Boston Symphony Plans Europe Tour with Andris Nelsons
Boston Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Andris Nelsons announced an eight‑city European tour for March 2027, marking their eighth and final collaboration abroad. The itinerary includes London, Hamburg, Luxembourg and Paris, with a debut three‑night run at London’s Barbican Centre. Guest pianist Lang Lang will join the orchestra for three of the four stops, performing Beethoven’s Piano Concertos 1 and 2 in honor of the composer’s 200th death anniversary. The program also features Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony and Stravinsky’s three landmark ballets.
Friends Call Me Max
Sir Simon Rattle, the renowned British conductor, was awarded the Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art on May 7, 2026 in Munich. The honor was presented by Bavarian Minister‑President Markus Söder, who highlighted Rattle’s decades‑long influence on the global music...
Just In: Jerusalem Quartet Changes Violist
During its 30th anniversary season, the Jerusalem Quartet announced the appointment of Alexander Gordon Zemtsov as its new permanent violist, succeeding interim players Mathis Rochat and Alexander Gordon. The ensemble’s recent program featured a Shostakovich cycle, Beethoven’s Op. 130 with the...
Dorothy’s Orchestra to Tour Amsterdam, Hamburg, Berlin
The Kansas City Symphony has secured engagements at three of Europe’s most prestigious halls—Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie, and Berlin’s Philharmonie—scheduled for late August 2026. Conductor Matthias Pintscher will lead the ensemble through a program that blends American classics by Copland, Tchaikovsky’s...
Just In: NY Phil Launches Youth Choir From Dudamel Playbook
The New York Philharmonic has launched a Philharmonic Youth Choir in partnership with The Unsung Collective and the Abyssinian Baptist Church, targeting students in grades 5‑8 across the city. Nearly 30 participants from 17 schools will perform a free concert...
Rising South African Soprano Is Dead at 32
South African soprano Khayakazi Madlala died unexpectedly at age 32, prompting a heartfelt statement from Cape Town Opera. Madlala, a native of Matatiele, had risen quickly in the operatic world, earning a debut at London’s Royal Opera House last year as the...
London Artists Agency Opens Creative Studio
Knight Classical, a London‑based artists agency, has launched a new Creative Studio that bundles production, branding, digital marketing and audience‑engagement services for classical musicians and arts organisations. The studio offers everything from web design and video production to visual identity...
Claim of the Day: All Finns Watch Classical Concerts
Finnish Radio extended British conductor Nicholas Collon's contract and reported that 4.3 million viewers tuned in to Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra concerts in 2025. With Finland’s total population at roughly 5.7 million, the outlet suggested that almost every Finn watches classical concerts....
Diva Employs AI on New Videos
Bulgarian‑Swiss soprano Sonya Yoncheva has debuted IÇON, a series of AI‑augmented video singles featuring arias by Bellini and Donizetti. The videos were shot in a theatre with more than 120 on‑stage participants, and the AI studio required an additional twelve...
Apply Now: Indy Seeks New Boss
The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra’s Board announced that CEO James Johnson will step down on June 20, ending an eight‑year tenure. The departure aligns with the close of the orchestra’s classical season. The board will launch a nationwide search for a permanent...
John Williams Composes Bye-Bye Dudamel Fanfare
The Los Angeles Philharmonic announced a surprise addition to its June 4 program: a new fanfare titled “Bravo Gustavo!” composed by legendary film scorer John Williams. The short, trumpet‑focused piece will be performed under the baton of Music & Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel, celebrating...
Boston Globe to Boston Symphony Board: Stop Digging
The Boston Globe’s front‑page editorial slammed the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s board for alienating donors after it announced the 2025 departure of Grammy‑winning conductor Andris Nelsons. The board’s subsequent memo promised “massive” new philanthropy, yet fundraising has stalled and patron support...
Piano Star Has ‘Unexpected Surgery’
The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra announced that pianist Alice Sara Ott will miss this week’s concerts after undergoing a minor, unexpected surgery. Ticket holders who are dissatisfied with the substitute program will receive full refunds. Ott, who publicly disclosed her multiple sclerosis diagnosis...
Boston Globe Deletes Two Hostile BSO Quotes
The Boston Globe’s latest print edition omitted two anonymous, critical quotes about the Boston Symphony Orchestra that had appeared online. One quote came from a board advisor questioning the accusatory tone of an internal memo, and the other from a...
Alastair Macaulay: Song Competitions Can Be the Death of Art
In his latest column, critic Alastair Macaulay reviews five notable UK performances from April 2026, ranging from the Kathleen Ferrier vocal competition to new stage adaptations of classic works. He lauds baritone Hector Bloggs’s versatile win at the Ferrier Awards...
How Boston Fell to Barbarians
The Boston Symphony Orchestra abruptly dismissed its music director, a move the author describes as unprecedented given the musicians' unanimous support. The board blamed declining attendance and financial pressures, yet the orchestra holds a $700 million endowment that could sustain operations...
Famed NY Bassist, 67
Renowned jazz bassist Kiyoshi Kitagawa, longtime collaborator with pianist Kenny Barron, died unexpectedly at 67. Born in Osaka, Kitagawa moved to the United States in 1988 and became a fixture of New York’s jazz scene. He performed and recorded with...
