Vladimir Putin has awarded his loyal friend Valery Gergiev with the Russian State Prize for Outstanding Humanitarian Achievements. Valery Gergiev recently conducted the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra in the Syrian city of Palmyra, an event which, according to Putin « caused an unprecedented emotional response around the world ».

Vienna Philharmonic's Refugee house

The Philharmonic Refugee House in St. Aegyd, an initiative of the Vienna Philharmonic, has been officially opened. The house has three apartments as well as a large meeting room « in which also the local population is invited to seek contact with the families of the house ». Read More →

Soprano Andrea Anelli, founder and co-director of Opera Per Tutti, rebranded in Cleveland Opera Theater in 2014, has resigned, citing an untenable situation at the company. The board of directors has appointed Scott Skiba, the company’s artistic director, to succeed her with the new title of executive artistic director.

The Baroque Youth Orchestra of Andalusia has cancelled all the concerts for this year due to the lack of finances. The 25 musicians are thinking about a protest concert to draw attention to their situation.

Ulf Schirmer
(c) Oper Leipzig / K.Nijhof

Ulf Schirmer, der seit 2011 Intendant der Oper Leipzig ist, blickt stolz auf seine erste Amtszeit zurück, in der die Besucherzahlen von 154.516 (2011/12) auf 175.300 (2015/16) gesteigert wurden. Für 2016 werden 182.000 Besucher erwartet. Read More →

The police in Moscow has arrested a 23-year-old trumpeter, who is accused for having vandalized no less than 100 escalators in the subway of the Russian capital. The young man is a student at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory.

A rainstorm flooded the basement of the headquarters of the National Orchestra in Lille, France, Tuesday night. Miraculously, the auditorium was not affected. Yesterday, the technical team continued to pump water from corridors, instrument rooms, and dressing rooms. Most of the instruments had been evacuated before any damage could occur.

Weil er das Jahresbudget 2015 um 1,3 Millionen Euro überzogen hat und für 2016 liegt das Defizit aktuell ebenfalls bei 1,3 Millionen liegt, hat die Stadt Trier dem Intendanten seines Theaters, Karl Sibelius, die Macht über de Finanzen des Hauses entzogen. Sibelius ist nicht mehr befugt, Geschäfte allein abzuschließen. Read More →

In der Folge von Sparmaßnahmen an italienischen Opernhäusern und damit einhergehenden Entlassungen von Mitarbeitern kam es zu vielen Prozessen, die wiederum Unsummen von den Sparhaushalten auffraßen. Nun kommt es schlimmer: ein Urteil des Verfassungsgerichtshofs in Rom entschied, dass die Entlassung Hunderter Mitarbeiter rechtswidrig sei. Allein am Opernhaus von Bari klagen 181 entlassene Mitarbeiter, und 21 davon haben bereits vor Gericht Recht bekommen. Read More →

Bernard Haitink

The Orchestra Mozart Orchestra, created in Bologna by Claudio Abbado in 2004, will resume concert activities on January 6, 2017 after three years of silence. It will play a concert at Bologna’s Auditorium Manzoni, conducted by Bernard Haitink, with violinist Isabelle Faust as soloists. The same concert will take place on the 8th in Lugano (LAC – Lugano Art and Culture).