in the US. - The New York Times
"Renovation is a weak term for this undertaking. … Acousticians scrutinized every block and beam in the auditorium and the architects bent their design to the properties of sound." Justin Davidson looks into what made David Geffen Hall's sound problematic and how it's being fixed. - New York Magazine
That's what they're hoping for in Munich, where the Gasteig has closed for a multiyear renovation. Both the city's orchestras will be performing at the Isarphilharmonie, assembled for only $46 million but custom-designed with (very successful) acoustics by Yasuhisa Toyota. - The New York Times
Oksana Lyniv, the 43-year-old Ukrainian who this summer became the first female conductor at Bayreuth and who last year finished a term leading the orchestra and opera of Graz (Austria's second city), takes over at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna in January. - OperaWire
The campaigns can buy licensing packages from music rights organisations like BMI and ASCAP, that give them legal access to millions of songs. Some, including The Rolling Stones, have opted out of those deals - but many artists are taken by surprise when their music becomes a politician's theme song. - BBC
The researchers found that the most popular songs had a high level of harmonic surprise, including the use of relatively rare chords in verses, for example, instead of just sticking with, say, a standard C major chord progression (C, G, F). The best songs follow up that harmonic surprise with a catchy common chorus. - Ars Technica
Rock musician Dave Grohl speaks for pretty much every performer: "You wake up every day, cross your fingers that they’ll open a door, turn on the lights and we’ll have a ... show. It’s not guaranteed." - Washington Post
Conductor Theodore Thomas' first concert in Chicago was predicted to be "one of the most notable events in the history of music in Chicago." Sure, except with no music: "By curtain time, Crosby’s, and much of the city around it, would be ash and ruin." - Chicago Sun-Times
If British musicians can't travel to Europe easily and often, Dame Sarah Connolly says, their ability to be seen and to network will decline quickly and decisively. "How can we compete with our German, French, Portuguese, Austrian friends if we are not known?" - The Observer (UK)
The accident happened to a member of the chorus during a scene change. "As the chorus kept singing and the orchestra continued to play, there was a sudden commotion onstage. Performers waved their arms and shouted 'Stop!'" - The New York Times
Though is it a comeback if the 19th-century composer was never as popular before as her work is now? "'The symphonies and the overtures should hold a similar place as Schumann and Mendelssohn,' said Yannick Nézet-Séguin." - The New York Times
Elaine Padmore, artistic director 1982-94: "I was the casting director. I chose everything: repertoire, production teams, every singer, even the chorus. That was wonderful. It was the biggest area of total control of an artistic project that I’ve ever had, before or since." - Irish Times
HarbourView is the latest player in what has become a high-stakes contest in the music business: the ownership and control of catalogs of songs, which streaming outlets like Spotify and Apple Music, along with a growing flank of social-media and gaming platforms, need to keep their users engaged. - The New York Times
“Not for me,” I said. “I know pretty much what I’ll think about it, and my review could get snarky.” “If so, that would be all right with us,” VAN said. “Well, OK,” I groaned back. So here I am and here goes.
