American pianist Joseph Banowetz died on 3 July at the age of 87, the University of North Texas announced. Banowetz was teaching at this University. Banowetz studied first in New York City with Carl Friedberg, a pupil of Clara Schumann. He continued his studies at the Vienna Akademie für Musik und Darstellende Kunst. He played as recitalist and orchestral soloist on five continents. He published several books and made a lot of recordings.
Staatsoper Hamburg
(c) Westermann
Von Anfang Juli bis Mitte August nutzt die Hamburgische Staatsoper die spielfreie Zeit für Sanierungs- und Modernisierungsarbeiten, teilte die Hamburger Baubehörde mit. Read More →
René Pape
German bass René Pape has now published a new statement on his Facebook page, following the one with homophobe comments over the Met participation at New York’s Gay Pride. He says that he is sorry, of course, and that his comments can be explained by his education in the GDR/DDR and his alcoholism. His statement is, in a way, terribly honest and courageous. It shows that he definitely needs help. But it can’t let forget what he said. Read More →
Débora Waldman
Israeli-Brazilian conductor Debora Waldman’s contract as Music Director of the Orchestre National Avignon-Provence has been extended until 2026. The first woman to head a permanent French national orchestra, she took up her position on September 1, 2020 for an initial period of three years.
The homophobe comments by René Pape (see underneath) have engendered many negative reactions. Now, the Berlin State Opera is reacting too. On their Facebook page they qualified the Pape comments as ‘intolerable’. Read More →
Johanna Rosa Falkinger
(c) Theresa-Pewal
The Aria Borealis Bodø Early Music Singing Competition has announced the winners of the competition’s first edition, which took place in the Norwegian city Bodø just north of the Arctic Circle. Austrian soprano Johanna Rosa Falkinger won no less than five prizes. Read More →
Javier Perianes
(c) Josep Molina
This August sees the launch of a multi-year project from Sydney Symphony Orchestra in collaboration with Spanish pianist Javier Perianes. Beginning with Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto, Perianes, Artist of the Year at the 2019 International Classical Music Awards, will perform all five of Beethoven’s Piano Concertos across a multi-season engagement. Read More →
Beethoven-Denkmal in Bonn
Das wegen Korrosion und undichter Stellen restaurierte Beethoven-Denkmal steht wieder auf seinem Sockel auf dem Münsterplatz in Bonn.Das tonnenschwere historische Monument des in Bonn geborenen Komponisten (1770-1827) war Anfang des Jahres demontiert und danach restauriert worden. Read More →
Das grosse Festspielhaus in Salzburg
Die Salzburger Festspiele trennen sich vom dem Unternehmen Solway, dem Verbindungen zum Kreml nachgesagt werden. Außerdem gibt es Vorwürfe gegen Solway wegen einer Nickelmine in Guatemala. Die Festspiele verzichten damit auf Sponsorengelder in Höhe von 150.000 Euro. Eine bereits geleistete Zahlung wurde angeblich zurückerstattet.
A fire at Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s estate and museum in Lyubensk has caused huge damage, destroying thousands of artefacts belonging to the composer. Rimsky-Korsakov died in 1908 in the burned down house which he had purchased as a home for his children. The fire is said to have been started due to “the negligence of builders” who were repairing the roof of the museum.