A Queer Fledermaus? Vienna Hooks a Eurovision Winner
The Vienna Volksoper is launching a Pride edition of Johann Strauss II’s operetta Die Fledermaus, featuring Tom Neuwirth—better known as Eurovision‑winning drag star Conchita Wurst—in the comic role of Frosch. Director Lotte de Beer says the casting underscores a commitment to questioning gender...
Salzburg Festival Advertises Its Top Jobs
The Salzburg Festival is advertising its two highest‑level positions – president and artistic director – with openings slated for October 2027. The ads follow the controversial removal of artistic director Markus Hinterhäuser and aim to project a transparent hiring process. Interim...
Opera Mourns a Monumental German Artist
German painter‑sculptor Georg Baselitz died at 88, prompting tributes from the opera world. Baselitz, whose work was shaped by post‑modernists Jackson Pollock and Philip Guston, created striking stage designs for two landmark productions. In 1993 he designed the set for Harrison Birtwistle’s *Punch...
Sir Roger Wright Declares
Sir Roger Wright, former head of BBC Radio 3, the Proms and Britten Pears Arts, announced he will step down as CEO of the Rothschild Foundation in October 2026 upon turning 70. Wright has overseen the foundation’s arts‑grantmaking portfolio for several years,...
‘Rachmaninoff Said My Sound Had the Wrong Colour’
Centenarian pianist Ruth Slenczynska, the last living pupil of Sergei Rachmaninoff, died at 101, closing a direct link to the composer’s teaching legacy. In a newly published interview, she recalled Rachmaninoff’s core lesson that every piano note must possess its own colour...
Berlin Phil Principal Plays World’s Most Expensive Viola
The Berlin Philharmonic’s principal violist Amihai Grosz has been granted a loan of the 1719 ‘Macdonald’ Antonio Stradivarius viola, one of only ten such instruments ever crafted. The viola was sold by the Stretton Society in a private deal at...
Elim Chan Lands a Job in Vienna
Hong Kong‑born conductor Elim Chan has been named artistic partner of the Wiener Symphoniker in Vienna. The position, described as having nebulous responsibilities, gives her a platform to pursue bold, risk‑taking programming. Chan praised the orchestra’s freshness and the city’s...
A Violinist in Search of Her Friend
The Violinist, an animated feature from Singapore, will debut on the European film‑festival circuit in May 2026. Set against the backdrop of colonial Singapore, the Japanese occupation, and post‑war years, it follows Peranakan prodigy Fei as she matures into a...
Biz News: Rising Dutch Soloist Quits HP
Dutch violinist Simone Lamsma has ended her seven‑year relationship with the Paris boutique agency Solea, which was acquired by Hewlett‑Packard (HP) in September 2024. She is moving her general management to K D Schmid in Hamburg, citing mutual respect and enthusiasm for future collaboration....
Famed String Quartet Bows Out After 44 Years
Mexico’s Cuarteto Latinoamericano, a 44‑year‑old string quartet, will close its storied run with a farewell concert on May 9 at Mexico City’s Palacio de Bellas Artes. Since its 1982 founding, the ensemble has championed Latin American composers such as Villa‑Lobos, Revueltas,...
Arvo Pärt Gets a Goethe
Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, now 90, has been awarded the 2026 Goethe Medal. The German cultural honor, traditionally given to literary and artistic figures, recognized Pärt’s decades‑long connection to Berlin after he sought refuge there in 1981. Award officials highlighted the...
Just In: US Orchestra Links Pay Rise to Hire Freeze
The Minnesota Orchestra’s board and its musicians have ratified a two‑year collective bargaining agreement that takes effect on September 1, 2026. The contract delivers a 2.5% annual increase to the weekly salary scale for musicians. In exchange, the orchestra will impose temporary...
Boston Backs Confrontational French Conductor
Boston Baroque announced that French conductor‑administrator Marc Minkowski will assume the role of artistic director in September, succeeding founder Martin Pearlman who led the ensemble since 1973. Minkowski, 63, is known for his confrontational tenure as general director of the...
An Australian Is Berlin Phil’s Composer in Residence
The Berlin Philharmonic has announced Australian composer‑violist Brett Dean as its composer in residence for the 2026‑27 season. Dean, who left the orchestra in 1999 to focus on composition, will also appear as a violist in the world premiere of...
South Africa’s First Kammersängerin, 93
Mimi Coertse, the first South African to receive the prestigious Kammersängerin title from the Vienna State Opera, died at age 93. She launched her career in London but faced an Equity boycott because of her South African citizenship during apartheid. Coertse debuted...
Munich Marks Zubin Mehta’s 90th
The Bavarian State Opera honored its former music director Zubin Mehta as he turned 90, highlighting his decades‑long influence on Munich’s cultural scene. Mehta first appeared with the house in 1975, conducting works ranging from Haydn to contemporary Penderecki, and...
