A very long list of musicians has written to the Guardian, telling the Royal Opera House not to accept sponsorship from the oil company, BP.

We wonder, with respect, how they heat their houses, drive their cars… and why they clamour for public subsidy from bad Governments.

Below the list of names. And here’s the letter.

John Luther Adams Composer
Paul Griffiths Opera librettist and writer
Simon Holt Composer and professor of composition, Royal College of Music
Trevor Wishart Composer
Maja Ratkje Composer
Jem Finer Composer
Boff Whalley Composer
Georgina Born Professor of music and anthropology, University of Oxford
Max Paddison Professor of music aesthetics, Durham University
John Pickard Professor of composition & applied musicology, University of Bristol
Paul Whitty Composer and sonic arts researcher, Oxford Brookes University
Joe Duddell Composer and professor of composition, Bath Spa University
JPE Harper-Scott Professor of music history and theory, Royal Holloway, University of London
Niels Rosing-Schow Composer and professor of composition, Royal Danish Academy of Music
Dr Jonathan Hicks Musicologist and Research Fellow, King’s College London
Dr Anna Bull Sociologist and researcher in music, King’s College London
Dr Eric Egan Lecturer in composition, Durham University
Dr Geoff Baker Reader in musicology and ethnomusicology, Royal Holloway, University of London
Dr John Croft Composer and reader in music, Brunel University
Dr Stephen Graham Lecturer in music, Goldsmiths, University of London
Dr Simon Mills Lecturer in Ethnomusicology, Durham University
Dr Duncan Williams Research fellow in music and AI, University of Plymouth
Dr Sam Wilson Lecturer in music aesthetics, Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Dr Chris Garrard Composer and musicologist
Dr Graham Lack Composer
Dr Richard Bullen Composer
Dr Adam Harper Musicologist and music critic
Dr Jacob-Thompson Bell Composer and principal lecturer in postgraduate studies, Leeds College of Music
Anna Appleby Composer
Eden Bailey Musicologist
Tim Bamber Composer
Alan Bowman Conductor
Ethan Braun Composer
Leah Broad Musicologist and DPhil student, University of Oxford
Chris Brody Musician
James Bull Musician and sound recordist
Rob Burbea Composer
Lucy Cadena Musician and composer
Manos Charalabopoulos Composer and pianist
Ben Comeau Composer
Athena Corcoran-Tadd Composer and musician
Alex Cowan Undergraduate music student
Andrew Crossley Composer
Becky Dawson General manager of music at Oxford
Genevieve Dawson Musician and campaigner
Mudge FM Musician and songwriter
Robin Grey Musician
Martin Hagfors Musician
Kate Honey Composer
Owen Hubbard Musicologist
Marie Incontrera Composer and bandleader of the Eco-Music Big Band
Dan Jeffries Composer
Darragh Kearns-Hayes Composer
Alice Kelly Undergraduate music student
Luke Lewis Composer and DPhil student, University of Oxford
Sarah Loader Theatre Producer and musician
Ben Lunn Composer
David McFarlane Composer
David Mears Musician
Sally Mears Conductor
Aubrey Meyer Musician and climate campaigner
Mette Nielsen Composer
Lola Perrin Composer and pianist
Benjamin Picard Composer
Owen Roberts Composer
David Roche Composer and PhD student, University of Cambridge
John Rodge Composer, musician and teacher
Katie Rose Singer and musician
Susannah Self Composer
Julian Skar Composer and multimedia artist
Martin Stauning Composer
Isa Suarez Composer and sound artist
Anna Tam Composer and musician
Elin Vister Musician
Heather Young Musician

Signore Grigolo has been talking to Italian Vanity Fair. Indiscreetly.

I’m difficult to be with. I believe in fidelity, but that’s easier said than done. I like women. Yesterday I went out with a friend and he asked me how was it possible not to fall in love and become imprisoned by a woman; I told him, “Fall in love with another.”

The comments were intended light-heartedly, say Team Grigolo.

Read more, click on Gramilano.

Happens all the time. But not with a Supreme Court justice as the officiant.

Congratulations to David Daniels and William Scott Walters.

Full story here.

Just in:

he Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra – with music director Yannick Nézet-Séguin – is one of Europe’s top orchestras. Every year the orchestra gives over 100 concerts, ranging from appearances in Rotterdam to major foreign tours, for audiences totalling more than 150,000. The orchestra’s ambition is to bring symphonic music to as broad a public as possible. In addition, the orchestra focuses on adventurous and innovative projects. The orchestra is based at ‘De Doelen’ in Rotterdam.For our orchestra we are looking for talented, flexible and committed musicians who work with joy in a changing environment. 

For our orchestra we are looking for talented, flexible and committed musicians who work with joy in a changing environment.

Currently the orchestra has the following openings:

• viola tutti (90 %)
• principal flute (90 %) with willingness to play piccolo
• principal clarinet (90 %)

In an attempt to introduce the world its shy incoming chief conductor, the orch has cobbled together a microsite with two video interviews and two concerts.

It’s free til the end of next month. Click here.

A familiar voice on Radio France and France Musique, Dominique Jameux has passed away at the age of 76.

Aside from a semi-official hagiolatry of Pierre Boulez, he wrote excellent works on Alban Berg and Richard Strauss.

And a book about the Italian cyclist,  Fausto Coppi.

Kirill Karabits, 38, Ukrainian chief conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra for the past six years, has been named general music director in the culturally iconic town of Weimar. He takes up the job in September 2016.

photo: Sasha Gusov

We’re advised that he will continue at Bournemouth as well for the forseeable future.

PR man Mark Borkowski was at the second performance of William Tell at Covent Garden last night. He saw,

‘a production about as raunchy as an in flagrante tussle in Downton. Rather than being naked the actress covered herself. This altered the tone of the scene to make the rape less explicit and more stylised. If there was any booing it was drowned out by roof-raising applause. Quite rightly. Antonio Pappano conducts a world-class cast and Damiano Michieletto’s staging –earthy, oddly cinematic- brings something moving to a story full of archetype and patriotic bravura.’

He adds: ‘The journalist I was seated next to on Thursday was gone by the interval — disappointed not to be able to fill her notebook with salacious bile.’

Mark’s full report is here.

The new head of the Primorsky Opera and Ballet Theatre is to be Larissa Diadkova, a star of the Mariinsky and close associate of its director, Valery Gergiev.

Diadkova, 61, is being rushed to the east to replace Vitaly Ishutin, another Mariinsky singer who was tragically killed two weeks ago in Vladivostok while waiting to cross the road.

Gergiev and the Mariinsky have been authorised by President Putin to turn the Primorsky into a Pacific outlet for their productions.

Introducing the winners gala concert of the 15th Tchaikovsky Competition, the Russian president called the event ‘the pride of Russia’.

Pointing to millions of people who watched the live broadcasts around the world, Putin added: ‘This high degree of interest in the feelings and emotions is vivid evidence of how we understand and appreciate the art of music.’

He described Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky as ‘the world’s favourite composer (who) brings together people of all countries in the great creative force of art, (sealing) the inextricable link of Russian and world culture.’

photos: kremlin.ru

Here’s an official statement from the university, covering up twice as much as it reveals. Two Con chiefs, both of US extraction, have now been ousted in quick succession. Problem? No problem, says Sydney U.