Category: music

“Although the status of librettists has waxed and waned over the centuries, it’s time to recognize their importance again, particularly in the creation of contemporary opera. The resurgence of storytelling, along with the heightened media attention accorded premieres, has helped fuel the commissioning of a plethora of new operas in the U.S. in recent years. And the seemingly insatiable appetite of presenters for “celebrity” operas, as well as adaptations of well-known films and books, has put leading librettists like Mark Campbell, Gene Scheer and Royce Vavrek in great demand.”

But is this enough, in a time of political upheaval (consider Venezuela, for instance, home of El Sistema)? “The mold is definitely breaking, but it is anyone’s guess how 100 young musicians playing for maybe 1,000 listeners can change the world. Isn’t it enough that they have changed their lives, and that they can go on to change others’ lives? And that the audience, which consisted mostly of their mentors and artistic movers and shakers, can use the knowledge of this success to change many more lives?”

Moore: “If we don’t support contemporary composers, their music is going to die. History is littered with people who struggled to get any recognition at all, even people who are big names now.”

“Aix’s outgoing general director, Bernard Foccroulle, described his vision as one in which opera has ‘a vivid and creative relationship to the past, with a focus that is of our time.’ The model should be one of ‘participation, not consumerism.'”

As a corollary of his mission to rethink the performer’s role, Parker Woods refuses to let his identity as a cellist be restricted by conventional perceptions of what a classical string player does. Which is why, even at this still-early stage of his career, he’s already been leaving his imprint on a fascinating variety of collaborations across disciplines.

“These artists all have a mainstream presence – performing at major festivals, appearing on Spotify and Radio 1 playlists, nurturing healthy social media accounts – but their popularity feels more microcosmic than an all-conquering march. Look at the charts. No female solo artists or groups have scored a UK No 1 this year, and beyond Anne-Marie’s vocal on Clean Bandit’s No 1 Rockabye in January, and Little Mix’s No 1 album, the year has been dominated by male artists.”

“The subversive genius of the B-52s isn’t quite acknowledged as much as it could be – even though the band invented new wave-wacky and was mindful about keeping ahead of the stylistic curve. … You can chalk up a lack of respect to the group’s kitschy veneer (and, more specifically, its penchant for making kitsch cool) unfairly superseding the music itself. That’s perhaps most galling: After all, the B-52s’ early LPs are gloriously weird without sounding forced or self-conscious.”

“Yuval Sharon has instigated a mobile opera involving 126 performers, 24 limousines and six composers. He’s produced a headphone opera, set among commuters passing through one of the country’s busiest train stations. … And, in 12 months, he’ll become the first American to direct a production at the Bayreuth Festival in Germany, founded by Richard Wagner in 1876.”