The Wolverhampton Society has affixed a blue plaque to the house where one of the friends mentioned in Enigma Variations lived.
Known to Elgar as Dorabella, Dora lived with her father the Rev Alfred Penny, rector of St Peter’s Collegiate Church. Elgar and his wife Alice stayed here and he went with Dora to watch Wolverhampton Wanderers play football. Her variation is fluttery.
More here.
The Edinburgh International Festival has appointed two new heads of artistic management and music programming.
Paul Sharp and Nick Zekulin will start out as cover for director Nicola Benedetti, who is on maternity leave.
The two full time positions will continue when Nicola is back from maternity leave.
Zekulin (pic) was general manager of the Hebrides Ensemble and former chief of National Youth Orchestras of Scotland.
The Pittsburgh Symphony has promoted violinist Justine Campagna to Associate Concertmaster and Dylan Naroff to Assistant Concertmaster.
In the cellos, Dale Jeong has been named Associate Principal Cello and Yun-Ya Lo joins as a section player.
The Peruvian Dayner Tafur-Díaz has won the Siemens Conductors Competition with a prize of studying in the Karajan Academy of the Berliner Philharmoniker. Tafur-Díaz, 26, stood out among 68 contestants from 29 countries.
Click here to subscribe or rent
One of Shakespeare’s lesser known history plays, Henry VIII is a searing drama about one of England’s most romantic yet brutal periods. When King Henry falls for Anne Boleyn, he must somehow divorce Queen Katherine. The consequences will be momentous for the country – and disastrous for the king’s adviser, Cardinal Wolsey, who is losing his grip on power.
Passion, political intrigue and personal faith drive the action as Shakespeare brings vividly to life the human drama behind a pivotal moment in history.
This production, starring Jonathan Goad as Henry, Rob Beattie as Cardinal Wolsey, Alexandra Lainfiest as Anne Boleyn and Irene Poole as Queen Katherine of Aragon, was captured live at Canada’s Stratford Festival in 2019.
The director was the late great Canadian actor/director Martha Henry, who had played Prospero in The Tempestat Stratford only days before her death at 83.
Digital Theatre’s Annual subscription is £99.99, Monthly subscription £9.99, or you can Rent for 48hrs for £7.99.
The exiled Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov paid a call yesterday on his contemporary Arvo Pärt in his Estonian retreat.
The Estonia Hall in Talinn is putting on a Silvestrov concert tonight.
Two weeks after the passing of the Geneva and Paris opera chief Hugues Gall, he has been followed by his longstanding partner, the dancer and choreigrapher Eric Vu-An.
Eric was 60. He died of cancer in Nice, where he had been artistic director of the ballet.
The Hans Gabor Belvedere Singing Competition has been won by the South Korean baritone Jungrae Noah Kim.
Of the 121 contestants from 39 nations who made it into the finals in the Latvian town of Jurmala, 20 were South Korean, 15 were from Ukraine and ten from China.
Birmingham Opera Company is about to perform Tippett’s opera New Year.
It is an extremely rare event, dividing opinions sharply on itsm merits.
Keith Warner will direct. BOC Music Director Alpesh Chauhan will conduct the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.
Nowhere is this information hinted at on the CBSO website.
Not a priority for the present management, apparently.
… One of several racist slogans smeared on an Israeli-owned jazz club in New York which was attacked by racists with red paint.
Report here.
pictured: Club owner Omer Avital
Friends have reported the death of Tim Watts, 2nd oboe of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
He was also Principal Oboe of English Touring Opera and Southern Sinfonia. Tim studied at Cambridge University and the Royal College of Music.
Moscow-trained Ilya Shmukler, 27, has swept the board at the Geza Anda piano competition in Switzlerland.
He won the main prize, audience prize and the young jury’s vote, plus best Mozart performance.
