Concorso Internazionale Musica Sacra 2015, the most important competition dedicated to sacred music, announced that the finals will take place in Rome from the 3-7 November, the Gala Concert being broadcast worldwide by Vatican Channel Tele Pace and Vatican Radio. Read More →

Thomas Quasthoff
(c) Harald Hoffmann / DG

Today Thomas Quasthoff makes his international conducting debut at the Verbier Festival , in Bach’s ‘St Matthew Passion’, streamed live worldwideby Medici TV. Quasthoff, who retired from his career as one of the world’s foremost bass-baritones in 2012, conducts the Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra, and is joined by tenor Mark Padmore (Evangelist), baritone Manuel Walser (Jesus), soprano Christiane Karg, mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink, tenor Mauro Peter, and bass-baritone Christopher Maltman, the RIAS Kammerchor and the children’s voices of La Schola de Sion.

In Deutschland wurde ein bundesweiter Unterstützerkreis für den Geiger Stefan Arzberger gegründet, der in die Fänge der bekannterweise undurchsichtigen und als ausländerfeindlich bekannten US-Justiz geraten ist. Read More →

Giacomo Puccini

An einem länderübergreifenden Opernabend zeigt das SWR Fernsehen, in einem gemeinsamen Projekt mit ORF 2, SRF zwei und 3sat, am 24. Juli um 21 Uhr Puccinis letzte Oper ‘Turandot’ live von den Bregenzer Festspielen. Vor und hinter der Seebühne moderieren Max Moor (SWR), Barbara Rett (ORF) und Nicole Salathé (SRF) aus zahlreichen Perspektiven. Das SWR Fernsehen präsentiert an diesem Abend – wie der Österreichische Rundfunk und das Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen – Marco Arturo Marellis Neuinszenierung in besonderer Art und Weise: die schönsten Momente auf der Bühne und die spannendsten Ereignisse hinter den Kulissen. Read More →

Could this make opera even more attractive? This summer, at the Avignon Festival, Atos, an international company in digital services, presented their multilingual augmented-reality surtitling solution through connected glasses. Read More →

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Die Stiftung Mozarteum konnte mit Unterstützung einer privaten Spenderin ein umfangreiches Mozart-Autograph erwerben. Es handelt sich dabei nicht um eine Komposition Mozarts, sondern um die Abschrift eines Werkes von Eugenio di Ligniville durch Wolfgang und Leopold Mozart. Die kleinformatige Handschrift (17 x 22 cm) mit 12 beschriebenen Seiten befand sich im Privatbesitz. Read More →

Oliver Knussen
(c) Mark Allan/BBC

This year, visa problems made necessary a large number of casting changes in the in the United States. A normally difficult situation became worse by the failure of the Homeland Security’s computer system. Now, the Boston Globe reported that British composer and conductor Oliver Knussen has been forced to cancel his appearance at the Festival of Contemporary Music in Tanglewood where he was to conduct a memorial program in honour of the composer Gunther Schuller, on Thursday evening. He will be replaced by two conductors, Jonathan Berman and Stefan Asbury.

The Beijing International Music Competition Cancelled its Violin Competition due to « serious financial difficulties ». The organizers said: « BJIMC is the only independently-managed, all subjects music competition with great importance and influence in China. The governmental reform on cultural activities are inevitably beneficial in a long run however, this leads us into financial plight. » The cello competition is still scheduled to proceed from 9 to 16 September.

Robert Spano
(c) Atlanta Symphony

The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra announced a surplus for its 2014/2015 season, without giving exact figures. It’s the first time since the 2003/04 season that operating revenues exceeded expenses. The ASO also announced that its Musicians’ Endowment Campaign has already reached $13.3 million toward its $25 million goal in just seven months. This restricted fund will endow musicians’ salaries and benefits in perpetuity and restore 11 positions to the Orchestra’s complement.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin
Photo: Marco Borggreve

In Baden-Baden fand jetzt erneut die Baden-Baden-Gala statt. Im Festspielhaus wurde in zwei konzertanten Vorstellungen Mozarts ‘Le Nozze di Figaro’ aufgeführt. Alain Steffen war bei der zweiten Vorstellung am 19. Juli für Pizzicato dabei. Read More →