Category: music

Tommasini: Upgrade Of NY Philharmonic’s Theatre Experience Could Be Transformative

” ‘Amenities’ seems inadequate to describe how transformative the improvements could be for performers and audiences. I’d argue that the physical details of a concert hall are crucially important for classical music, more so than for other performing arts. With theater and dance, there’s much to watch and stories to follow. Opera is in this category. But an orchestra doesn’t offer the same kind of visual stimulation.” – The New York Times

Minnesota Orchestra Posts Largest Deficit In Its History But Says It Has ‘Strong Financial Foundation’

“The [$8.8 million operating] deficit, which followed four years of small surpluses, exceeds the previous record shortfall of $6 million in 2012, when the orchestra was mired in a contract dispute between management and musicians that resulted in a 15-month lockout. Yet orchestra President and CEO Michelle Miller Burns described the organization’s financial position as ‘strong.'” And, it turns out, she does have a point. – The Star Tribune (Minneapolis)

Inside The Hungarian State Opera House’s Gorgeous (And Expensive) Restoration

“The Neo-Renaissance structure [in Budapest] has been closed for the past 18 months due to extensive restoration and modernization works. Newly released images reveal the full extent of the project, which has a whopping budget of $30 million. The behind-the-scenes photographs show the vast reconstruction works taking place on the roof, where new tiles have been added, along with a substantial overhaul of the auditorium with a ‘smart’ concept.” – CNN

What The NY Phil’s New Home At Lincoln Center Will Look Like

Justin Davidson: The current scheme, a joint Philharmonic–Lincoln Center project, is relatively modest. The auditorium stays where it is but gets gutted and rebuilt (again). In 2022, the orchestra moves out for an extended summer break, from May to November, returns for an abbreviated season in the reconfigured but unfinished hall, and spends most of 2023–24 touring, floating, and sojourning in its ancestral home at Carnegie Hall. The new Geffen reopens in March 2024. (Lincoln Center and the Philharmonic say that they’ve already raised two-thirds of the money.) – New York Magazine

How Pink Martini Became A New Vision For An Orchestra Collective

“After college, I actually wanted to be the mayor of Portland,” Thomas Lauderdale recalls, “but working in the campaigns and political fundraising can be so dreary. And the music at those rallies really sucked.” Therein was the impetus for forming the band. Lauderdale had become the de facto social director of Portland’s underground political scene, staging rallies, parties and functions at coffeehouses, private homes and auditoriums citywide. – Monterey County Now

Classical Music’s Streaming Problem

According to a new survey commissioned by Primephonic, 34% of the 1,000 Americans surveyed are interested in listening to classical music, but only 16% actually do so. Put another way, only half of the people interested in streaming classical music are actually listening. Primephonic and Idagio ($10 monthly) — another classical music-only streaming service that launched in the U.S. in 2018 — intend to take advantage of the gap in those numbers, to improve access to classical music by offering new-user-friendly software and guided listening. – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette