Category: music

Deutsche Grammophon has canceled its recording contract with John Eliot Gardiner. This just as Gardiner finishes recording “his remarkable series of 200 cantatas in a year-long ‘pilgrimage’ to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Bach’s death. Sales of expensive new classical performances are plummeting, and the major corporations are cancelling contracts with all but the most bankable and attractive of celebrity performers.” – The Independent (UK)

“Wisdom in the record business (if that phrase is not yet an oxymoron), for example, holds that a performer’s drawing power drops precipitously after his or her death.” But Leonard Berstein seems to be a name that still draws considerable interest in the music world. – New York Times

Tony Hall, the head of news and current affairs at the BBC, is expected to be named the new head of London’s Royal Opera House. “The choice of Mr Hall signals a change of direction for the ROH. For the first time they have gone for a chief with no experience in opera or ballet, of running an arts venue, or with an arts background at all. But Mr Hall, an opera lover, is a proven administrator, in charge of 2,500 people at the BBC.” – The Independent (UK)

Charlotte Church may be selling a ton of recordings and making a fortune, but she’s still a kid:” I suppose, yeah. I’m not evil. I’m not that much of a devil. (Turning to mother) Am I acting a little more devilish as I get older, Mum? She says sometimes. There’s a lot she doesn’t know.” – San Francisco Chronicle

The director of Jazz at Lincoln Center abruptly resigns, sparking all sorts of questions. – New York Times

Kylie Minogue’s new recording was listed as a No. 1 seller on the HMV charts even before the store had sold its first copy. Why? Not because consumers had bought her record;but because “HMV thinks consumers probably will buy the record, and wants to give its sales a nudge along.” – The Age (Melbourne)

The culture secretary for the state of Bavaria says the state “cannot continue to devote taxpayers’ money to the Bayreuth festival, given the uncertainty of its future. He has made no secret of the fact that he would like the 81-year-old Wolfgang Wagner to step down by the end of 2002. Despite the fact that all the festival performances are heavily sold out, Wagner is not prepared to give up the job or state subsidies, and pressure over the financial situation is growing.” – Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

“It will be 100 years ago next month that Giuseppe Verdi died, and Italy has been yearning ever since for his unifying genius. But while Italy is playing up the Verdi year for all it is worth in tourist dollars and Rome-promoted national cohesion, the uncomfortable questions are not being asked. Verdi represents an end, not a renewal.” – The Telegraph (UK)

Chicago’s mom-and-pop classical music station WNIB was a labor of love – a low-budget affair that survived decades of buy-out offers on the strength of its owners’ commitment. But $165 million is too much money to turn down… Also too much money for the new owners to continue the classical format. – Chicago Tribune

“The usual argument in support of the rappers-are-criminals theory boils down to this: If an artist boasts on record about beating people, shooting people, taking or selling drugs or abusing women, why shouldn’t the police consider them to be prime suspects? The answer is we should expect people, especially police, to distinguish between fantasy and reality.” – Boston Herald