Composer Emma O'Halloran had had her Uncle Mark adapt two of his scripts, Mary Motorhead and Trade, into librettos to which she's written one-act operas --- and she plans to make it a trilogy. She talks to David Patrick Stearns about the collaboration and about the ways she works. - Musical America
The Southern California Annenberg Inclusion Initiative report reveals that while the amount of women represented in Billboard’s year-end Hot 100 chart jumped 28.7% last year, to a total of 30%, only 14% of songwriters represented on the chart were women, a slight decrease from the 2021 statistic of 14.3%. - The Guardian
For the orchestra's February program, at least, the venue will be the Met Philadelphia, a former opera house on Broad Street north of Center City and a familiar hall for the Pops. There's no word yet on whether they'll return there for the season's four remaining programs. - The Philadelphia Inquirer
For artists who are thinking about retirement, it’s a way to enjoy the fruits of their labour and create a pension for themselves. It could be that, because of the pandemic, artists have sold their catalogue to compensate for loss of revenue while venues and other income streams were lost. - The Conversation
“We, the musicians of the San Francisco Symphony, have been playing without a contract for months and are the only major American orchestra who have not had their salaries restored to the contractually agreed rates, prior to the contract expiring." - San Francisco Classical Voice
Even the most curmudgeonly of musicians and symphony-goers are coming to accept the value of these sorts of shows. And, most importantly, the music is often excellent. - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"The November event — called the California Festival: A Celebration of New Music — is a collaborative project organized by three maestros: Gustavo Dudamel from the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Esa-Pekka Salonen from the San Francisco Symphony and Rafael Payare from the San Diego Symphony." - The New York Times
"(David Lockington), who is a member of Church of Christ, Scientist, is suing the association, alleging he was wrongfully stripped of his job in 2021 for seeking a religious and medical exemption to its mandatory coronavirus vaccination policy." - Pasadena Now
An open letter from the board says several parties have offered possible solutions for funding and support since it announced the plan to end the festival last week. - Toronto Star
Hildegard’s fame has crossed over into zones of New Age spirituality, environmental discourse, and feminist thought. In the gift shop at the Hildegard Abbey, you can find self-help texts along the lines of “Strengthen the Immune System with Hildegard of Bingen.” - The New Yorker
The reasons stem from energy costs - and cuts in subsidies. "Strasbourg hosts the choir, the design workshops for sets and costumes and the administration of the establishment; Colmar, the opera studio, its training structure; while the ballet ... is based in Mulhouse." - Le Monde
While recording music by Kurt Weill, musical historian Michael Haas "began to discover an entire hidden world of composers who either died during the Holocaust, or became exiles. They either gave up music or — like Walter Arlen — wrote music that no one ever heard." - NPR
There's the obvious - cap the prices, end hidden fees - and then some less-obvious, but useful, ideas, like upgrading ticket-buying software to eliminate those hellish queues. - BBC
Her path, forged at Bard College and the Ojai Festival, and a lot of work with Peter Sellars, hasn't been exactly conventional - but she's an essential voice in, and for, the 21st century. - Los Angeles Times
Justin Bieber selling his catalogue for $200 million is just the latest example. Investment funds have been paying big money for rights to pop songs and jazz, especially older music, and collecting the income from streaming and cover versions. Now there's even a music futures index. (Oh God.) - Ludwig Van
