The Dover Quartet, which positioned itself ‘to take up the mantle of the Emersons’ has suffered a setback with the withdrawal of violist Julianne Lee. She has decided she prefers her old job in the Boston Symphony, where she was assistant principal second violin and principal second violin with the Boston Pops. She joined the quartet in February 2023.

Here’s how Julianne puts it:

I have some bittersweet news to share. This past year with the Dover Quartet has been a wonderful whirlwind of touring, performing, recording, and building friendships. I’ve bonded with Joel, Bryan, and Camden both musically and personally in deeply meaningful ways, and I am incredibly grateful for our time together. I will continue to tour with the Dover Quartet through June 2025. However, being part of one of the world’s most in-demand quartets requires being on the road much of the time, and I’ve realized that this schedule doesn’t align as well with my lifestyle as a position with a home orchestra does. I’ve missed the routine and musical experiences of the Boston Symphony, and I will be returning to the orchestra in July for the Tanglewood season. Until then, I’m excited for this upcoming year with my fellow Dovers. Joel, Bryan, and Camden look forward to auditioning my replacement and announcing my successor in the spring.

The Dover Quartet is resident at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia.

First Jurgen Klopp, now Michael Eakin.

The chief executive said today he will retire next year after 16 years as CEO of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Michael has been a beacon of stability in orchestral management. Arriving from a desk job at Arts Council England, he was totally involved with musicians and audiences from day one. After a happy decade with Vasily Petrenko as chief conductor, he supervised a smooth transition to Domingo Hindoyan, all the while working on a major hall refurbishment and long term future plans.

Dedication of this order will be hard to replace.

The musicians have begun picketing concertgoers at David Geffen Hall over their stalled wage negotiations.

Earning $50k less than colleagues in Boston, Chicago and Los Angeles, they tell the New York Times today, ‘threatens our ability to attract and retain the world’s finest musicians.’

‘Our members are having trouble just making ends meet,’ said Sara Cutler (pictured), president and executive director of Local 802.

On basic US$153,000 a year for a 20-hour week?

I wonder what the NY Times journalist is making for a 50-hour week.

We hear that the Orban regime has dismissed the entire management of the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. The purge includes General Director, Artistic Director, PR and Marketing departments.

The conductor Gabor Kali has been appointed General Director, as well as Artistic and Music Director, on Orban’s expressed order.

The ten finalists were made known last night:
Eliza Boom, soprano, New Zealand
Le Bu, bass-baritone, China
Vladislav Chizhov, baritone, Russia
Elmina Hasan, mezzo-soprano, Azerbaijan
Liam James Karai, bass-baritone, UK/India
Jack Lee, baritone, UK
Kathleen O’Mara , soprano, USA
Sun-Ly Pierce, mezzo-soprano, USA
Meridian Prall, mezzo-soprano, USA
Angel Romero, tenor, USA
Polina Shabunina, soprano, Russia

Eliza Boom is the recent winner of the Elizabeth Connell Prize at London’s Wigmore Hall. She has an agent at IMG and a flourishing UK career.

The Greek-American conductor and impresario Peter Tiboris, who was died aged 76, was recognised as ‘the most prolific presenter of choral concerts in the history of Carnegie Hall.’

He presented 1,500 events worldwide, including opera, symphonic concerts, Greek folk music and ballet.

The composer John Rutter has said of his biography: ‘Could anyone have accomplished what Peter has accomplished? Peter’s combination of musical insight, vision, energy, commitment, and determination to make the most of whatever opportunities life offers is, to say the least, uncommon. He is modest enough to claim “it’s all about the music,” and of course it is, but I believe you will come away … thinking “Yes, but there’s a lot more to it than that.”’

The conductor will miss the first three weeks of the Cleveland Orchestra season, having returned unwell from its European tour.

His replacements will be Osmo Vänskä, Elim Chan and associate conductor Daniel Reith.

The deceptively youthful Franz Welser-Möst, 64, underwent treatment for a cancerous tumour a year ago. He will step down as Cleveland music director in 2027 after a record 25 years in charge.

The Belgian newspaper De Standaard has some additional details of why the early-music group Anima Eterna this week fired its ‘aggressive’ founder Jos Van Immerseel.

The ensemble, it appears, was in transition from Van Immerseel’s leadership to a triumvirate of successors, Pablo Heras-Casado, Midori Seiler and Bart Van Reyn.

Van Immerseel ‘became increasingly critical of the guest conductors and the artistic vision that they developed together with the orchestra. And he expressed that in a less than constructive way.’

