Anne Midgette, the former longtime classical music critic at the Washington Post, declined an honorary doctorate from the higher education institution and withdrew as keynote speaker at the commencement ceremony on May 20. - The Plain Dealer
Spotify, the largest audio streaming business, recently took down about 7 percent of the tracks that had been uploaded by Boomy, the equivalent of “tens of thousands” of songs, according to a person familiar with the matter. - Ars Technica
"Based on Gogol's short story 'The Terrible Revenge,' the opera (by composer Yevhen Stankovych) was directed by Andreas Weirich. ... 'We did some of the rehearsals in the bomb shelter,' he said. 'At times there were four air raid sirens a day – it became a new normal.'" - The Guardian
For as long as there has been music, there has been the practice of “contrafact,” the use of another song’s chord progression to create a new song. Every 12-bar blues song ever written sits on the chord progression I – I – I – I – IV – IV – I – I – V – IV – I...
"I am not resistant to progress, not a Luddite, not an anti-vaxxer. But putting the whole of classical music onto a device that fits into the palm of my hand feels like a devaluation of civilisation." - The Critic
"His appointment on a five-year contract (beginning in 2024) was announced Tuesday. The 52-year-old (conductor and composer) had not led the orchestra or been to Kansas City until arriving for rehearsals two days ahead of concerts from March 3-5." - AP
One of the major projects Ben Hartley will take on as executive director is the first national tour of “American Railroad." The multimodal project will explore the interconnected stories of Black, Chinese, Indigenous, Irish and other immigrant contributions to the U.S. transcontinental railroad. - WBUR
Every piano has a noticeably different “character” of sound. It’s the kind of thing you might think you need training to hear, but then when you’re in the room hearing a pair of pianos, it’s glaringly clear to any ear. - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"Stuart Murphy, who steps down later this year, said three potential bases would be selected by the end of May and a winner chosen by the end of this year, ... (and) that Bristol, Birmingham and Nottingham were also in the running." - The Guardian
The opera is based on the memoir of Omar Ibn Said, a scholar who was abducted in Senegal in 1807 and sold into slavery in Charleston, where it premiered last year at Spoleto Festival USA. Finalists were Tyshawn Sorey's Monochromatic Light (Afterlife) and Jerrilynn Patton's Perspective. - The Post and Courier (Charleston)
“Can we live without the phone for just one damn hour?” he asked. He went on to point out that the audience had paid money for a certain kind of experience, and that phones could wait. - Philadelphia Inquirer
"Remixing maypole dancing is just one of the myriad ways that English folk culture is currently having a reboot, thanks to a new wave of switched-on folkies diversifying the scene." - BBC
You wouldn't know it from Adele, true, but "according to acoustic scientists at the University of Oldenburg in Germany, lead singers have been getting quieter over the years." - NPR
Beloved children's author Mo Willems, who is bringing a Pigeon opera to the Kennedy Center, says children's lit and opera have commonalities, including big emotions. "It’s direct communication. It’s interior dialogue. It’s self-discovery. And both forms really have been pushed off to the side." - The New York Times
"The Dream Journey aims to promote traditional, Sufi-style music, the popularity of which has declined in recent decades" due to the spread of militant, severe brands of Islamism. "Their channel has amassed over 36 million views and 169,000 followers, and has launched several careers." - The Christian Science Monitor
