Five youths have been arrested over the violent theft of a violin and bow worth an estimated $38,000 from a Cleveland Orchestra violinist last week. The stolen property was recovered inside his fiancee’s car, which was also stolen in the raid.

His fiancée was pistol-whipped during the robbery.

More here.

The Teatro Real has announced its new season.

From the Real press office:

Next season the Teatro Real has ten co-productions from the Teatro Real, seven of which will have their premiere in Madrid: Turandot (Nicola Luisotti/Robert Wilson), Idomeneo (Ivor Bolton/Robert Carsen), Falstaff (Daniele Rustioni/Laurent Pelly), Capriccio (Asher Fisch/ Christof Loy), La peste, by Roberto Gerhard (Juando Mena/Dora García), Con que voz, by Stefano Gervasoni (Nacho de Paz/Oscar García Villegas), along with the world premiere of Je suis narcisiste, by Raquel García Tomás (Vinicius Kattah/Marta Pazos). The remaining the co-productions have had their debut in the theatres which share these with the Teatro Real: Faust (Dan Ettinger/Àlex Ollé), Only the sounds remains, by Kaija Saariaho (Ivor Bolton/Peter Sellars), and Il trovatore.

The Teatro Real completes the opera season programme by inviting three productions from other theatres ─Das Rheingold (Pablo Heras-Casado/Robert Carsen), La Calisto (Ivor Bolton, Christopher Moulds/David Alden)) and Dido & Aeneas (Christopher Moulds/Sasha Waltz)─ with a further two operas in concert version: Agrippina and Giovanna d’Arco.

At the Teatro Real 74.6 % of the annual budget (21.813.771 euros) is self-financed and only 25.4 % comes from public funding.

The Austrian conductor Gustav Kuhn stood down today of his own volition from the Erl Festival that he founded in 1997, ‘in order to avert further damage’ to the event. Kuhn has been accused by five female musicians of sexual assaults, which he denies.

The Festival board, welcoming his decision, has asked his deputy, Andreas Leisner, to stand in as interim artistic director.

Kuhn, 72, has been involved in libel action for several months against a blogger who first raised the allegations.

Full story in the Faz.

The German soprano Nadja Michael reports that the Teatro municipal de Sao Paulo has not paid anyone in the casts of Elektra and Fosca (Gomes) for the years 2015, 2016 and 2017. Nor has the theatre administration responded to messages.

This is outrageous.

It is also normal in Brazil.

If you accept an engagement in Rio or Sao Paulo, make sure you are paid beforehand.

 

25th Anniversary Gala Verbier Festifal 2018.

Gioachino Rossini: William Tell

CASTING
Seong-Jin Cho | Pianist
Evgeny Kissin | Pianist
Mikhaïl Pletnev | Conductor , Pianist
Sir András Schiff | Conductor , Pianist
Sergei Babayan | Pianist
Daniil Trifonov | Pianist
Yuja Wang | Pianist
Denis Kozhukhin | Pianist

CONCERT
Verbier Festival 25th Anniversary Gala
Verbier Festival 2018.07.25

The number of cancellations has reached double figures, leaving the Verbier Festival programme looking more like a fantasy wish-list than a serious schedule.

Here’s the overnight notice:

The Verbier Festival is saddened to announce the indisposition of Radu Lupu for tonight’s concert. We wish him a quick recovery.

At the same time we are extremely grateful to Sir András Schiff who, upon Mr Lupu’s desire, has accepted to replace him in the 4th Concerto by Beethoven conducted by Gábor Takács-Nagy.

François-René Duchâble caused a stir in 2003 when he announced his retirement in protest against the elitism of classical music.

Now he’s quitting again.

For real this time, he says.

François-René Duchâble is 66.