The City of Berlin says that Daniel Barenboim will not renew his contract as director of the Staatsoper, after the city’s culture minister flies to Chicago for negotiations with Barenboim. “Given Barenboim’s stature in the international classical music world, Berlin Mayor Eberhard Diepgen has stated that the city should try to keep him at the Staatsoper ‘no matter what’. But so far, the city’s senate has refused to allocate additional money.” – Chicago Sun-Times