ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

MUSIC

A New Jazz Club Model In Pricey Seattle?

In pricey, increasingly corporate Seattle, the Fellowship venue represents a conspicuously unlucrative exercise. Its modest 48-seat layout and limited wine and beer bar give way to the room’s centerpiece: a Kawai grand piano. There are no tables. There is no greenroom. Tickets run a recommended donation of $20, regardless of who’s performing. - The New York Times

Soprano Storms Onstage To Demand End To Colleague’s Encore

The celebrated soprano Angela Gheorghiu, who was singing the title role in a performance on Sunday, stormed onstage and demanded that he stop, according to local media reports and accounts by audience members. - The New York Times

Exploring The Dudamel Phenomenon

Not since Leonard Bernstein has a conductor done as much as Dudamel to make classical music accessible — or so thoroughly captured the public imagination. The two maestros share a not just persuasive but borderline evangelical approach to relentlessly promoting music as a “fundamental human right." - Billboard

Cincinnati Symphony Concert Series Goes Immersive And Interactive

"Still largely experimental, (CSO Proof concerts) might include elements of dance, lighting, theater and atmosphere to accompany a short program of classical music. The goal is to … engage audiences who might never have considered going to the symphony or even to Music Hall." - Cincinnati Business Courier

Astral Artists, Philadelphia’s Agency For Budding Classical Stars, Is Shutting Down

"Astral Artists, the small but important Philadelphia arts group that has boosted careers and fostered artistic development of classical musicians nationally, is shutting down. ... The group will produce two more concerts this fall, set the musicians from its current roster on a path, and then close its doors." - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)

Philadelphia Orchestra To Tour To China For Record 13th Time

"After scrapping its 50th anniversary tour of China in 2023, the Philadelphia Orchestra is picking up where it left off. The full ensemble will travel to China later this month — its 13th visit, the most of any American orchestra." - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)

Can Opera Ever Be Widely Popular Again? (And What Would It Look Like?)

“We can’t dumb down the audience. We have to continue as composers of opera in the 21st century to move people, and you don’t do that by forcing in things that don’t naturally fit into the story. Once you get didactic, that’s it. You’ve lost them.” - Salon

The Acoustics At David Geffen Hall: Did $550 Million Fix The Problems?

"By gutting and rebuilding the interior (of the New York Philharmonic's home), the project was meant to break, once and for all, the acoustical curse that had plagued the hall for decades. … So, after two years and more than 270 concerts, how does the hall sound?" - The New York Times

San Antonio Philharmonic Turmoil: Two Rival Boards Suing Each Other

The organization itself has filed a case against two former board members who led a schism of the group into rival factions. Those two are suing the orchestra's executive director and acting board chair, demanding monetary damages and the court's formal decision as to which board faction is legitimate. - San Antonio Report

The Atlanta Opera, Bucking Trends, Is Doing Quite Well

Not to say there isn’t trouble brewing, particularly with its unions, but the opera’s numbers, and budget, have been on an upward trajectory for a while. - The New York Times

The Met Opera Just Extended Yannick Nezet-Seguin’s Contract. Should It Have?

When he was first named as the next music director back in 2018, the Met asserted that he would conduct a minimum of five operas per season. What are we to make of this seemingly diminished conducting commitment? - Parterre Box

Little Of The Money In Music Is Flowing To Musicians, Says Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour

Gilmour: “The music industry is a tough one these days, and for people who are recording in it, the rewards are not justifiable. The rich and the powerful have siphoned off the majority of this money.” - The Guardian (UK)

The Glass Timpani

On stage in DC: Two timpanists, seventeen timpani: “Rhythmic and melodic material is split between the two soloists — each surrounded by drums and navigating the placement and tuning of each note.” - Washington Post

Your Next Playlist: Music Of The Street In San Francisco’s Mission District

The Bop Spotter project uses a microphone to surreptitiously and constantly record a street in the historically Latino neighborhood. Making use of a public Wi-Fi network and Shazam’s song-identifying software, Bop Spotter identifies the songs it hears and generates a public, ever-expanding list of the street’s music. - SFGate

Has Music Software Made Music Worse?

"Pro Tools, as a sort of way of making music, on some level, has levelled the playing field that allowed people who can’t sing to sound like they can sing. And people who can’t play guitar now sound like they can.” - MusicTech

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