As Black and brown musicians, the question is not whether we can “solve” classical music’s issue with racism. Rather we wonder: Why do we try to change a world that isn’t ours? Under that: Can this be our world? And the trickier phrasing: Should it be? - Van
A businessman who made more than £1m selling fake vinyl records was caught after a fan of punk band the Clash complained that the sound quality of an LP he had bought was not as sharp as it should have been. - The Guardian
"Citing rising costs and reduced revenue, the San Diego Opera Tuesday canceled performances of (Zach Redler and Jerre Dye's) The Falling and the Rising, a co-commissioned work originally scheduled to premiere in 2020 but postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic." - Times of San Diego
"Michael Nyman had a lot to do with it, and he was probably thinking of minimalist art like Frank Stella. ... What disturbs me is when I hear younger students talking about minimalism (as a homogenous entity). I tell them, 'Go home and wash your mouth out!'" - San Francisco Classical Voice
"In the third decade of the 21st century, no country on Earth has reinvented the language of the symphony orchestra on such distinctive and locally relevant terms as Iceland has. Perhaps we have the country's sluggish cultural development to thank for that." - The Guardian
Norman Lebrecht: "Bernstein was music director for a record 11 years. His successors were doomed by comparison. Pierre Boulez was too ascetic, Zubin Mehta superficial, Kurt Masur heavy weather, Lorin Maazel boring, Alan Gilbert half-baked and Jaap Van Zweden an accounting error." - The Critic
"After spending more than 20 years in public behind shiny, opaque robot-style helmets as half of the pathbreaking dance-music duo Daft Punk, Thomas Bangalter was ready to be seen without barriers." - The New York Times
In 2019, Spotify claimed that 40,000 tracks were added each day to its platform. And by 2021, the number increased to 60,000. But last September, the CEOs of two major labels made the staggering claim that 100,000 songs were now getting released each day. - Ted Gioia
One librettist says, ""Opera just lends itself so well to Black stories because of its epicness, ... because of its fantastical ability to show the wonder and the power of such big feelings." - CBC
The story of the band Blood, Sweat & Tears' 1970 tour of Eastern bloc countries is bizarre, and sobering, a new documentary shows. "This isn’t a music doc, it’s a political thriller. ... It’s about a group of guys who unknowingly walked into this rat’s nest." - The New York Times
Bring on the metadata! "There feels like a genuine affection for the music in Apple Music Classical. ... But there are also just a lot of ways to find the music." - The Verge
In a recent survey, 71% of 2,000 participants reported that music was the strongest influence on their mood and almost 75% regularly listened to music to cheer themselves up. - The Conversation
"When the curtain comes down on the Music Venue Trust’s (MVT) #OwnOurVenues fundraising drive, it is expected to have raised close to £2.2m, a hemi-demi-semiquaver away from the £2.5m that it set out to achieve." - The Guardian (UK)
The Apollo Theater was hosting four heavy metal bands - meaning the audience and bands may not have heard the sirens - before the roof collapsed in on the venue on Friday night. - Variety
