The terminology war in American musicology shows no sign of abating.

It has nothing to do with music, or music teaching, and all to do with suppression of free speech and ideas in many American universities. (I have experienced this at first hand. Once, when I addressed a group of US academics about aspiring to excellence in musical performance, I was accused – in knee jerk fashion – of elitism, and worse.)

John Halle, Director, Music Theory at Bard College, has entered the fray with a reasoned summary of events so far and a blunt assault on his colleagues:

At this point, it should have come as no surprise to have found leading “new musicologist” Robert Fink saddling up his high horse. His doing so rang a bell for me as in our exchange a year back he had charged similarly that my defense of the Minnesota Symphony workforce from attacks by its corporate board constituted a musical application of the “one drop rule” based on “the presence or absence of melanin”.

minnesota state fair

Whereas Fink was implicitly impugning my integrity by suggesting my alleged sympathy with a Jim Crow statute, his charge of “casual racism” against (Pierpaolo Polzonetti) is explicit. According to Fink, P’s description of rap should be seen as “the musicological equivalent of using the N-word.”

It should be noted that P escapes Fink’s full condemnation as these attitudes are relics, according to him, of longstanding white supremacist prejudices of the musicological profession.

Fink sees himself as having moved beyond his benighted mentors in this respect. Now he “winces on behalf of the tweedy prep school classical snob I once was, enthralled with Mahler and dismissing disco as repetitive trash.”

Read on here. It’s serious hardball.

The latest request by Stefan Arzberger, former first violin of the Leipzig String Quartet, to reclaim his passport and his career was denied yesterday by a New York judge for want of a psychological evaluation to assess whether he is prone to acts of violence.

Stefan is accused of attempting a strangle a fellow hotel guest in March last year after being seen running naked through a Manhattan boutique hotel. He claims his drink was spiked at a bar.

Since then he has been out on bail but unable to leave New York.

The next court hearing is on March 5.

arzberger2

 

Celebrity sells, we know that.

But would a Lang Lang Steinway fetch a fortune, or even a Martha Argerich?

A Steinway belonging to the pop musician Sting sold today at auction for £116,500.

Make that $162,634 or €147,722.

Absurd.

sting's piano

Slipped Disc has been asked by the airline to share its new policy on musical instruments. It appears to allow violins on board free of charge, but with exceptions and exclusions that can be applied at the gate.

There is plenty of wriggle room for them to ban or charge for a violin. And the policy has not yet come into force.

Avoid airberlin until it does.

Here’s the statement:

airberlin

 

airberlin liegt die Zufriedenheit ihrer Fluggäste sehr am Herzen. Nach zahlreichen Rückmeldungen von Gästen, die mit einer Geige oder einem vergleichbar großen Musikinstrument reisen, beabsichtigt die airberlin group die Handgepäckregelungen zu ändern. Reisende haben in Kürze die Möglichkeit, ihr Musikinstrument als Handgepäckstück bis zu einer maximalen Größe von 86 x 33 x 23 cm mit an Bord zu nehmen.
Bei airberlin und NIKI ist bei jedem Flug ein Handgepäckstück inklusive. In den Tarifgruppen FlyClassic und Flyflex kann zusätzlich mindestens ein Gepäckstück kostenlos aufgegeben werden. Sobald die neue Regelung umgesetzt ist, wird airberlin darüber informieren.
Bei Flügen, die mit einer Dash Q400 durchgeführt werden, wird im Einzelfall geprüft, ob das Musikinstrument mit in die Kabine genommen werden kann.

Liebe Grüße, David

Robert Baustian, who conducted Santa Fe Opera from its opening season in 1957 through to 1980, has died after years of ill-health at the age of 94.

Among 176 performances of 23 operas, he led the world premiere of Douglas Moore’s Carry Nation and the US premieres of Hans Werner Henze’s The Stag King in 1965 and Boulevard Solitude in 1967.

robert baustian

With the coming of Simon Rattle, the London Symphony Orchestra has upped its game, shuffling off two veterans into honorific titles and securing longterm ties with two younger men, Gianandrea Noseda and Daniel Harding.

Press release follows.

