The Memphis Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director Mei-Ann Chen (41) will not renew her contract in 2016. She has this function since 2010 and the announcement of her withdrawal comes at a time where the orchestra is in financial difficulties. The MSO’s board and administration will form a search committee to find a new music director.

Das erfolgreiche Deutschland-weite Musikvermittlungs-Projekt der ARD wird fortgesetzt: Nach dem erfolgreichen Start im vergangenen Jahr mit dem ‘Dvorak-Experiment – Ein ARD-Konzert macht Schule’ geht die gemeinsame Edukationsarbeit aller Landesrundfunkanstalten in Kooperation mit dem Deutschen Musikrat nun mit dem ‘Gershwin-Experiment’ in die nächste Runde. Read More →

Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphonien Nr. 6 & 8; Beethoven Orchester Bonn, Stefan Blunier; 1 CD MDG 937 1883-6; o.A. (69'13) – Rezension von Remy Franck

Bei dieser CD sieht es folgendermassen aus:
1. Wer die Symphonien Nr. 6 und 8 in guten Interpretationen besitzt, braucht diese Neueinspielung nicht.
2. Wer die beiden Werke unbedingt mit dem Beethoven-Orchester Bonn hören will, wird nicht enttäuscht. Read More →

British Violinist Rachel Podger (*1968) has been awarded the 2015 Royal Academy of Music Bach Prize. The £10,000 prize is given annually to an individual ‘who has made an outstanding contribution to the performance and/or scholarly study of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach’. Read More →

The National Symphony Orchestra and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington announced today that Christoph Eschenbach (74) will not extend his position as Music Director after the conclusion of the 2016-2017 season. He will then have completed seven seasons as Music Director and an additional season as Music Director Designate. Read More →

First the Arts Council England strangulated the English National Opera with severe cuts, and now it seems to have turned around when announcing special funding arrangement for the organization. However this means that ENO is not part of the ACE’s National portfolio of organizations for 2015-18.
The special funding arrangement with ENO will run for two years and ill allow the Arts Council to work closely with the company as they review their business models and governance and to set rigorous milestones to monitor their progress. Entry to the portfolio at a later date will be possible, but will depend on the extent of progress made.

I can’t hide from our readers the title chosen by ResMusica’s critic for a concert with the Bolivar Orchestra and Gustavo Dudamel: « Dudamel, the King of the Noise in Paris ». Read here the entire review and the critic’s lament that this noisy music has, unfortunately, a contagious effect on the audience.

Crescendo, Pizzicato and ResMusica, three foremost Internet Magazines about classical music and members of the International Classical Music Awards (ICMA), will not review the inaugural concert of the Philharmonie de Paris on 15 and 16 January due to a shortage of seats for the press. According to ResMusica’s different sources of information, « the number of paid tickets is very limited, in order to make room for officials and guests. Read More →

Naxos announced the worldwide launch of its high-definition and lossless classical music streaming service. It is the first such service to launch worldwide and use adaptive bitrate streaming technology. ClassicsOnline HD•LL allows subscribers to listen to classical music at the highest possible sound quality available on their home or mobile networks without buffering or loss of signal. The new platform also provides high-definition, lossless, and MP3 download options. Read More →

While examining people with absolute pitch, researchers at the Zurich University have detected a close link between two brain regions. In a news release by the University’s media desk, it is said that intensive research is being conducted at the University of Zurich’s Department of Neuropsychology with people who have ‘absolute pitch’ and, thus, are able to identify notes immediately without relying on a reference tone. Read More →