Arthur Kapitanis quotes a CBC spokesperson:

‘As you know, the recordings of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra make up an important part of our Canadian classical repertoire on CBC Radio Two.

‘While the allegations made towards Charles Dutoit are serious, we truly believe that removing these recordings entirely from our broadcasts would unjustly diminish the efforts of the many talented musicians who are featured in them. At this point, we are no longer crediting Mr. Dutoit as conductor.’

More here.

See also: Charles Dutoit is accused of rape.

The Associated Press has been working with six women who came forward with sexual allegations against the Swiss conductor Charles Dutoit.

One of them says he raped her.

The musician accusing Dutoit of rape was then 28 and auditioning for an orchestra in early 1988 while he was guest-conducting. She said they were staying at the same hotel and rode the elevator together up to their shared floor one night….

He invited her to come in when she brought it to his room, she said, first offering her a drink, which she declined. Within minutes, he forced himself on her, she said.

“He came closer to me and tried to kiss me, and held my head so strongly it ripped my earring out,” said the musician, now in her 50s. “He pinned my wrists to the wall and pushed me to the bed.”

“His pants were down in a split second and he was inside me before I could blink,” she said. She said she started crying, told him to stop and that she was married, but that it made no difference.

We have lived without Klaus Tennstedt for 20 years.

And we’ll never see another conductor like him.

June 6, 1926 – January 11, 1998

 

The iconic saxophone and clarinet maker, Henri Selmer Paris, has announced it is selling a majority stake to an investment fund, yielding family control after 130 years.

This cannot be good, either for the quality of instruments, or for the 500 staff.

More here.

Kristin Lancino has resigned as president and artistic director of the La Jolla Music Society for ‘personal reasons’, effective tomorrow morning.

Stuff happens.

But no sooner was word out of her departure than it became known that Cho-Liang Lin had also decided some months back to quit as music director of the Society’s SummerFest.

So there are now two holes to fill in La Jolla.

We reported last week on the sudden profusion of cellist debuts on record.

Here’s one we forgot.

Aged 25, first release tomorrow.

press blurb:

On his debut Deutsche Grammophon album, cellist Kian Soltani traces his musical roots in works by Schubert, Schumann and Iranian composer Reza Vali

Born in 1992 to Iranian parents in the Austrian town of Bregenz, Kian Soltani is one of the most exciting cellists of his generation. “I’ve always felt at home in Austria”, he says. “And yet, the Persian side of my family gave me a chance to grow up with two cultures.” Bringing together Austro-German Romantic works and contemporary Iranian music, Soltani’s debut DG album, Home, expresses that sense of being rooted in a dual heritage. His pianist is Aaron Pilsan, whose background has parallels with Soltani’s. Home is due for release on 12 January, and Soltani and Pilsan will be performing some of its repertoire live at the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden and the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin early in the new year.

It is going on right now in Bulgaria.

The first prize is munificent:

– 1 concert in one major theatre in Milan during the 2019 Italian tour of the Kodaly Philarmonic Orchestra in 2019*;
– 2 concerts in two major theatres in Italy during the 2019 Italian tour of the Kodaly Philarmonic Orchestra in 2019*;
– To conduct one opera performance in 2018/2019 season at the National Theatre in Opava (Czech Republic);
– 1 concert in Pazardjik Symphony Orchestra 2018/2019 Season in Pazardjik (Bulgaria);
– 1 limited series, tailor made ABL conducting baton with case
– Official Diploma.
– €1.250,00

The decision, according to EU rules, will be made by committee.

It must be Luxembourg’s turn to win something. Or maybe Malta’s.

 

The Aldeburgh Festival, 70 this summer, has always been a showcase for new artists.

Among those making their debut in 2018 will be Sir Bryn Terfel.

Highlights:
– Aldeburgh Festival 2018 celebrates Britten, America and the centenary of Leonard Bernstein
– World Premiere of Emily Howard’s new opera To See The Invisible on the opening weekend
– Artists in Residence: violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja, conductor John Wilson and flautist Claire Chase
– World premiere of Colin Matthews’ orchestration of Britten’s Seven Sonnets of Michelangelo
– 15 world premieres including works by featured composers Michael Hersch and Simon Holt alongside new pieces by Philip Cashian and Sir Harrison Birtwistle
– Sir Bryn Terfel makes his Aldeburgh Festival debut on the final weekend

Oehms Classics, a small and rather exquisite German label, is now under the control of Naxos.

Its founder, former DG and BMG high-flier Dieter Oehms, is 76. The new head of Oehms Classics is Matthias Lutzweiler, managing director of Naxos Deutschland, in a quiet takeover not yet announced on either company’s website. The label will remain based for the time being in Munich.

Oehms landmarks include cycles of Beethoven symphonies by Stanislaw Skrowacewski, Mahler by Markus Stenz and no fewer than three Bruckner sets in 15 years by Skrowaceski, Simone Young and Ivor Bolton.

End of an era.

 

 

 

Shirley Givens has died, aged 86.

A favourite with young kids and parents alike, she taught the children of violinists Pinchas Zukerman, Itzhak Perlman and Robert Mann, pianists Claude Frank, Lillian Kallir, Rudolf Firkusny and Jerome Lowenthal, and many more.

Shirley also taught at Peabody and Mannes and wrote a number of children’s books.

Fond memories?


The Ridgefield Symphony, in Connecticut, has named Yuga Cohler, 28, as their next music director, starting in May.

The youngest ever graduate of Juilliard’s conducting program, Cohler was a special favourite in the class of former New York Phil chief Alan Gilbert.

While Gilbert’s name is fading at the NY Phil, his dedicated mentoring is sprouting shoots.

Yesterday, on the morning of the opening of Finland’s big Beethoven festival, Johanna Rusanen called in sick with acute bronchitis. Unable to find another soprano in Helsinki, the festival phoned the experienced Erika Sunnegårdh at her home in Vienna.

Her flight took off at 1430.

She  arrived at the Helsinki Music Center – with her dog, Maestro, in tow – exactly ten minutes before the performance began. Pausing only for a quick glance at the tempi of ”Abscheulicher” with conductor Hannu Lintu, she got into costume, came onstage and sang a tremendous Leonore.

Big hand for Erika.