Not wanting to be complicit in Donald Trump’s words and actions, the remaining 16 members of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities resigned in protest last Friday. The letter they sent the POTUS provides a damning verdict on his political action and calls him to resign.

Here is the full text of this letter which is worthwhile to be read and shared. Read More →

Das Ehepaar Trump werde nicht an der Verleihung der Kennedy-Center-Auszeichnungen im Dezember teilnehmen, teilte das Weiße Haus mit. Read More →

Alberto Ferro
(c) Remy Franck

In Vevey, Switzerland, the jury of the Clara Haskil Competition (Anne Queffélec, Elza Kolodin, Marc Pantillon, Christian Zacharias among others) has selected the candidates for the semi-finals. Read More →

Mit der 28. Aufführung der Bizet-Oper Carmen enden am Sonntag die Bregenz Festspiele. Die Oper wird dann eine Besucherauslastung von 100 Prozent erreicht haben. Rund 200.000 Personen haben ein Ticket für ‘Carmen’ gekauft. Insgesamt werden voraussichtlich rund 261.992 Gäste die Bregenzer Festspiele 2017 besucht haben. Nur im Jahr 2014 kamen mehr Menschen zu dem 1946 gegründeten Sommerfestival am Bodensee.

Gustavo Dudamel

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has furiously attacked conductor Gustavo Dudamel yesterday in a TV statement. After the open letters of Dudamel criticizing the Maduro government, Maduro said « Welcome to politics, Gustavo Dudamel. But act with ethics, and don’t let yourself be deceived into attacking the architects of this beautiful movement of young boys and girls », speaking of course of El Sistema. Maduro said, Dudamel had betrayed the socialist government and El Sistema as well.

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YuMi
(c) ABB

On September 12 Lucca Philharmonic will play under the baton of YuMi, a humanoid robot manufactured by ABB, a Swiss company specializing in new technologies. The concert will take place in Pisa, Italy, at the end of an International Robotics Festival. The gala will feature Andrea Bocelli and the soprano Maria Luigia Borsi.

Teodor Currentzis
(c) Anton Zavjyalov

Teodor Currentzis, the artistic director of the Perm Opera in Russia, is upset about the cost of concert tickets in Moscow. The Greek-Russian conductor told the agency RIA Novosti that he cannot buy tickets for his concerts in Moscow, because they cost more than, for example, tickets to his performances at the festival in Salzburg.

Lithuanian police began a pre-trial investigation of the activities of a concert organizer. This man, cited as Eddie Rivera, apparently announced concerts with José Carreras, Philippe Jaroussky, Elina Garanca and many more, sold tickets and later cancelled the concerts without returning the money.

Gintaras Rinkevicius

The Liepaja Symphony Orchestra has hired Lithuanian conductor Gintaras Rinkevicius (*1960) as Music Director and successor to Atvars Lakstigala, who held this position since 2010. Read More →

Dan Ettinger

Dan Ettinger, 46, has been named Music Director of the Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv and will succeed Daniel Oren in January 2018. The Israeli born conductor is Generalmusikdirektor in Stuttgart, Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Israel Symphony Orchestra (since September 2005) and Chief Conductor of the Tokyo Philharmonic.