Riccardo Chailly
(c) Teatro alla Scala

Italian conductor Riccardo Chailly had to undergo surgery due to a sudden illness and therefore cannot conduct the three concerts on August 11, 12 and 16 as part of Lucerne Festival. This was announced today by the festival management. Therefore, there will be a reshuffle at the conductor’s podium for the first three concerts of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra. Paavo Järvi and Andrés Orozco-Estrada could be won for the musical direction of these concerts.

Carl Davis
(c) carldaviscollection

American film composer Carl Davis died today at the age of 86. A consummate allround-musician, Carl Davis is widely known in many spheres of international music-making. Born in New York in 1936, he studied composition with Paul Nordoff and Hugo Kauder, and subsequently with Per Nørgaard in Copenhagen. His early work in the USA provided valuable conducting experience with organizations such as New York City Opera and the Robert Shaw Chorale. Read More →

Leonard Bernstein
(c) Deutsche Grammophon Arthur Umboh

The Venice Film Festival announced its planned lineup, which is scheduled to run August 30 to September 9. Maestro, a drama about Leonard Bernstein, will be premiered at the festival and be among the 23 movies competing for the Golden Lion, the festival’s main prize. The film, directed by Bradley Cooper, stars Cooper as Leonard Bernstein and Carey Mulligan as Felicia Montealegre Bernstein.

Maria Callas
(c) Farabola

The Greek National Opera in Athens is commemorating the Maria Callas centenary with an opera gala, an exhibition and a documentary film, among other events. The opera gala Callas at the Herodium takes place on 16 September, the anniversary of Maria Callas’ death in 1977, featuring performances by sopranos Anna Pirozzi, Catherine Foster, Vassiliki Karayanni and Nina Minasyan, accompanied by the Orchestra of the Greek National Opera under the baton of Philippe Auguin. Read More →

Early music ensemble Le Banquet Céleste has announced Damien Guillon’s decision to step down as artistic director in spring 2024. Read More →

The Taliban’s religious police made a bonfire of music instruments in the western province of Herat (Afghanistan), as disclosed in a report by the state-run news agency Bakhtar. Read More →

Armenian conductor Sergey Smbatyan, 35, has been arrested in his home country together with his father, former Armenian ambassador to Israel Armen Smbatyan, and stands accused of fraud against the state. Read More →

Die diesjährigen Sommerfestspiele in Erl sind beendet. Die Auslastung sei gut gewesen, sagt der Veranstalter: Vier ausverkaufte Abende, über 80% Auslastung bei den Opern und Konzerten und mehr als 14.000 Gäste durften im Sommer begrüßt werden. Read More →

Der Internationale Musikwettbewerb der ARD findet vom 28. August bis 15. September 2023  in den Fächern Harfe, Kontrabass, Klaviertrio und Viola statt. Eingeschrieben sind 41 Harfen, 52 Kontrabässe, 50 Bratschen und 19 Trios. Es sind viele Länder und alle Kontinente vertreten, aber die Asiaten scheinen ganz klar zu dominieren.

The latest Karajan Community Letter focuses on the operetta Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss. Another topic is the Canadian tenor Jon Vickers with whom Karajan worked a lot. Here is the link to this week’s Karajan Read More →