It’s known as the Art Alliance building, it’s near Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square, Curtis bought it in January in the UArts liquidation sale, and fire broke out on July 4. The damage was severe, but engineers and workers have stabilized the structure; soon demolition of the old roof will begin. - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
The ability to create lyrics in five seconds, and you can keep refining these things. Oh, I don't like the second version. Can you rewrite this? This is just, there's never been anything like this. And then the fact that you can use it in so many different ways. - WBUR
Rod Sims has departed as chair of Opera Australia after three years, a decision both he and the company said was voluntary despite an extraordinary swipe at his leadership style by a former chief executive. - Australian Financial Review
“Musicians routinely wrestle with interpreting oblique, ambiguous and outright surreal markings as they try to bring a composer’s idea to life” — from Satie’s direction “light as an egg” to the poetic instructions of Anna Thorvaldsdottir to the circular staves of George Crumb and beyond. - The New York Times
The secret to the sound isn’t merely Steinway’s skilled craftsmen but the specialized wood they use for the soundboards. It comes from the Tongass National Forest in Alaska, and it gives Steinway pianos the highest quality of tone, pitch, clarity and consistency. Unfortunately, a broken promise from the federal government will soon stop the music. - The Wall Street...
Then there was the email, which Fergus McCreadie also thought was spam. "Eventually I think my manager was like 'maybe we should just check in case it is real' and it turned out it was real.” - BBC
“I know after this program that when I walk into an audition room with other Americans, or people from different countries than Germany, that my German is going to be so well-tuned that I will have an advantage.” - NPR
John Fogarty, after a long fight, in January 2023: “This is something I thought would never be a possibility. … After 50 years, I am finally reunited with my songs.” - The Guardian (UK)
The singer-songwriter says her guitar playing got worse - but other people can play the guitar for her. Meanwhile, she thinks her voice improved. - The Guardian (UK)
This summer Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Tyler, the Creator, GloRilla, Lil Baby, Lil Wayne and Wu-Tang Clan have packed arenas, amphitheaters and stadiums in the United States and abroad. - The New York Times
In a now-viral video, Dave Koz and the Summer Horns performed their rendition of Stevie Wonder's "You Haven't Done Nothing" in an impromptu concert amidst a slew of delays, diversions and timed-out staff en route from St. Louis to their next tour stop in Seattle. - ABCNews
“David Bennett, who has served as San Diego Opera’s general director for the past 10 years, will carry on at least through the 2029-30 season. … When Bennett joined the company 10 years ago, its future was in limbo following a near-closure in 2014.” - The San Diego Union-Tribune (MSN)
Nicolas Namoradze’s Neurorecital saw pieces from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier accompanied by images of the performer’s brain activity, allowing an unprecedented peek into the mind of the pianist. - Classical Music
“According to Pew Research Center data, between 2019 and 2023, Black Protestant monthly church attendance fell from 61% to 46% — the largest decline among major U.S. religious groups. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this trend, and its impact is visible in the thinning choir stands.” - AP
At the CheckOut, Access Contemporary Music “aims to put on two or three chamber concerts a week, mostly self-produced. There are incipient plans for a jazz night on Thursday and for cabaret shows to fill the void left when Davenport’s abruptly canceled all its cabarets in April.” - WBEZ (Chicago)