A player added that he ‘contacted people internally in an aggressive manner, made disparaging remarks about conductors, board members and people from the permanent staff, and used threatening language. It is a shame. He will be 80 next year. We wanted to congratulate him and wave him goodbye in style. But he himself has made that impossible.’

Van Immerseel denies it: ‘This dismissal has hit me like a bombshell. It is also theft of my livelihood, I no longer have an income. The board has sent a letter to all members of the orchestra. That is two hundred musicians from all over Europe. It is inhumane. That I would have ignored the values of the orchestra is nonsense. I founded Anima Eterna myself and invested my own money in it to keep it afloat. I formally protest against the content and form of this press release. This is abuse of power and intimidation, a murder of my life’s work. It could only have been written by people who were poorly informed or misled.’

His lawyer adds: ‘The allegations are slanderous and false. In view of these slanderous allegations, we will take necessary legal steps.’

Strenuous efforts to produce a gender-balanced outcome at the Leeds Piano Competition have apparently paid off.

The five finalists, announced last night, are:
Kai-Min Chang (Taiwan)
Junyan Chen (China)
Jaeden Izik-Dzurko (Canada)
Khanh Nhi Luong (Vietnam)
Julian Trevelyan (United Kingdom)

The BBC has just announced an average 96 percent ticket sale for Royal Albert Hall evening concerts in the Proms season just ended.

That’s up from 93 percent last year.

One-third of attenders are said to be first-timers.

Other stats:

Proms 2024 season has reached over 10.6 million people on TV so far
4.6 million streams of BBC Proms 2024 content on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds
A peak audience of 3.3 million people watched the Last Night of the Proms on BBC One
During the final week of the BBC Proms season, Radio 3 had 264K Sounds accounts, up more than 10% on its previous record, and up by over 20% compared to the final week of Proms 2023
Almost 300K enjoyed the Proms live at the Royal Albert Hall, and a further 14K at concerts across the UK
Over two thirds of Proms at the Royal Albert Hall have been total sell-outs.
 

Remember this?

 

If you can’t decipher it, the caption says: B&H can supply you with the new model.

NO the Euphonium. Not the Girl.

What were they thinking?

Wakefield is sinking ever deeper into a mire of its own making. Six months after promising a full investigation into instances of bullying and various forms of abuse, it has just issued this explanation to worried parishioners:

Dear […],

I am writing in response to your complaints regarding Wakefield Cathedral. I am aware it has been some time since communication regarding this has been made. And that is because a thorough investigation has been conducted.

I am sure you will understand it is not appropriate to share the detail around specific individuals or any outcomes or actions specific to those individuals. That said, I wanted to offer you assurances that a detailed and fair investigation has taken place, and I am satisfied with an appropriate outcome.

Best wishes,

Juliette Mclellan
Head of Safeguarding

 

Insiders have offered us this alarming summary of the present state of affairs:

  • The Dean has now ruined a third music department.
    • Tom Moore forced into resignation (former Slipped Disc article)
    • Ed Jones sacked for not getting on with a bullying precentor (former Slipped Disc article)
    • James Bowstead now given opportunity to remove trebles from the choir.
  • Seven choristers are now in the choir, others have been sacked, and others have left.
  • They have now cut the chorister payment by 75%, promising a bumper payment at the end of year nine. In real terms, they are going to pay them 25% now, then find reasons to sack them before they reach Year 9.
  • They have spent an £80,000 legacy promised “For the choristers” on salaries and Lay Clerk fees.
  • Funding has been refused for a second year running from the Cathedral Music Trust. Funding tends to be given out every other year.
  • Adults are now being paid seven times what they were previously paid.
  • Female Adult Sopranos are also being paid £35 a service to bulk out the children’s choir when required.
  • The Cathedral talk about “and all cathedrals are finding it more and more difficult to get choristers to commit to the timetables which until quite recently were not a problem”.
    • By way of comparison…
      • Ripon Cathedral in the same diocese has sixty trebles in their two separate children’s choirs.
      • Bradford Cathedral also in the same diocese has over 30 choristers over two treble lines.
      • Wakefield had over 35 choristers a year and a half ago over two treble lines. 
      • In fact, there are few cathedrals struggling with recruiting…
  • Adult Sopranos are now singing more services than the trebles. 
  • The ongoing safeguarding investigations about the cathedral’s failings are continuing, and may be the reason for the depleting involvement of children in the choir.
  • Wakefield could become the first Church of England cathedral to remove children permanently from their musical tradition.