cello optical

It plays. It displays. It does everything but compose. Read here.

At a concert in Gothenburg Concert Hall on October 23, 2013, Christian Zacharias stopped playing in the middle of Haydn’s Piano Concerto, after a phone went off in the audience. The faces of the orchestral players are a study in horror, affront and incomprehension.

UPDATE: Want to know what happened next? Click here.

zacharias

It’s no secret that she’s a fan. She watches Roger Federer play whenever they’re in the same town.

Now Anne-Sophie Mutter has been specific about her admiration for the tennis maestro. ‘He has a terrific bowing arm,’ she says. ‘I am fascinated by its lightness, its elegance. He is a great athlete and an admirable man.’

Federer, for his part, adores the violin.

Read here.Federer with mum

The Free University of Berlin has bestowed its highest honour on the Staatsoper conductor in recognition of his efforts to bridge the Middle East conflict with his West-East Diwan Orchestra.

 

barenboim chris

Unknown vandals have desecrated the grave of the Austrian composer Cesar Bresgen in Großgmain, days before what would have been his 100th birthday. A headboard and flowers were removed. The police are investigating.

Bresgen, who died in 1988, became a professor at the Mozarteum in Salzburg after the War and a respected member of the Austrian musical establishment. Between 1936 and 1945, he composed and arranged hundreds of songs for Nazi organisations, including the SS.

 

bresi.5195275 bresgen

Video report here.

They think it can in Sweden, where this

old_logo_0

has been supplanted by this:

folkoperan_9_0

To our eyes, the little dicky-bird infantilises the audience, but the experts think it w2orks. Read on here.

Among the daily toll of human tragedies, this tale of two close friends on a night out in Camden is unusually poignant for its incongruities. The cause of death is undetermined. Read the full story here.

Valery Gergiev presided, as arranged at the opening production of the $280 million opera house built by the Kazakh dictator, Nursultan Nazarbayev.

So far, so unsurprising. Gergiev likes rich dictators. But what’s this in the press release? ‘Astana Opera has signed preliminary co-production agreements with the Rome Opera and one of the leading opera houses of the world, Covent Garden.

Really?  Are we not a little fastidious about dealing with tyrants?

Other opera houses working with the Kazakhs are: Opera South Africa, Shanghai Grand, Lyric Opera of Singapore, the National Theatre of Opera and Ballet of Bulgaria, the Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theatre.

 

astana

 

This is not the first time the maestro has reached out to Chicago’s young offenders, but the message is getting through. Classical music is not just for the rich; it can do good at every social level. Read here.

Warrenville Juvinile Correctional Institute

Bernard R. Sanchez, former principal trumpet of the Toledo Symphony, chairman of music at the University of Toledo and president of the Toledo Federation of Musicians, has died aged 78. Report here.

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra has achieved record ticket sales and fund-raising for the third successive year, thanks to rising waves of enthusiasm for its music director.

Press release below.

CSO120920_087

CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ANNOUNCES RECORD YEAR FOR FUNDRAISING AND TICKET SALES DURING ANNUAL MEETING

 

CHICAGO—The Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association (CSOA) released its fiscal year 2013 results at its Annual Meeting today at Symphony Center. The 2012/13 season marked the CSOA’s third consecutive year of record-breaking fundraising, with ticket sales at an all-time high, according to Jay Henderson, chairman, and Deborah F. Rutter, president of the CSOA, who also presented the artistic and financial highlights of the season.

“Under the leadership of Music Director Riccardo Muti, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s exceptional music making, artistic programming and community engagement initiatives continue to serve audiences of all ages and walks of life,” said Rutter. “This is what we are most proud of. While reaching audiences on tour and away from home is crucial to our global presence, it is serving this city that helps define our mission best—bettering the lives of our listeners through music. Our efforts to maintain stable operations while increasing earned and contributed revenue have helped us do just that.”

CSOA Chairman Jay Henderson noted, “The CSOA Board of Trustees is committed to maintaining the financial strength of this great institution, while preserving the CSO’s legacy of artistic excellence and supporting the vision of our music director, Riccardo Muti. We want to thank our music director, musicians, patrons, staff, donors and volunteers for their commitment to the CSO. It is through our combined efforts that we were able to achieve our excellent results this past year, and also provide a strong foundation for the future of the CSO. Thanks to the dedicated work of everyone in the CSO family and our engaging programming, we experienced record ticket sales and record fundraising results.”

Ticket Sales and Earned Revenue for Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2013*

  • Ticket sales totaled $22.3 million for 305 CSOA-presented events at Symphony Center, a 4.5% increase over last year’s record amount of $21.4 million.
  • Single-ticket revenue from CSO subscription series was up 15.7% over last year, with concerts sold at 82% paid capacity.
  • In addition to ticket revenue, other earned revenue of $9.9 million was taken in from tour fees, merchandise sales, space rentals, royalties, recording fees and miscellaneous activities.
  • Nearly 381,000 tickets were sold for 235 ticketed concerts.
  • Approximately 557,000 people attended CSOA performances and presentations at Symphony Center and in other venues around Chicago last season, including 173 free events such as Civic Orchestra of Chicago concerts, the CSO’s All-Access chamber music programs, education programs and open rehearsals for students and community groups, as well as the CSO’s free performance at Millennium Park.
  • Of the organization’s total FY13 operating budget, 85% was spent directly on concerts, programs, and education and community engagement activities.

