“The music is meant to evolve, and we’re in the midst of its most wildly adaptive, thrillingly unruly evolutionary phase in some 40 years. So why do I balk whenever someone declares that jazz has entered another golden age?” – The New York Times
Category: music
Podcasting Is The Perfect Way To Learn About Classical Music
The new “Aria Code” podcast by WQXR and the Met proves it. So why aren’t there a lot more classical podcasts? – The New York Times
Is The Vienna Philharmonic Preparing For A New Generation?
Well, they should be. “Even for an orchestra that lives and breathes tradition, recruiting the next generation of talent is no longer self-evident. That is why, for the first time in its history, the Philharmonic is opening an academy to train musicians hands-on.” – The New York Times
For People Who Are Type A, Being Mediocre At Piano Is Perfect
Adults who take piano lessons, and who simply can’t be perfect at it, can find something new. “Playing the piano has accomplished what all that yoga and meditation never could. I can quiet my mind and focus entirely on something: not my breath, but the music.” – The New York Times
The Young Mezzo Taking The Opera World By Storm
Anita Rachvelishvili, 34, has impressed conductors, directors, and the opera world in general. Riccardo Muti: “Rachvelishvili was for me a revelation. … She is without doubt the best Verdi mezzo-soprano today on the planet. Without. Doubt.” – The New York Times
These Two Male Conductors, Fired For Treating Women Badly, Are Back On The Podium, But Why?
Yikes, and yuck. “The rapid return of Mr. Gatti and Mr. Dutoit has led some to ask whether the cult of personality that surrounds maestros in a tradition-bound field has won out, particularly in countries like Italy and Russia where the reaction to #MeToo has been relatively muted.” The New York Times
Women Are Inventing Their Own Nashville Country Music
Even though the stranglehold of bro country has given way to various softer, smoother gestures, the men of the format still dominate terrestrial, satellite, and streaming playlists. But it’s not like country’s rising generation of women are content to keep following a prescribed promotional path that’s leading only to frustration and a sense of futility. I’ve found it illuminating to consider how the moves that Morris, Cam, Musgraves, and so many others are making count as artistic and professional survival strategies. – Slate
HMV, UK’s Biggest Music Retailer, Enters Bankruptcy For Second Time In Six Years
The chain, which has appointed administrators from KPMG, has been wallopped by online sales and streaming; it had an unusually weak Christmas shopping season this year. Customers with HMV gift cards are being warned to use them right away. — BBC
The Rise And Fall Of HMV
The BBC’s Jennifer Scott reviews a history that goes back to the very invention of the phonograph. — BBC
Why Boys’ Choirs? Why Not The Girls?
“Every Christmas I sit down to watch Carols from Kings, which is broadcast around the world, and every year I wonder where the girls are,” Lesley Garrett said in a telephone interview. “So this year I decided to pose the question and see what would happen. And we got this great outpouring of passionate opinion.” – The New York Times