At the end of March, Carol Slater had her 1700 Gofriller stolen from the luggage rack of a Gatwick Express train.
British Transport Police, using CCTV camera footage, issued a picture of a woman they wanted to interview.
They recovered the violin from a house in Northwest London and today returned it, slightly damaged, to Carol.
She hopes to play it in a concert with her husband, violist Ian Jewel, at the Belsize Music Festival later this month.
The German soprano Sonja Gornik has made the following announcement:
Am 03.Mai 2017 habe ich meine Bühnenkarriere auf der Opernbühne beendet.
Ich danke von Herzen all den großartigen Menschen, die mich auf meinem Weg begleitet haben und meinem wunderbaren Publikum!
Which translates as: On May 3, 2017, I ended my stage career on the opera stage. I offer wholehearted thanks to all the outstanding people who have accompanied me along the way, and to my wonderful audience!
Sonja was a member of the Hessian state theatre at Wiesbaden, where she has recently been singing Tosca, Madam Butterfly and Brünnhilde. She gives no reason for her retirement and leaves in the middle of a run of Siegfried.
Ulf Schirmer, 58, has been renewed for five more years as intendant and Generalmusikdirektor of Leipzig Opera.
He has been there since 2009.
Musicians in the Dresden Staatskapelle have voted by a large majority to extend the contract of their chief conductor, Christian Thielemann.
No surprise there.
Thielemann, 58, has been in charge since 2009.
The Hungarian pianist Zoltán Fejérvári, 30, took the C $80,000 first prize at the 2017 Montreal International Musical Competition last night. Fejérvári played Bartók 3 in the final round.
Second and third prizes went to the Italians Giuseppe Guarrera, 25, and Stefano Andreatta, also 25.
A student of Ivan Galamian and Nathan Milstein, Hugh Ewart joined the Oregon Symphony as concertmaster in 1949 and played for 30 years.
Report here.
Photo: Motoya Nakamura/2006
He’s out of Tosca this week.
Bedauerlicherweise musste Jonas Kaufmann krankheitsbedingt soeben die morgige (Donnerstag, 11. Mai 2017) Vorstellung von “Tosca” absagen – an seiner Stelle springt dankenswerterweise Aleksandrs Antonenko für die Partie des Cavaradossi kurzfristig ein. Wie bereits bekannt gegeben, singt Martina Serafin in dieser Vorstellung die Tosca anstelle der erkrankten Angela Gheorghiu.
That’s both of them out of the show. But the subs are pretty strong.
Dutch opera is mourning the death of Dennis Wilgenhof, a popular and accomplished singer whose career was on an upward trajectory.
A few months ago he sang Wagner at Bavarian State Opera, a few weeks ago he was singing at La Scala.
Dennis, who was 44, was found dead on Tuesday in a hotel in Maastricht, where he taught at the local academy. He is believed to have suffered a heart attack.
Our condolences to his loved ones.
The tenor Mihael Schade writes: ‘Holland has lost not only its tallest and nicest bass, but a superbly musically gifted opera bass on the doorstep of a big career.
‘Our opera community lost a wonderful young man who was personable, friendly, professional, outgoing and a team player. I spent 44 days rehearsing and performing at LaScala with Dennis Wilgenhof in February and March just recently, and can say that my life is better for having met him- his completely shocking death is to me a reminder to go out there and Carpe Diem, live the dream you love , but while you do just love and call your loved ones- rest in peace Dennis- too soon Lord too soon!’
First up is … Kent Nagano.
He will conduct the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra on July 7 at the Elbphilharmonie where Trump and Putin will be attending the G20 summit… and the evening concert.
Programme has not yet been decided.
press statement:
NEW YORK, May 10 — The Juilliard School announced today that it has selected Damian Woetzel, director of the Aspen Institute Arts Program, artistic director of Vail Dance Festival, and former principal dancer at New York City Ballet, to serve as its seventh president beginning July 2018.
Woetzel, 49, was chosen after an extensive search process led by a board-appointed search committee and Board Chair Bruce Kovner in consultation with faculty, student, and staff representatives. Juilliard’s current and longest-serving president, Joseph W. Polisi, announced in October that he will be stepping down at the end of June 2018…
Woetzel, who turns 50 next week, retired in 2008 from an illustrious career as a principal dancer with New York City Ballet, and was celebrated internationally for his performances across a wide range of repertory. In addition to his positions at the Aspen Institute and Vail Dance Festival, Woetzel is also an independent director, choreographer, and producer.
From the Philadelphia Orchestra:
Conductor Tugan Sokhiev (pictured, right) has withdrawn from his planned concert engagement with the Philadelphia Orchestra this week due to a health matter. He is suffering a recurrence of a back problem and his physical symptoms mean he is currently unable to conduct or to travel for extended periods of time. Please join us in wishing Tugan a speedy recovery.
In his stead, The Philadelphia Orchestra welcomes Conductor-in-Residence Cristian Măcelaru to the podium. He will conduct the three concerts and the program will remain unchanged.
Sokhiev is music director of the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and of the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse.
The death is reported of José Oliver Bisbal, principal flute of the National Orchestra of Spain and among the leaders of his craft.
Born in Cullera (Valencia) he played at 15 in the Orchestra of Bilbao under Frühbeck de Burgos before rising to the country’s pre-eminent flute seat.
