How often have you seen Brian Epstein present on TV?

The French music magazine Diapason has given its January cover to the singer Placido Domingo, who turns 80 on the 21st.

The editors acknowledge that ”accusations of sexual harassment have forced him to withdraw to a small number of countries where he is still wanted.’ Be that as it may: ‘Meet the last living legend of opera.’

Except in Russia, will any other magazines follow suit?

Just in from Peter Rofé, doublebass of the Los Angeles Philharmonic:

My roots as a bass player go back to playing electric bass in garage bands, so during the pandemic, I’ve revisited the tunes of my youth. I deconstructed some classics, covering both the bass and guitar parts…while attempting to sing as well. Plug in some headphones and give it a listen, and stay tuned for some Beatles songs. Filmed by my son Ike Rofé.

Gerry Marsden, a Mersey Beat hero whose recording of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ became the anthem of Liverpool FC, has died of a heart condition at 78.

His other hits were  I Like It, How Do You Do It, and Ferry Across The Mersey.

with the beatles, Gerry Marsden

Symphonic version by the RLPO:

Matthieu Herzog informs us of the death of the French viola master Tasso Adamopoulos, principal of several orchestras and professor at the conservatoires of Lyon and Bordeaux. He was 76 and had been ill with Covid-19

Of Greek origin, he studied in Israel with Oedoen Partos, becoming principal viola of the Rotterdam Philharmonic at age 19.

He went on to occupy the principal seat in the Gulbenkian Orchestra, the Ensemble orchestral de Paris, the Orchestre national de France and the Orchestre National Bordeaux Aquitaine. His students occupy positions in leading European orchestras.

Here’s a little known track of the great classical pianist accompanying the fado singer known as Portugal’s Frank Sinatra.

Portugal has declared a day of national moruning for Carlos do Carmo, who died this weekend.

The recording was released in 2012.

In an interview on her 18th birthday, the Swedish climate campaigner admits concern over attacks on her family.

Ms Thunberg also admitted to guilt over the pressures brought on her family – including death threats – through her three years in the public eye. She did not care what people said about her online, but “when it impacts the people around you then it becomes something else”.

Thunberg’s mother, the Swedish opera singer Malena Ernman, gave up her international career four years ago when her daughter persuaded her to stop taking flights. Malena, 50, withdrew from a New Year’s Day appearance on Swedish TV with a heavy cold.

The tenor, 62, performed on Christmas Day at Basilica di San Francesco in Assisi.

In the middle of the aria Dolce è Sentire, he took up the flute and played a fine solo.

This may have been the busiest festive season of his life.

The conductor, in a Covid conversation with the Salzburg chief Helga Rabl-Stadler, has made an unguarded and unfounded comparison between the present pandemic and the second world war.

Helga Rabl-Stadler: Daniel Barenboim, how would you describe the year 2020 in retrospect?

 Daniel Barenboim: I think it was a particularly difficult year. There has never been a global problem of this dimension. Even in World War II, there were places where one could escape. Today, we are all slaves to this pandemic. There are very different aspects of this we must keep in mind:

Of course the first consideration must be health, all over the world and for everyone.

The second consideration must be the huge economic problems. It is terrible that so many people have been driven into poverty by the pandemic.

And third, one must not forget that this pandemic attacked all of us. We cannot relax our thinking. A great nervousness has gripped all our human and professional relationships. There are people who are more fearful than others, but we are all under pressure.

On reflection, he may wish to revise this metaphor. Six million died in the Holocaust because no other country would accept them. Million of soldiers on both sides died because they had no alternative. Millions of civilians died because there was no shelter from bombs or invading armies.

This is a really unwise statement.