Category: music

“The instrument, a personal gift of Ms. Tully, was removed for the hall’s renovation and was originally to have been restored along with it. But delays left Tully Hall organless when it reopened in February, with no timetable or money designated for the instrument’s return.”

“Paul Nicholas is to take the lead role of Jack Point in three special performances of Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Yeomen of the Guard, which will be staged at The Tower of London to mark the 500th anniversary of the death of Henry VII.”

“An amateur pastime in Japan for more than 50 years, [the symphony] is often performed around the holiday season in venues across the country, occasioning the coming together of hundreds, sometimes thousands, of choristers of all ages and levels of vocal training. ‘Ode to Joy’ serves as a popular ringtone for cellphones as well as a ubiquitous selection at karaoke bars.” Says one observer: “Someone told me that it’s the only time that Japanese women are allowed to scream.”

“As Jackson moonwalked his way into music history, “Thriller” set a new benchmark for blockbusters that changed how the music business promoted and marketed superstar releases. It also changed MTV, breaking down the cable network’s racial barriers and raising the bar for video quality.”

“By general assent, the 48-year-old Amsterdam native has transformed the orchestra in both sound and skill. Virtually unknown in the U.S. before his dramatic 2006 DSO debut, van Zweden now is sparking intense interest.”

“Just in time for the Fourth of July, Donnellan posted to YouTube a video of himself playing the national anthem on his electric baseball-bat-violin. He didn’t necessarily mean the clip for wide circulation. He put it up because a friend with contacts in the Washington Nationals front office wanted to show it to his bosses and ask about having Donnellan play the national anthem for a game.”

“Fans flocked to the late popstar’s greatest hits, purchasing a record-breaking 2.6 million Jackson solo recordings and Jackson Five songs, according to Nielsen SoundScan data for the week ending June 28. Jackson also dominated Billboard’s “Comprehensive Album Chart,” which tracks both new albums and older catalog albums — the first time a catalog album has ever scanned more sales than any new album.”

“We’ve been going out to towns for the last couple of years, really proactively saying, ‘Here we are’.
In the last three years, the orchestra has turned around its fortunes. Since then, the group started a more extensive program of all-access concerts, and has since ranked in a public poll as one of the most popular orchestras in the state.”

“Mahler nevertheless perceived his Jewishness to be an encumbrance, even a physical disability. He told a friend that being a Jew was like having one arm shorter than the other. … His appearance was protean to an uncanny degree. Even people close to Mahler described him in contradictory ways: old, young, sickly, strong, pallid, swarthy.”

“Over the last few days, we’ve noted the many ways that homage has been paid to Michael Jackson, from sculpting him in butter to naming one’s Ukrainian village after him. … Yet none of these tributes possess the grandeur of this church organ medley of Mr. Jackson’s hits, performed by Robert Ridgell on Sunday at the conclusion of worship services at the Trinity Wall Street church.”