All venues were full. All audiences I joined were infectiously rapt. Yet everywhere I went there was an inescapable feeling of doom, of disquieting calm before the storm. - Los Angeles Times
The lack of recognition of Gypsy and Traveller contributions to Scottish, Irish or English music styles effectively excludes these ethnic minorities from narratives of Britishness. - The Conversation
The RIAA’s lawsuits use lofty language, saying that this litigation is about “ensuring that copyright continues to incentivize human invention and imagination, as it has for centuries.” This sounds nice, but ultimately, the incentive it’s talking about is money. - The Verge
It's called a stretto piano, and it fits 88 keys on a keyboard roughly 7/8 the size of a standard grand piano keyboard. Studies indicate that the benefits in reduced strain and pain for smaller-handed pianists are just what you'd expect they'd be. - Ludwig Van
Bolstered by significant governmental support, European companies mostly appear to have returned to a pre-pandemic status quo. A recent visit to Germany found both the Hamburg and Berlin Staatsopers fearlessly mounting challenging operas of questionable popular appeal. - The Observer
The musicians’ base salary has hovered at or below $110,000 for about 15 years, with musicians handing over concessions during lean years and market downturns with the understanding that they would be restored later. Due to inflation, however, even a fairly stable salary means that their salary’s buying power has decreased steadily. - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The traditional Mexican music was first introduced at a public school in 1969. Now there are dozens of classes in the region's middle schools, high schools, and even universities. After years of fighting for legitimacy, mariachi has joined band, choir, and orchestra as a pillar of music education. - San Antonio Report
The current contract, for one year, expires August 31; PSO management and the musicians' union are now negotiating what will be the first multi-year contract since COVID. This is at a time when the players in peer orchestras have been getting double-digit-percentage raises to make up for pandemic cuts. - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Smith has big plans for Tanglewood, whose Boston Symphony season begins on July 5, just as he has a long to-do list for the ensemble at home. History would suggest that he isn’t just dreaming. - The New York Times
The lawsuit claims Suno and Udio’s software steals music to “spit out” similar work and asked for compensation of $150,000 (£118,200, A$225,400) a work. - The Guardian
"The Grant Park Music Festival has long had a tradition of bold, adventuresome programming. But none of the festival’s leaders have done more than Carlos Kalmar, who has made offsetting familiar classics with intriguing combinations of new and unusual works from the past a defining hallmark of his tenure." - Chicago Sun-Times
"After 18 years at the Boston Globe, I am moving on from my position and joining the faculty of Tufts University, where I’ll be taking up a newly created professorship in music history and public humanities, beginning this fall." - Twitter/X
It is problematic to foretell who will attend the revivals of modern operas. New York visitors? Somebody who missed it the first season? The opera house cannot rely on that. This simple fact is that modern operas are not an optimal financial base for the house repertory the size of the Met Opera. - OperaWire
"The general manager is responsible for everything," he insists. If the artistic director doesn't agree, if he doesn't want to collaborate, that's when we find ourselves in a dead end." - Le Courrier du Sud
Salonen had been pushing for the orchestra to do more, not less, to try to forge connections with new audiences. He had become passionate about an idea to build two performance venues, designed by Frank Gehry, on Treasure Island in the San Francisco Bay. - The New York Times
