Category: music

What, exactly, is world music, asks Andrew Taylor, and “does it help us to assign categories that cannot be defined? Of course, most would answer that ‘world music’ is non-European music, or compositions, cultural expressions, and performances from cultures other than the traditional performing arts fare. It’s music from the Middle East, China, Africa, Israel, Nepal, and so on. And we categorize it because it makes it easier to talk about it, program it, and present it to an audience – we can have a ‘world music’ series and everyone will know what we mean. The problem is, such categories seem to cause more problems than they solve – both from a business and aesthetic perspective.”

There seems to be a relationship between learning music and excelling in other subjects. So “if a school is not teaching music as intensively and zealously as it’s teaching math and science, then it’s not teaching math and science. The decline in music education is a big part of the problem in math and science education.”

After a couple of years when music sales were down, 2003 was something of a turnaround. “More than 19.2 million digital tracks were sold online in the past six months, according to Nielsen Soundscan, helping to narrow the music industry’s losses last year. Overall, North American music sales were down 0.8 percent last year compared with 2002, while album sales, which includes cassettes and other formats, were down 3.6 percent, according to Nielsen Soundscan.”

“When the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra decided to fire its head conductor last month, it resorted to the strict letter of the law. The grounds for dismissal was his attendance record, which showed that Kwak Sung, music advisor and conductor, spent only 60 days out of the 180 required days a year at the Sejong Center of the Performing Arts, the orchestra’s administrative home.”

The symphony orchestra is a remarkable thing, writes Norman Lebrecht. But “economically, it makes no sense at all. A sold-out symphony concert at the Royal Festival Hall yields an average loss of £48,000. It costs £1.9m a year in state subsidy and as much again in private fundraising to keep a London orchestra afloat. And yet, against all rational prognostications, five symphony orchestras and a dozen chamber ensembles flourish in this city of 12 million inhabitants, reaching (at an informed estimate) no more than 30,000 active concertgoers. The noose is getting tighter.”

The English National Opera is delaying the reopening of its London home for two weeks after an extensive restoration. “The restoration has adhered to an extremely tight schedule throughout and in these last weeks it is crucial that standards are not compromised during the reinstatement of our technical operation in order to meet the deadline.”

It’s the latest thing – pop stars performing at the local movie theatre. Across America, fans pay to see their favorites perform in concert movies. Then they buy the DVD and recordings. “The numbers are impressive. Of the seven music-based events Regal CineMedia coordinated in 2003, the products tied in with the screenings always debuted at No. 1, Regal says. As 2004 unfolds, screenings such as these could become a standard part of a label’s marketing approach – radio, TV, Internet, point-of-purchase and the movie theater.”

According to new figures, in 2003, “UK music lovers spent more on going to concerts last year than at any time since records began 90 years ago as the rock revival helped to fuel a new hunger for live gigs.”

Orange County, California has a rich musical life – orchestras, chamber music, recitals. But there’s one big thing missing – the piano. Why, wonders Tim Mangan, is there no ongoing series committed to the piano?

Why are there not more young people at classical music concerts, wonders John Rockwell. “The incontrovertible fact remains: classical music, by and large, is ludicrously overpriced. MoMA’s $12 is barely more than the $10.25 to which some movie theaters in Manhattan have recently ascended. Rock concerts may be pricey, but songs can be downloaded for 99 cents or less, all the way down to zero.”