* Figures exclude concerts at Ravinia or on tour anywhere outside of the Chicago area.

Contributed Revenues for Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2013

  • The CSOA ended FY13 with a record level of fundraising for the third consecutive year, raising $29.8 million in annual support—a 6% increase above last year’s total of $28.2 million.
  • Overall fundraising totaled $52 million for FY13, which includes operating support and gifts given directly to the endowment and special projects.

Financial Information for Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2013

  • Operating revenues totaled $73.6 million, a 2.6% increase over FY12’s $71.8 million.
  • 44% of the Association’s operating revenue was from ticket sales and other earned revenue sources.
  • Operating expenses totaled $73.8 million, resulting in an operating deficit of $169,000, or 0.2%.

Endowment

  • Total assets increased by $37 million to $473 million, and net assets increased by $51 million to $266 million, due to an increase in contributions and investment returns.
  • Endowment investments were $257 million.
  • Under the oversight of the Investment Committee, the CSOA’s long-term endowment returns continue to rank among the highest of comparable funds with a 10-year return in the top 18%.

Artistic Highlights for fiscal year ending June 30, 2013

Noting the artistic highlights of the 2012/13 season, Rutter referenced the free season-opening community concert of Orff’s Carmina Burana in Millennium Park for an audience of 7,000—despite the pouring rain—led by Music Director Riccardo Muti. Maestro Muti went on to lead the CSO on tour to New York’s Carnegie Hall for its season-opening concerts, and to two cities in Mexico for CSO debuts: Guanajuato and Mexico City. His performances here at home garnered rave reviews and brought tens of thousands to Orchestra Hall, including 10,000 for the four performances of Bach’s B-Minor Mass alone. Guest conductors Lorin Maazel, Osmo Vänskä and Edo de Waart graciously stepped in for Maestro Muti in January and February for subscription concerts and on tour to Asia, which included CSO debuts in several important cities there: Taipei, Taiwan; Tianjin, China; and Seoul, South Korea.

The Citizen Musician Initiative expanded its scope here in Chicago and beyond during the 2012/13 season. CSO musicians performed free events here at home and on tour in New York, Mexico, Taiwan and China, including master classes, free recitals, and performances at churches and hospitals. Programming for youth who are incarcerated continued at the Illinois Youth Center in Warrenville and was also expanded to the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. The Civic Orchestra of Chicago undertook an artistic challenge from Yo-Yo Ma and worked tirelessly to perform a major symphony without a conductor at the end of the season.

Ending the season, the Rivers Festival, inspired by Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant Yo-Yo Ma and Music Director Riccardo Muti, was a huge success. Over the course of a month and across Chicago, the festival included dozens of concerts, symposia, school events and other activities—including a community performance at Chinatown’s Ping Tom Memorial Park with Maestro Muti leading the Chicago Children’s Choir in Verdi’s “Va, pensiero.”

In a continuing effort to reach new audiences, the CSO performed for the first time at The Morton Arboretum in DuPage County in June. The five concerts of varied repertoire led by guest conductors Richard Kaufman and Carlos Miguel Prieto were a rousing success, bringing almost 11,000 new fans to hear our Orchestra. The CSO also presented its unique concert programming for the very young—Once Upon a Symphony—with two sold-out performances of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. This remarkable response indicates that there is indeed an audience to be served by the CSO in this community, and the Orchestra looks forward to returning to test our plans for sustaining a presence in the western suburbs.

CSO Trustees, Governing Members and Officers Elected

Seven new Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association trustees were elected to three-year terms: Randy Berlin, University of Chicago School of Law; Raj Fernando, CEO, Chopper Trading LLC; Rick Fezell, Vice Chairman and Managing Partner of the Midwest Region, Ernst & Young LLP; Christopher Melvin, Chairman and CEO, Melvin & Company; E. Scott Santi, President and CEO, Illinois Tool Works, Inc.; Walter Snodell, Chairman and CEO, Peerless Industries Inc.; and Robert A. Wislow, Chairman and CEO, U.S. Equities Realty.

Four new CSOA life trustees were also elected: Richard Colburn, Henley Management Company; Joseph Glossberg, Gofen and Glossberg LLC; Mary Winton Green, David Green and Mary Winton Green Foundation; and Jerry Rose, Retired Vice Chairman, Jones Lang LaSalle. In addition, 14 trustees were re-elected to additional three-year terms, and 61 men and women were made new Governing Members.

Finally, the following individuals were elected as officers of the CSOA: Jay Henderson, Chairman; Frank M. Clark, Joyce T. Green, Jane DiRenzo Pigott, Frederick H. Waddell, and Paul Wiggin, Vice Chairs; Deborah F. Rutter, President; and Scott C. Smith, Treasurer.

A moment of silence was given for those trustees who passed away during the 2012/13 season: Virginia Rogers and David Speer.