30Dec

Baritone bounces back from reflux, divorce and work on a building site

Heartwarming story on a Welsh site about Mark Llewellyn Evans, who seemed to have lost his career when a generous friend paid for the operation that gave him the courage to continue. Click here.

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30Dec

The reward for a really bad review

Echoes of Harold Schonberg’s Times review that supposedly killed Claude Frank’s career in New York continue to resound. Here’s how Harold began his review: Claude Frank, who was a Schnabel student and in re­cent years has been active with Rudolf Serkin at the Marlboro Music Festival, can, on the basis of his Schumann performance last […]

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30Dec

How maestros kiss

This is not a scientific survey of conducting technique. Nor is it something you should try at home with the lights on. But I am sure some academic will follow up with funding for a five-year study. 1 The hand job… classically executed by Riccardo Muti. 2 Brotherly love Paavo Järvi, with sister Maarika 3 Just […]

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30Dec

Soprano tells of ordeal on burning Greek ferry

The Greek soprano, Dimitra Theodossiou, was discharged today from hospital in Lecce where she was taken by helicopter from the burning ferry, Norman Atlantic. At least 10 people died in the disaster. Dimitra describes scenes of total horror: ‘I had a berth in the first class, I was asleep and woke up to the smell of […]

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30Dec

Oscar winner of 1936 has died

Luise Rainer, German born and in latter years London based, has died aged 104. She won best actress Oscars in 1936 and 1937. Arnold Schoenberg refused to write the score for her second winning film (below). Life story here.

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30Dec

Record year for Berlin opera

The Deutsche Oper – the one in west Berlin with Donald Runnicles as music director – has returned from a period of refurbishment with a series of record returns. During its wanderings around town, tickets sales hit 98 percent. For the full year of 2014, the average was 82 percent. There may be troubles elsewhere […]

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30Dec

A rare interview with the hermit of Russian music

The composer Galina Ustvolskaya was possibly the closest to Dmitri Shostakovich: he asked, at one point to marry her. But Galina had her own voice and retreated progressively into religious contemplation. According to her website, he gave only three interviews in her life, one of them to the Dutch journalist, Thea Derks. She flares up […]

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30Dec

On minorities and orchestras: A view from Carnegie Hall

Clive Gillinson, executive and artistic director of Carnegie Hall, was asked on the BBC’s Today programme about equality in orchestras. Here’s what he said: My view is that the objective is to get the best player and to be fair, and so that’s what you’ve got to address. So the way we used to do […]

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29Dec

You’re a soloist who needs to rehearse with an orchestra…

This app could be a life-saver. Harvard startup Sonation has taken over the Music Minus One catalogue. They created an app, called it Cadenza, and made it available a few weeks ago in the App Store with 180 movements and pieces to play. Full details here.

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29Dec

More trouble in Paris: Chorus expects to be paid

Members of the chorus of the Orchestre de Paris, which is moving into a 380 million-Euro new hall next month, have discovered a painful anomaly. The conductor gets paid, the musicians likewise, so too the head of the chorus. However, not a cent goes to the 220 singers. Can that be right? Here’s their open […]

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29Dec

Can one bad review kill off a career?

The fine Irish pianist John O’Conor tells a wonderful story about Claude Frank, who died this weekend. John remembers Harold Schonberg, the New York Times chief critic, approaching Claude at the Leeds piano competition and asking why he’d only played once with the Philharmonic. Claude never raised his voice but gently answered ‘Because of your […]

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