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DJing As Therapy For Ukrainian War Veterans

“At the Superhumans Centre, near Lviv, … the most critically war-wounded are treated with prosthetics and reconstructive surgery, and psychological support is given to children and adults affected by the war. And within the range of treatment is music therapy” — including "the EnterDJ programme, which teaches veterans the basics of mixing." - The Guardian

Opera America Names New President And CEO

Michael Bobbitt comes to OPERA America from the Mass Cultural Council in Boston, MA, where he served as Executive Director since 2021. - BroadwayWorld

Meet The New Head Of The UK Opera Association

“The perception that opera is only for posh people, with which I fundamentally disagree, has taken a grip on a lot of decision-makers,” Thangam Debbonaire says. “But even if we do win them over, we have to accept that constraints on public finances aren’t going away any time soon.” - The Times (UK)

Spotify Reports Strong Subscriber Gains, Record Profits

Music streamer Spotify saw third quarter operating profits grow a cool 28%, as its paying subscribers hit 281 million. - Deadline

Las Vegas Philharmonic Makes Surprise Announcement Of New Music Director

After artistic advisor Leonard Slatkin finished conducting Saturday night’s concert, he introduced the audience to the orchestra’s next music director, Japanese-American conductor Rei Hotoda. She begins her four-year term next July and will also continue in her position as music director of the Fresno Philharmonic. - Las Vegas Review-Journal

Revered Pianist Maria João Pires Retires From Performing

The 81-year-old — who found viral fame through an old video where she’d been told to prepare the wrong Mozart concerto but pulled off the performance nevertheless — has retired at least once before, only to return to performing. But she suffered a stroke in June and has not played in public since. - Moto Perpetuo

Universal Music Makes Big Licensing Deal With Spotify

“The agreement includes all aspects of YouTube’s various music services and platforms, embodies our artist-centric principles and drives greater monetization for artists and songwriters.” - Music Business Worldwide

Mavis Staples Says That Her Long Singing Career Keeps A Light Shining

“There are some things going on in the US that are not pleasing to me, but I keep my head up. I turn on a light, you know, I don’t dwell on it. If someone needs me out there, I’ll be out there.” - The Guardian (UK)

Will This Silent-Film Era Instrument Disappear?

"A cousin to self-playing player pianos, photoplayers automatically play music read out of perforated piano rolls. During their slim heyday — from their invention around 1910 until about 1930, when the silent film era is thought to have ended — photoplayers delighted audiences.” - Los Angeles Times (MSN)

Pour One Out For The Zune, Which Somehow Never Threatened The IPod

Microsoft really tried. “It had a bunch of interface design ideas that are still very present in our lives today. The universe in which the Zune was a smash isn’t so far away. … Maybe if it hadn’t been brown?” - The Verge

The Three Musicians Who Make Up This Wildly Popular Band Hadn’t Even Met Before They Got Huge

The three solo artists who make up Huntr/x recorded their now-platinum album alone. Then they went on The Tonight Show and got asked to sing, live. “It was literally our first time singing together,” but “it was very organic and easy.” - Los Angeles Times (Yahoo)

In The This Almost Didn’t Happen World, Count Itzhak Perlman Nearly Opting Out Of Schindler’s List

Talk about an alternate reality: Perlman told John Williams he’d consider it. “Toby, my wife, said, ‘Are you out of your mind? You’re going to think about it?’ So I called back.” - The New York Times

Lebrecht: Two Nominations For 21st Century Great Composer Status

In an increasingly authoritarian age, we are suspicious of new leaders; when posterity squints back at us it will have to fumble in the dark to identify 21st-century composers who might, by some future criteria, qualify for greatness. - The Critic

Doctors May Now Prescribe Attendance At A Montreal Symphony Concert

“Physicians will get prescriptions that they will give to patients. ... And we will give each patient that calls us two tickets for free,” said the orchestra’s CEO. Though Montreal’s concert-prescription program is still new, many doctors elsewhere in Canada have already expressed interest, as have orchestras in Toronto and Quebec City.  - CBC

Chicago’s Grant Park Music CEO Is Stepping Down After Transforming The Festival

Paul Winberg is credited with tripling the festival’s annual contributions, bolstering its administrative infrastructure and overseeing a key change in artistic leadership last year. Under his watch, the festival has become one of the country’s foremost free classical music series. - WBEZ

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