Seven American Orchestras Will Serenade Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie
The Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg has unveiled its tenth‑anniversary season, featuring seven premier American orchestras. Highlights include the Cleveland Orchestra with Golda Schultz, the New York Philharmonic’s debut under Gustavo Dudamel, and the Boston Symphony’s Beethoven‑Stravinsky dialogue. Composer Missy Mazzoli will...
Israel Phil Concertmaster Takes Job in Germany
Dumitru Pocitari, a concertmaster of the Israel Philharmonic, has been named the first concertmaster of the Philharmonisches Orchester Hagen in Westphalia, Germany. He already holds the concertmaster chair at the Wiener Symphoniker, a position he assumed in April 2024. While...
Exclusive: The US Orchestra that Said, No
The Seattle Symphony was poised to announce a new CEO when music director Xian Zhang and 80 musicians sent a letter rejecting the board’s preferred candidate. Citing undisclosed concerns, the musicians forced the board to abandon the selection and restart...
Ruth Leon Recommends…. Sidney Nolan – Australian Artist
Sidney Nolan, born 22 April 1917, is hailed as one of Australia’s most influential modern artists. After deserting the army in 1944, he joined the avant‑garde Angry Penguins, editing its magazine and creating the iconic Ern Malley cover. Nolan’s Ned Kelly series, with its...
10 BBC Proms to Book
The BBC announced that tickets for its summer Proms are now available online, with sales opening on May 16. It highlighted ten must‑see concerts ranging from Yunchan’s Ravel concerto on July 17 to Martha Argerich with the Munich Philharmonic on September 5. The...
Sumi Jo Gets a Record Deal
South Korean opera legend Sumi Jo, 63, has signed an exclusive recording contract with SM Classics, the new joint venture between K‑pop powerhouse SM Entertainment and the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra. Her debut release, "Continuum," commemorates her 40‑year stage career and...
A Nazi-Stolen Stradivarius Reappears in France
A 1719 Stradivarius violin, stolen by the Nazis from Warsaw in 1939, has resurfaced in France. The instrument, originally owned by Polish industrialist Henryk Grohman, was identified by music‑heritage activist Pascale Bernheim after being played at the Unterlinden Museum in...
Asmik Grigorian Lights up the Met’s Onegin
The Metropolitan Opera’s revival of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin spotlights Lithuanian soprano Asmik Grigorian as Tatiana, delivering a luminous, emotionally charged performance that dominates the production. Grigorian’s nuanced portrayal—marked by a subtle vibrato and deep lyricism—reimagines the heroine as a solitary,...
Ruth Leon Recommends… Canaletto – Painter of Venice
Canaletto, the 18th‑century master of Venetian vedute, combined exacting perspective with luminous colour to create iconic cityscapes that defined the Grand Tour aesthetic. Trained by his theatrical‑scene painter father, he produced celebrated works such as the 1725 "Stonemason’s Yard" now...
Marie’s in the News. Here’s Her Recent Walton Concerto
French conductor Marie Jacquot has been named chief conductor of the Cologne Opera, taking the helm of one of Germany's leading musical institutions. Her appointment makes her the first female music director in Cologne’s more than two‑century history. Jacquot, celebrated...
Ruth Leon Recommends…. Mrs Warren’s Profession – George Bernard Shaw
Ruth Leon recommends the newly filmed West End production of George Bernard Shaw’s Mrs. Warren’s Profession, now streaming on the National Theatre’s NTAtHome platform. The play stars Vivie Warren, a forward‑thinking heroine, opposite her mother, whose fortunes were built on Victorian‑era prostitution....
Boston Concertmaster: Why Andris Nelsons Is a Great Conductor
Boston Symphony concertmaster Nathan Cole lauds Andris Nelsons as a transformative conductor, noting that the 2026‑27 season will be Nelsons' last with the orchestra. He argues that while the BSO could technically play familiar works like Dvořák’s New World Symphony...
Another World-Class Orchestra Shuns London
The Cleveland Orchestra announced a nine‑nation European tour for October 2026, marking the final season under music director Franz Welser‑Möst before his departure. The itinerary includes debuts in Slovenia and Greece and rare returns to Bratislava and Budapest, featuring a...
Cleveland Rolls Out Final Franz Welser-Möst Season
After 25 years and roughly 1,200 performances, Franz Welser-Möst will step down as music director of The Cleveland Orchestra in summer 2027. His final 2026‑27 season launches with Strauss’s Four Last Songs and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 8, and includes rare works...
When Did Opera Stop Being Welsh?
Eighty years ago the Welsh National Opera launched with an all‑Welsh cast, three Welsh conductors and a venue named the Prince of Wales Theatre. Today the company is battling a severe financial crunch, having slashed its chorus from 120 singers...
Ruth Leon Recommends… Empress of the Blues – Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith, born in 1894 and orphaned at nine, rose from the segregated South to become the legendary “Empress of the Blues.” A new documentary chronicles her meteoric career, battles with racism, and the enduring legacy of her powerful voice....
Most Recorded Artist, RIP
Legendary Indian playback singer Asha Bhosle, aged 92, died yesterday, cementing her status as the most recorded artist in history with over 12,000 songs in 20 languages. Guinness World Records recognized her record‑breaking output, and her voice remains one of...