That is, in "Fragments," solo recitals that interweave Bach's cello suites with commissioned new works. Why? "We all had a lot of time to think about what it means to really connect with an audience, what it means to connect with each other." - The New York Times
Since the final in Liverpool sold out in 40 minutes, theatres across the UK will show the final. "Organisers say the screenings will encourage fancy dress and singalongs." - BBC
When the BBC announced plans to close the UK's only full-time professional chamber choir right before its century mark, 140,000 people signed a petition - and alternative funders stepped in. - BBC
"Some people believe students can only learn music well when they're young. Financial problems meant I never had that chance as a child. But I had a dream, a passion and the conviction, and these beliefs did not deter 52-year-old me." - CBC
Its students are deeply relieved. One said, "This school is my sanctuary from the stress of life as a Syrian refugee in Turkey. ... I couldn't bear the thought of something happening to it." - NPR
"Reena Esmail acknowledged the irony that we were talking about her new choral work — 'A Requiem for Water,' inspired by California’s water crisis — in the midst of a deluge. She was wearing galoshes, as were many members of the Los Angeles Master Chorale." - Los Angeles Times
The music — described to me as “earplugs-at-a-concert loud” by one frequent commuter — is the audio version of hostile architecture, where bumpy benches and spiky surfaces are employed to keep those who have nowhere else to go out of sight. - Curbed
After three decades of financial difficulties and musician-vs.-management strife culminated in a nine-month strike, the board threw up its hands and dissolved the San Antonio Symphony. Here's a deep dive on how things got to that pass and how the musicians organized a new orchestra, the San Antonio Philharmonic. - Texas Observer
"The musicians of the San Antonio Philharmonic have reached their first collective bargaining agreement with the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) union Local 23." The contract for the fledgling ensemble is more flexible than was the one with the now-defunct San Antonio Symphony. - San Antonio Report
"Charles Henry Pace … was one of the first African American gospel music composers in the United States, and the owner of one of the country's first independent, Black gospel music publishing companies." His archives had been sitting, unorganized, in crates until 2021. - AP
The decision to close the BBC Singers, announced in March, was expected to result in the loss of 20 posts, but was met with fierce opposition from conductors, choirmasters and senior members of government and the opposition." - The Guardian
The track featured the first known example of what would come to be known as a “dembow” rhythm – the percussive, slightly syncopated four-to-the-floor beat that travelled from reggae to become the signature beat of reggaeton, today the world-conquering sound of Latin American pop. - The Guardian
An analysis of strands of his hair has upended long held beliefs about his health. The report provides an explanation for his debilitating ailments and even his death, while also raising new questions about his genealogical origins and hinting at a dark family secret. - The New York Times
An exceptionally rare Guarneri violin—so fabled that it has its own name, the Baltic—sold for $9.44 million (premium included) at auction on March 16, just shy of its $10 million estimate. The final sale price smashed the $3.6 million auction record for a Guarneri instrument. - Artnet
