Elliott Carter has written his first opera at the age of 90. Rate this NGC: Not for General Consumption. – Philadelphia Inquirer
It won’t be long before music lovers embrace pay-as-you-go service, much like cellular telephones, making music accessible everywhere. Artists on independent labels will get as much attention as superstars signed with what are now the Big Four record companies. MTV pioneer Thomas Dolby Robertson says we are entering a new era in music that will have as much impact on this generation as The Beatles did in the ’60s, and will replace the sea change brought on by MTV. – National Post (Canada)
Opera audiences might be growing, but the number of operas they want to see is getting smaller. “Of the literally hundreds of operas in circulation, beginning in the 1500s and ranging up to the present day, no more than 25 or so can today be called reliable box-office hits.” – Hartford Courant
The Dallas Symphony is 100 years old this year, and it’s got big dreams. “The board has a mandate to get Dallas within America’s top-tier orchestras. It’s a long-term project. I think it will take 10 years. And another five before the world notices.” Money helps. The orchestra regularly sells out its concerts, and is raising $100 million for its endowment. Is it possible to buy a tradition as something more than a good, solid, middle-of-the-road American orchestra? – New York Times
A prestigious series presenting promising performers in the world’s “dream” concert halls hits a few bumps. What should the criteria for “promising” be? – New York Times
Artur Rubinstein had one of the longest careers as a pianist in the 20th Century and one of the greatest. Now a 94-CD 106-hour collection of his recordings is being released. The pianist’s recordings were said not to have given the full measure of his talent, but they do map out an extraordinary career. – Washington Post
It’s been decades since the Shanghai Symphony has been “the best orchestra in the East.” But it certainly gets the prize for most persistent. – New York Times
There’s a revival of Western interest in North African music. “Long before India and the hippy trail, Morocco provided a springboard into the exotic, right on Europe’s doorstep. As Westerners from Cecil Beaton and Joe Orton to William Burroughs and the Rolling Stones came here in search of easy drugs and risky sex, so Moroccan sounds fed into Western pop.” – London Telegraph
No that isn’t Snoop Doggy Dogg you hear thudding down the streets of Johannesburg – it’s Kwaito, South Africa’s latest musical craze. The lyrics, written in Zulu, Xhosa, and tsotsi taal (gangster slang) are dedicated to describing life in the townships and the experiences of the post-apartheid generation. – The Economist
On the heels of South Africa’s National Symphony Orchestra going out of business earlier this year, the National Chamber Orchestra has announced its demise for lack of funding. Heavily subsidized by South Africa’s former white governments, the country’s large cultural institutions are having a tough time with reduced support from the new governments. – Daily Mail and Telegraph (South Africa)