noseda

LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO ITS FAMILY OF CONDUCTORS FROM THE 2016/17 SEASON 
  • GIANANDREA NOSEDA BECOMES PRINCIPAL GUEST CONDUCTOR
  • MICHAEL TILSON THOMAS BECOMES CONDUCTOR LAUREATE
  • ANDRÉ PREVIN BECOMES CONDUCTOR EMERITUS 
The London Symphony Orchestra today announces exciting changes to its line-up of conductors, taking effect from the 2016/17 season. Gianandrea Noseda joins Daniel Harding as Principal Guest Conductor; Michael Tilson Thomas becomes Conductor Laureate; and André Previn becomes Conductor Emeritus.
Kathryn McDowell, Managing Director of the LSO said: “The LSO warmly welcomes Gianandrea Noseda as Principal Guest Conductor, joining Daniel Harding, and that Michael Tilson Thomas and André Previn, who both have a long and illustrious history with the LSO, will strengthen their bond as Conductors Laureate and Emeritus respectively. Following our appointment of Sir Simon Rattle as Music Director from 2017/18 these changes bring together a world-class family of conductors, including our Assistant Conductor Elim Chan, who will bring the richest music-making to the LSO’s audiences around the world in the years ahead.”
Lennox Mackenzie, LSO Chairman and Sub-leader, said: “I am so delighted than Gianandrea Noseda has agreed to become Principal Guest Conductor of the LSO alongside Daniel Harding. Gianandrea forever displays extraordinary energy and passion in his music-making and inspires our Orchestra to thrilling, moving and memorable concerts. I am always so impressed with his total commitment to rigorously scrutinising and following the composers’ wishes before adding his engaging interpretation. We have so many fond memories of music-making with him already, exhibiting an amazingly eclectic repertoire. I am also thrilled that our relationships with Michael Tilson Thomas and André Previn in their new roles of Conductor Laureate and Conductor Emeritus continue to thrive with exciting plans for the future. Their prodigious musical gifts apart, they truly are great friends of the LSO.”
Gianandrea Noseda said: “It’s a privilege for me to become a part of one of the greatest orchestras in the world. I felt an immediate connection with the artists in the LSO during our first meeting in 2008. Together we have pursued the highest possible level of music-making which is the ultimate aim for any musician. Since then we have explored the widest possible repertoire including Britten’s War Requiem, Verdi’s Rigoletto, the world premiere of Sally Beamish’s Equal Voices and music by Beethoven, Berg, Mahler, Shostakovich and many others. I have always appreciated the versatility of the LSO artists which along with their integrity and commitment, both in rehearsal and concert, makes any performance a special and unique experience. I am thrilled that this appointment gives me many more opportunities to continue developing our relationship and to achieve even more remarkable results in the months and years ahead.”
Michael Tilson Thomas said: “I am honoured to accept the title of Conductor Laureate of the London Symphony Orchestra. Making music with the Orchestra for over 40 years has been one of the great joys of my life. I am delighted that we will continue our close working relationship into the future.”
Sir Simon Rattle said: “I am delighted that Gianandrea will become an even closer member of the LSO family. I have long admired his music-making, with its unusual marriage of lyricism and drama – and he is such a Mensch that I am sure it will be a very happy relationship going forward!”

Musicians’ woes continue to trickle in. This one is from Krishna Nagaraja, a violinist from Helsinki:

So, dear airberlin.
Weeks ago many musicians around Europe, including myself, wrote directly to your customer service to express their worries about your company not allowing our violin cases on board, since their measurements did not fit the requirements. The answer that was given to me is:
“we have started more strict controls to check the max size of 55cm length.”
“you can book an extra seat for the violin on a netto fare based price plus fuel charge.”

As hard to digest as it might have been, I swallowed hard and prepared to go to my next REHEARSAL (not leisure) trip to Berlin without my instrument: I had to ask my teacher to lend me a violin, and redefine rehearsals, where I won’t play but merely show some mp3 files to the musicians, thanks to your extra-seat policy.
That’s the law, ok. Or, IS IT, airberlin?

Helsinki airport, 23.2.2016, gate 28, h. 18:10. Flight AB8077, Helsinki-Berlin, departing at 18:40.
I am waiting for the boarding call, with my one small piece of hand luggage. I notice a group of 3 people sitting in front of me with a sizeable bag, what turns out to be a Wilson Tour Tennis Racket bag, I think it was one of those for 9 rackets. Clearly, its size was way beyond the allowed measurement.
I assumed they had an extra-seat for it.
Then we board the plane, and the Wilson bag is peacefully put in the overhead compartment, as any other piece of luggage, as would have been the case for not even one but at least two light violin cases.
No comment or arguing from any member of the staff, nothing.
I’m fuming, thinking about the instrument(s!!) that I left home for the “max size of 55cm length” issue.
We get off the plane, I approach the owner of the bag and he confirms he paid no extra seat. The bag had even been given the orange tag that labels authorized cabin baggage as you can see from the (alas, slightly out of focus) related photo below. The man was even surprised at my question, since he explained that “these are tennis rackets, of course they can’t be checked in…”
Are violins less delicate than tennis rackets, with all the due respect to tennis players?

So all in all, we have evidence here that a big bag clearly breaking the rules of airberlin cabin baggage policy was allowed on a flight where I had to avoid taking my small violin case for fear of either having to buy an extra-seat on the spot or, worse, seeing my violin brought away with checked in luggage.

The images speak by themselves. I urge every single musician, especially in Germany, especially unions and newspapers and similar, to share this story. It’s time to stop this hipocrisy and absence of transparency. Musicians are tired to be at the constant mercy of whoever handles their case at the airport desks and pay exorbitants fares just to do their job, while other passengers are allowed to bring huge trolleys, tennis bags, sometimes 3 pieces of hand luggage (as was the case, again, on this flight) with no problem whatsoever.

For what it matters, anyway, dear airberlin, you managed to convince me not to fly with you ever again in my life.

Yours truly,
Krishna Nagaraja
Freelance musician, Helsinki

luggage airberlin