Death of a legendary opera director
Renowned for his Wagner Ring cycle at the Met and countless thoughtful productions in Europe, the Viennese opera director OttoSchenk died today at his Austrian lake house, at the age of 94. Schenk was still […]
classical music
LA Phil shuts down in firestorm
The orchestra has cancelled concerts until after the weekend due to the fires raging around Los Angeles. The events cancelled are a celebrity recital by Igor Levit and a Cody Fry concert with the Hollyhwood […]
Beethoven’s local is sold to Wise
The Viennese emporium of Doblinger, where Beethoven bought his music paper, has been sold to the UK-based multinational publisher Wise Music Group. Doblinger Musikverlag was a late add-on to the family’s general music business. Founded […]
Paris replaces Wotan with director’s husband
We hear that the French star Ludovic Tézier has withdrawn from rehearsals and from the first night of the Bastille Opera’s new Rheinegold. He has flu. He is to be replaced by the Scottish bass-baritone […]
Karajan’s Japan protege, RIP
We regret to inform you that Professor Shiozawa Yasuhiko (real name: Iiyoshi Yasuhiko, conductor, professor emeritus at Tokyo College of Music, and honorary conductor of the Tokyo Symphonic Orchestra) passed away on January 7, 2025, […]
Mozart was not Austrian
Bavarian Radio is claiming him as a local lad, whose family spoke German with a strong Swabian accent. The Mozarts lived in Augsburg from the 15th century: there is a plaque in the Fuggerei housing […]
Bryn Terfel: This may be my last role at the Met
The Welsh bass-baritone is back at the Metropolitan Opera after an absence of 13 years, singing Scarpia in Tosca before quitting the role for good. Terfel, 59, informed the NY Times that he had no […]
Death of an international Israeli pianist
We have learned of the passing of the versatile Israeli artist Ilan Rogoff, at the age of 81. Tel Aviv born, he moved to South America in the 1980s, settling in Mallorca, Spain, from 1991. […]
Great result: 1 in 2 Czechs can name a classical composer
From our Prague partners, OperaPlus: Almost half of Czechs cannot name any classical music composer. Most cited are Wolfgang Amadeo Mozart and Bedrich Smetana. That sounds like a great result. We’d be surprised if 1 […]
“Souvenir de Posen” from the wonderful Meccore String Quartet
Here we have another recording of the wonderful Meccore String Quartet, featuring playing of consummate refinement. I am not familiar with these works, and if the music isn’t the most engrossing I’ve heard from this […]
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