In a depressingly familiar trope, Joseph Horowitz exposes a deliberateness in denying Black and Indigenous composers and musicians their role in America’s classical-music development. - Washington Post
Rather than face the unenviable task of enticing post-pandemic audiences to a substandard hall, Lincoln Center and the Philharmonic will unveil an eagerly awaited, transformed venue almost two years early. - Architectural Record
Vincente Fernández was a "debonair Mexican crooner with the buttery baritone whose romantic rancheras and timeless folk anthems defined the grit and romance of his turbulent homeland and elevated him to a cultural icon for generations of fans throughout Latin America and beyond." - Los Angeles Times
At least, live pop music is seeing its attendance take another dive; some artists estimate that as many as 40 percent of those who have tickets aren't showing up at venues. - The Observer (UK)
Why? "Protesters accused Anna von Hausswolff of playing the 'devil's music.' But the priest who cancelled her planned Paris show said that was wrong." What year is this again? - BBC
"In opera, the external is the internal." 2. "In opera, all speech is dream speech, whether it wants to be or not." 3. "Opera transforms pain into pleasure." Composer Matthew Aucoin, whose Eurydice just finished its run at the Met, explains. - Literary Hub
For the last 12 months (November 2020-October 2021), orchestra ticket revenue is down 67%. This is on par with results for the larger performing arts sector in the U.S. for the same period. - SMU Data Arts
Following a meteoric rise in the '00s, the Mexican tenor suffered more than one vocal crisis, changed repertoire, and finally gave up. But, he says, he retooled his technique during the pandemic and now thinks he's singing better than ever. - The New York Times
Erik Ronmark has spent virtually his entire career with the DSO, having started as a part-time assistant in the music library in 2005. He was named general manager eight years ago and became vice president three years later. - Detroit Free Press
One critic describes Anna von Hausswolff's music as "where post-rock, doom metal, modern classical and high church music all coexist." Her concert at a church in Nantes was called off after protesters chanting Hail Marys blocked the entrance; tonight's performance at Saint-Eustache in Paris is cancelled. - The Guardian
Decades before today’s artificial intelligence pop stars, Auto-Tune and deepfake compositions was Lejaren Hiller’s piece, described by the New York Times in his 1994 obituary as “the first substantial piece of music composed on a computer” – and indeed by a computer. - The Guardian
The 45-year-old German-Ghanaian, now in his final season as chief conductor of the Munich Symphony, joins incoming music director Robert Spano at the FWSO at the start of next season. - The Dallas Morning News
The $7.99-a-month service, called Carnegie Hall+, isn't all, or even mostly, performances at the New York venue itself (where video recording is unusually expensive): viewers will be able to watch archived concerts, operas, and ballets from Salzburg, Bayreuth, and other festivals and halls. - AP
Shawna Lucey has some 15 years of opera and theater experience, having worked at such companies as Santa Fe Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Bolshoi Theater, and Lyric Opera of Kansas City. - San Francisco Classical Voice