Sting attempts Dowland.
Yes? Or no.
In Switzerland, a long way away from his Boston orchestra, and not that close to Leipzig, either.
“During these past months, I have been reflecting a lot on both personal and philosophical questions,” he said. “For me, this time has been a reminder of the real values of life, family, love, sacrifice, compassion and true friendship. Never before have I had such an extended opportunity to enjoy family time, to read, to sleep and simply to think.”
Read on here.
Shut down in May, Bravo! Vail will now present a reimagined season of outdoor concerts in the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, a mobile performance stage bringing music to local communities, and virtual educational and social offerings. Guests include pianists Yefim Bronfman and Anne-Marie McDermott, violinist Ida Kavafian, violist Paul Neubauer, and the Dover Quartet. All concerts are free.
The death has been announced of Franco Lorenzo Arruga, doyen of Italian music critics and founder-editor of the magazine Musica Viva, 1977-1994.
He was 82.
He wrote numerous books on opera and staged varous exhibitions at La Scala, most recently one on the Muti years.
Ringo Starr was 80 today
Or put it another way: Mahler would have been 80 the day that Ringo was born.
I’m starting to see a resemblance.
The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts has been shut down after a student was hospitalised with Covid-19. The student is said to be a pianist from Hong Kong.
Foreign students are furious that the Academy director Adrian Walter required them to return for an extended final term, or be failed for the entire year.
We have received details of the Paycheck Protection Program loans made out by the US Government to IMG Artists, Opus 3, and Columbia, the three largest classical artists agencies in the country.
The forms we have seen says each of them received a loan in the range of $350,000 to $1 million.
The loans cover a maximum of 8 weeks, which is why all three agencies are now laying off members of staff.
IMG’s owners
The supposedly triumphant concluding concert by Mahler Competition ‘winner’ Finnegan Downie Dear has been taken down from Youtube and all other media (indluding his agent’s website) by the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra. Opinion was forming that it was just not good enough.
Which is hardly surprising since the competition broke every rule in its own book.
No-one from the organisation has attempted to contest the serious shortcomings raised by Slipped Disc, deficiencies that disable both this round of the competition and all of its results.
It brought discredit on Mahler’s name, and on everyone involved.
The Finnish conductor Leif Segerstam, 76, has been composing more symphonies during lockdown – he’s up to #339.
He has also lost weight – down from 170kg to 124.
Interview here.
The board of Estonian National Opera has suspended Director General Aivar Mäe for two months following allegations of sexual misconduct, which he denies. The board has set up an inquiry under an idependent lawyer to interview complainants to come forward.
Aivar Mäe’s lawyer has accused the media of character assassination and is threatening action for defamation. Aivar Mäe is presently on vacation.
The crucible of Italian opera reopened last night with a small recital for an audience of 603 people.
Each theatre in Italy ia allowed to calculate its own social distancing levels and La Scala has the biggest of any, equalled only by Florence.
The baritone Luca Salsi fell sick after an early-afternoon rehearsal. He was replaced by Simone Piazzola.
The other artists were pianist Beatrice Rana and cellist Mischa Maisky. Rana and Maisky played the Love Theme from Nuovo Cinema Paradiso as an encore in tribute to Ennio Morricone, who died that day.
Ignore the small print. La Scala is back.
The Brazilian singer Dulce Nunes has died of Covid-91, her family says. She was 90.
