“Anne Hagan, the group’s executive director, said it had become ‘difficult for us to keep up with payments’ for Kimmel base rent and the other costs of performing there. ... The group had been a resident company at the Kimmel’s Perelman Theater since the arts center’s opening in 2001.” - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
They’ve left the classic façade (and the acoustics) of Powell Hall intact and built around it the gleaming new Jack C. Taylor Music Center, which provides some of the desperately needed facilities (dressing rooms for musicians, sufficient bathrooms for the audience) which Powell, once a movie palace, had lacked. - The New York Times
The streaming site says Labs will offer a glimpse of the AI features it's developing for YouTube Music, and it starts with AI "hosts" that will chime in while you're listening to music. Yes, really. - Ars Technica
A conductor is fired only for sex, a reviewer not even for that. So when four chief critics are blown away in one afternoon, it’s no small earthquake and a shaft of aftershocks ensued. - The Critic
The question remains: how effectively can Spotify identify artists who do not disclose their use of AI? As AI technology becomes more sophisticated, distinguishing between human and machine-generated content will only become more challenging. - Rude Baguette
How huge? “About 60 per cent of professional violinists and violists experience some form of playing-related musculoskeletal disorder (known as ‘PRMDs’) that prevents them from playing their best.” - Sydney Morning Herald
The truth is that only performing in larger cities like Glasgow, Manchester, London, and Cardiff risks losing your audience over time. - The Guardian (UK)
The musician who rescued the piano says, "The irony is we want in their original state. … But to keep them in their original state, you have to do things in a modern way to preserve them.” - The New York Times
“The union says more than 97 per cent of its members voted in July in favour of job action after its last offer to the employer.” Then there are some accusations of a “communications breakdown.” - Vancouver Sun
This week the management of Teatro La Fenice, evidently at short notice, named as music director the 35-year-old conductor Beatrice Venezi, reportedly an associate of Prime Minister Georgia Meloni. In response, the musicians and staffers have refused to recognize Venezi and demanded withdrawal of her appointment. - ANSA English (Italy)
Yasmin Williams, whose email to new Kennedy Center president Ric Grenell got a notoriously vicious response, performed there last week. Shortly before curtain, she and staffers learned that Grenell’s office had reserved 50 tickets for members of the gay Republican group; they booed and hackled for 15 minutes before moving elsewhere. - Washingtonian
The situation wasn’t good for the orchestra in the ‘00s and ‘10s: the messy opening of the Kimmel Center, difficulties with its conductors, musician contract disputes, a financial crisis which made the Philadelphians the first major U.S. orchestra to file for bankruptcy. How different everything looks now … - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
Of the symphony’s 20 classical subscription concerts, only two of them feature American works in those all-important, major-work slots. Both of those concerts will take place in June of next year. - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The 49-year-old Slovak conductor, previously chief conductor of Italy’s RAI National Symphony Orchestra and the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, took up the position in Houston in 2022. This latest agreement extends his term through the 2027-28 season. - OperaWire
“Some clubs are charging £5 for a ticket, you get to the bar and it’s £12 for a double,” meaning cash-strapped students will stay in or pre-drink heavily to spend less later. By raising ticket prices to £10-£15 but allowing BYOB, students come out, knowing they can then drink at supermarket prices. - The Guardian
