Japanese researchers proved that mice given heart transplants live longer when they listened to music from Verdi’s opera ‘La Traviata’. The researchers noted in their study, published in the ‘Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery’, that mice who had received cardiac grafts and were exposed to ‘La Traviata’ survived 27 days. Mice exposed to the singer Enya survived only 11 days. For this result, the research team was awarded the prestigious ‘2013 Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine’. According to the organizer’s committee , the ‘Ig Nobel Prizes’ honour achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think.
Marin Alsop
Photo: Grant Leighton
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra musicians agreed yesterday to a new three-year contract that will reverse salary cuts made for the previous contract, which expired Sept. 8. According to the new agreement, at the end of the contract, annual base salary will reach $75,024, which means an 11% increase over the base of $67,600 under the previous contract. Read More →
Der ehemalige Direktor der Wiener Staatsoper, Ioan Holender, bleibt weiterhin Künstlerischer Leiter des ‘Internationalen Musikfestivals George Enesco’. Die Zukunft des Festivals war unsicher, nachdem die Regierung angekündigt hatte, die Subvention von 8 Millionen Euro stark zu kürzen. Nach Medienberichten in Bukarest soll diese Kürzung aber 25% nicht überschreiten, so dass mit einem zwar viel kleineren Budget trotzdem ein Festival im Jahre 2015 stattfinden kann.
Shanghai Concert Hall
Photo: Arata Isozaki & Ass.
The 10th Summit of the Alliance of the Asia Pacific Region Orchestras (AAPRO) will be held in the Museum at the Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, NCPA Mumbai this September between the 19th and 22nd. Main topics at the conference are the relation between national music and the Western art music, the state of Western classical music in India, as well as deep look into China orchestras’ development in recent years. Among those orchestras a special focus is due for the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Read More →
Das ‘Lucerne Festival’ endet an diesem Wochenende mit einer Gesamtauslastung von 94 Prozent und rund 85.000 Besuchern. Dies entspricht 10.000 Besuchern mehr als im Vorjahr und einer Steigerung von 13 Prozent. Das Festival bot vom 16. August bis 15. September unter dem Motto ‘Revolution’ insgesamt rund 130 künstlerische Veranstaltungen, das heißt im Vergleich zum Vorjahr ein größeres Programmangebot bei einer auf einen Monat verkürzten Zeitspanne. 30 der 62 Konzerte waren ausverkauft. Read More →
Christian Budu
Photo: Concours Clara Haskil
Brazilian pianist Christian Budu (*1988) was awarded First Prize (CHF 25’000.-) at the 25th ‘Concours Clara Haskil’. Budu also won the Audience Award and the ‘Coup de Coeur’ Award. Dmitri Mayboroda won the ‘Modern Times Award’ for the best performance of Bruno Mantovani’s worl ‘ The Worst’.
Ray Dolby, who invented some of the technologies that revolutionized film and sound recording, died at age 80 yesterday in San Francisco. Dolby pioneered a noise reduction format called Dolby SR and his company was instrumental in developing surround sound technology. Read More →
Will Humburg
Der Dirigent Will Humburg wird mit Beginn der Spielzeit 2014/15 Nachfolger von Martin Lukas Meister als Generalmusikdirektor am Staatstheater Darmstadt. Read More →
Gavin Bryars
Gavin Bryar’s opera ‘Marilyn Forever’ has its world première today (13/09) in Victoria (British Columbia, Canada). Bryars (*1943), Britain’s leading post-minimalist composer, has composed this new chamber opera on a libretto written by Marilyn Bowering. Read More →
The National Symphony Orchestra of the Greek Radio and Television was established in 1938 and disbanded in June 2013, when the Greek Government closed the Radio and Television Station ERT. The same happened to the Choir and to the Orchestra of Contemporary Music. Since the government proposed a successor organization, New Hellenic Radio, Internet and Television (NERIT)] which was expected but finally failed to launch in August 2013, there is still some hope that the new organization will include musical ensembles. Read More →
