Nice story in Ria-Novosti. The Ministry of Culture has put out a tender for hiring four luxury sedans BMW at a cost of 15 million rubles ($500,000).

Why four? There’s a minister, Vladimir Medinsky, and six deputy ministers to shuttle around.

Each car must be compatible with ‘the presidential communication “Kavkaz-9” (the system must be installed in a sedan BMW-750Li) and special government communications “Rosa” (for cars BMW-740Li), as well as sound and light signals.’ In case nuclear war breaks out, or Valery Gergiev defects in Munich…

Too silly for words, when Russian orchestras have gone months without pay.

The ceremony was conducted in the Greek Orthodox rite in Winchester Cathedral. The music was by Tavener, Bruckner, Bach, Stravinsky. Report here. More here.

First television coverage here.

The great Swedish tenor, never knowingly outsung. Watch the video here.

El Sistema founder Jose Antonio Abreu announced last night that the LA architect who built Walt Disney Hall, is coming to Venezuela to do another. This is an event of continental magnitude, giving the country a potential lift on the scale of Sydney Opera House.

Announcement in Spanish here and below.

Maestro Abreu anunció la construcción de la Sala Dudamel en Barquisimeto (+video) Luego de una reunión con el presidente de la República, Nicolás Maduro, realizada este martes en el Palacio de Miraflores, el maestro José Antonio Abreu anunció la construcción de la Sala Dudamel en la ciudad de Barquisimeto. El fundador del sistema de orquestas informó que “uno de los puntos que tratamos esta noche fue la construcción de la Sala Dudamel en Barquisimeto, la sede de la orquesta en Lara, producto del máximo arquitecto actual Frank Gehry quien donó el proyecto en honor a Gustavo y en honor a la orquesta y que va a ser una referencia mundial de primer orden. Esto es un primer paso que estaremos dando para el primer trimestre del año”. Siga leyendo en el enlace

h/t: Roberta Ferrari. And Repubblica.

Anyone name the conductor?

A clip of Prince William has come online, doing ‘Living on a Prayer with Jon Bon Jovi and Taylor Swift during a charity gala at Kensington Palace on Monday. Check it out here.

Catalan composer Josep Soler, 78, has refused to receive the Gold Medal of Merit in Fine Arts awarded by the Spanish Ministry of Culture. He said: ‘I don’t accept the authority of the Spanish Government and want nothing to do with this prime minister, Rajoy, who ignores culture and education.’

Love this pic, newly posted by JoAnn Kane Music Service of Lionel Newman and John Williams enjoying a cigar after a Star Wars session in London. Magic moments…

I’m involved in a forthcoming happy event, and came across this. Gonna be hard to beat.

From the same source that brought us the sound of Freud’s voice, here’s some silent film of the great man in Vienna with an archaeology pal, narrated by his daughter, Anna, and filmed by Princess Marie Bonaparte. A gift for Thanksgiving.

The full, 23-minute film can be found here.

It is through Marie Bonaparte that we know what passed between Freud and Mahler in the composer’s emergency analysis in August 1910 (for full disclosure, see Why Mahler).

The pianist Evgeny Kissin, an outspoken champion of the Israeli cause, will be granted citizenship on December 7, according to a spokesman for the Jewish Agency in Jerusalem. Although Kissin does not live in Israel, he was recommened for citizenship by the former Soviet refusenik Natan Sharansky, now chairman of the Jewish Agency.