Category: music

“The audience was prepared for the worst. A highly controversial German director whithout any experience in opera had been charged with putting on a new version of “Parsifal“ to open the Wagner Festival in Bayreuth. But after months of suspense, the audience left the theater on Sunday rather calmed.” Maybe it was the weak singing?

The mythologies aabout conductor are only getting bigger since his death. But Norman Lebrecht suggests that Kleiber failed to live up to his gifts. “Kleiber was a magnificently gifted conductor who chose, for reasons known only to himself, to deny himself to music. He gave very little, and then he took it away. He was the greatest non-conductor we have ever seen.”

This weekend, the Pittsburgh Symphony and its resident chorus will put on a special performance of a symphony based on the Lord of the Rings film scores by Howard Shore. The show is sure to draw a crowd, but has presented some interesting challenges for the choral director, who has never before had to instruct his singers in proper Elvish and Dwarvish diction…

Why do so many adults give up their devotion to great rock music once they reach a certain age? Maybe its the sense of grown-up responsibility that somehow seems at odds with the devil-may-care ethos of rock, but Jim Walsh can’t imagine living without his favorite bands. “I suppose [it’s] an unsettling energy to tap into all the time, which may be why some people ultimately minimize the importance of music. The act of going to see a great live band and waking up the next morning to take on work or family can be energizing, but also schizophrenic and jarring–so much so that some stop tapping into it altogether, or relegate it to a bygone heyday.”

“The Philadelphia Orchestra has landed yet another seven-figure gift. This time the largesse comes from the William Penn Foundation, which has pledged $2 million over three years. The grant was awarded for general operating support, some of the hardest money for non-profits to find these days, and is meant to assist the orchestra until its endowment grows to the point that it is generating substantial interest every year.” The gift comes in the midst of increasingly contentious negotiations between the orchestra’s management and musicians over a management demand either to cut musician salaries by 10%, or eliminate 10 musicians from the orchestra’s full complement.

San Antonio’s Kronkosky Foundation withdrew its support for the San Antonio Symphony a year ago, saying it had no confidence that the organization was capable of operating responsibly. Now, as the SAS prepares to return to the stage after a dark year, the foundation is returning as well, offering up a $250,000 grant with tough financial triggers. “Beginning in August, the folks at Kronkosky want the symphony to meet specific monthly revenue targets through ticket sales, sponsorships and fund raising” in exchange for the money. The hope is that the Kronkosky grant will be a sign to other funders that the orchestra is worthy of their attention.

As the Cincinnati Symphony begins negotiations for a new contract with its musicians this summer, nearly every part of the ensemble’s budget is facing possible cuts. The orchestra ran a $411,000 deficit last year, and would have faced a $1.8 mil shortfall this year, but for a last-minute donation. Among the options being considered to close the gap are the elimination of a popular holiday series, a move to online publication for some informational materials, and the possible cancellation of a street music festival that the CSO had sponsored. It’s a fair bet that the orchestra management is seeking concessions from the musicians at the bargaining table, as well.

Nineteen-year-old Curtis violist Rachel Ku won an audition for a spot in the Philadelphia Orchestra. Then she didn’t have the job. Now she does again.

Many pop musicians seem to want to take a whack at composing “classical” music. But why, wonders Greg Sandow. “Why do these terrific musicians — really lively spirits, in their own area — put on handcuffs when they write classical music? There might be two reasons. First, classical music is too well-bred. Or, at least, the classical music world is. People come to it from outside with genuine respect, and do what the Romans do. Second, classical music is largely defined by older repertoire, so when people from outside come to it, that’s what attracts them, and that’s what they move towards.”