A recording has turned up of the 19 year-old tenor singing at the Llangollen Eistedfodd in 1955 as part of the Chorus Rossini from Modena. Needless  to say, his chorus won.

Apparently, the recording was issued on CD by the Welsh Development Agency in 1991 but they forgot to send it out. It turned up the other day in a tray of junk.

Story here.

The big man returned to Llangollen 40 years later with his father as joint presidents of the Eistedfodd.

pavarotti 1955

vasily 40

 

 

Happy birthday to the other Petrenko, the one that supports Liverpool FC and writes in its programmes.

Big in Oslo, too.

Raise a craft beer to Vasily.

vasily petrenko

The family has announced the death of Paul Parkinson, who worked for the British Council for 26 years as a hugely supportive music adviser. He was widely known, respected and liked.

A condolence site has been opened here.

Paul-Parkinson-2-200x300

Reports flashed around Moscow early today that Vladimir Urin, 69, had been rushed to hospital for emergency surgery.

The Bolshoi later issued a statement that the director was on leave and ‘undergoing long-planned wellness treatments’.

Never a dull day at the Bolshoi.

urin putin

Rachael Lander is a cellist and a recovering alcoholic. Summer, when everyone stays out late, can be the hardest time to resist a drink.

Rachael has posted a brave and self-unsparing account of her struggle, accompanied with practical advice for fellow-musicians on how to stay clean and sober through the summer.

It’s a must-read.

Sample:

In the my first year of sobriety, I got booked to play at Glastonbury, and then unbooked. There were too many cellos, so I got the chop. As the rest of the quartet I was a member of headlined the Park Stage with a brilliant band, I was waitressing in a burger joint on the Kings Road. I was about 8 months sober. The sense of rejection, isolation and injustice was profound. I cleaned bottles of condiments and served burgers to the red trousered people of Chelsea, weeping on the inside. In desperation I rang my sponsor who said, “You’ll hate me for saying this. But rejection is protection. You’re not ready.” I wanted to lob the phone at the wall, but as usual, she was right. I could not have got on a tour bus full of free booze and not drank at that point of my sobriety. I was still suffering huge amounts of anxiety, which peaked when I had to perform.

If you’re not ready, do a Nancy Reagan and Just Say No. We tend to struggle with that, particularly in the competitive freelance game we’re in. Contrary to what our heads can tell us, saying “no” does not herald the end of your career in music or mean that you will never be well enough in the future to work a festival again. There is a saying that anything you put ahead of your recovery, you’ll lose anyway. Looking after yourself first is always the right thing, no matter how alien it feels.

 

rachael lander

Read the full article here.

The great Siberian baritone, who is undergoing treatment for brain cancer, releases a new recording next month of Russian operatic arias.

You can listen to a sample track here.

hvorostovsky putin

press release: NEW YORK, NY – On August 12, 2016 Delos releases Dmitri Hvorostovsky Sings of Love, Peace, War and Sorrow [DE 3517], a new recording featuring the internationally acclaimed baritone performing opera arias and scenes by Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, and Anton Rubinstein – two of which Hvorostovsky has never before performed on stage: Tomsky from The Queen of Spades and the title role of Mazeppa.

Led by conductor Constantine Orbelian with the State Symphony Orchestra of Russia as well as the “Evgeny Svetlanov” Helikon Opera Chorus, the recording also features several guest artists: internationally acclaimed Lithuanian soprano Asmik Grigorian, (the latest recipient of the prestigious International Opera Award as Young Female Singer of 2016), mezzo-soprano Irina Shishkova; bass Mikhail Guzhov, tenor Igor Morozov, and countertenor Vadim Volkov.

The recording begins with the opening scene from Prokofiev’s War and Peace with sopranos Asmik Gregorian and Irina Shishkova. The program continues with four arias from three beloved Tchaikovsky operas: Mazeppa’s aria (“O Mariya, Mariya”) from Mazeppa; Roberto’s aria (“Kto mozhet sravnitsja s Matildoj moej”) from the composer’s final opera Iolanta – plus two selections from The Queen of Spades, including Tomsky’s ballad (“Odnazdy v Versale, au jeu de la Reine”) withMikhail Guzhov (Surin), and Igor Morozov (Chekalinsky); and Tomsky’s song (“Yesli b milyye devitzy”). The latter two arias from Tchaikovsky mark a departure for Hvorostovsky. For years he was known for his performances of Prince Eletsky in The Queen of Spades – but in this recording, he takes on the other baritone role, that of the conniving and coldhearted Count Tomsky. The album’s closing selection is the sixth and final scene from Anton Rubinstein’s rarity, The Demon. Hvorostovsky had long wanted to perform the opera’s title role, and finally got the chance to do so in 2015, in a semi-staged Moscow production co-starring soprano Asmik Gregorian as Tamara – an event that was broadcast live on Russian television. 

 

From Ian Maclay’s farewell interview with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra:

There was an occasion, in 2015, when Shirley Bassey asked to recreate her 1972 performance of Goldfinger with the Orchestra. ‘I said we couldn’t do that, because I was around in 1972 and there were two issues: firstly, all the players smoked; by about 4 pm you couldn’t see across the studio for all the cigarette smoke. Secondly, you’d have to get rid of half the Orchestra because there were no women in it back then.’

More here.

shirleybasseygoldfinger

They had Simon Halsey at the Berlin Radio Choir for 14 years.

Now the Deutsche Oper has hired Jeremy Bines to succeed William Spaulding.

Bines, 39 and Belfast born, is chorus master at Glyndebourne.

jeremy bines

We wish him every success and pray that his Berlin future is not cramped by Brexit.
Photo: Robert Workman

From the THES:

 

Growing numbers of UK researchers say that their applications for European Union research funding are in doubt after the Brexit vote, while there are also reports of foreign scientists opting not to take up jobs in the UK owing to the post-referendum outlook.

Cambridge University 1 (St John's College) comp_0

Read on here.

 

You are both travelling, apart for long periods.

How do you keep the love alive and fresh?

Julie Tabash Kelsheimer, who recently married after an eight-year relationship, has some tips for distant lovers.

For instance: 2) Call more often than you text. I was lucky to have started dating my husband during a time when texting was not as popular as it is now. To this day, hearing his voice brings me a bigger smile than texting ever could. Talking to your partner allows you to get a better idea of what kind of day he or she is having, and vice versa. When my husband can hear that I’m not having the happiest day, he knows just what to say, or not say, to make my day brighter!

Read Julie’s full set of tips here, on SexiSoprano.

Julie Tabash Kelsheimer

 

Two weeks ago, Pierre Audi announced he was leaving Dutch National Opera after three brilliant decades.

Today, Miranda Van Kralingen said she’s leaving Opera Zuid after 12 years, having failed to obtain a renewal of government subsidy.

miranda van kralingen

Yesterday afternoon, we were asked by the conductor Stefan Solyom to post an appeal he had just organised on behalf of the violinist Irina Zwiener, whose cellist husband Hendrik was knocked off his bike and killed on Sunday.

Hendrik played in the Leipzig Gewandhaus orchestra, Irina, who is nine months pregnant, is a member of the Staatskapelle Weimar, where Stefan is music director. The music world was aghast at the tragedy.

Over the past 18 hours, 164 people from all parts of the world have donated more than 10,000 Euros to help Irina with costs over the childbirth period and after. Many of the donors are musicians.

There are some wonderful people out there.

Please keep on giving. Here.

hendrik zwiener2