Jayson Gillham, 27, has taken first prize at the Montreal International Music Competition with a finals performance of the Beethoven G major concerto.

l-to-r: Annika Treutler (3rd), Gillham, Charles Richard-Hamelin (2nd)

A string quartet made up of Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra musicians Kathryn Woolley, Stacey Woolley, Marna Street and Norman Johns will play at the memorial service for Dr. Maya Angelou at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 7. This will be a private service on the campus of Wake Forest University in North Carolina, streamed live on the university’s website.

In the week that King Juan Carlos announced his abdication, the country’s senior conductor has declared his retirement.

Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, 80 and still chief conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, has confirmed that his recent collapse in Washington and cancellations elsewhere were the consequence of cancer treatment. His dignified statement reads:

‘After meeting with my doctors, I have come to the following conclusion: I have to recognize publicly that I have cancer and that in this state of health and with deep sorrow I am not able to conduct at my standards and the moment to quit professional matters has come.’

Explaining Harrison Birtwistle, who turns 80 this month, to someone who has never heard his music is rather like offering chocolate to a newly-landed Martian. Nothing about the product instantly appeals. It looks earthy, sounds dull and feels, in the worst sense of the word, organic — that is to say, too close to gross fundamentals for comfort or pleasure.

That’s the intro to my new Standpoint essay on the music of an English original. Click here to read more.