Category: music

The Life & Death of Alexander Litvinenko, with music by Anthony Bolton and a libretto by Kit Hesketh-Harvey based on the book Death of a Dissident by Litvinenko’s widow, premieres this July at Grange Park Opera in England. Reporter Mark Brown talks to Marina Litvinenko, Anthony Bolton, and Grange Park director Wasfi Kani. – The Guardian

“Domingo is, indeed, irreplaceable — because the world no longer has a place for this particular kind of artist, who has done so much to help the field and so much to harm it. And it may well be that without him, the field loses some of its patrons, and some of its funding. It may be, indeed, that the institution of opera fundamentally changes — which is something we should all aspire to if we want this intoxicating, bizarre, glorious art form to continue to be vital, now and in the future.” – The New Beat

“The deal they were working on — which called for the union, the American Guild of Musical Artists, to limit its public statements about the inquiry and for Mr. Domingo to pay the union $500,000 — fell apart on Tuesday after details of the investigation were leaked overnight.” – The New York Times

“Pretty remarkable. His entire brain is stimulated by music. His visual cortex is activated throughout. It seems like his brain is taking that part of the tissue that’s not being stimulated by sight and using it or maybe helping him to perceive music with it. It’s sort of borrowing that part of the brain and rewiring it to help him hear music.” – People

“The investigation, conducted by lawyers hired by the American Guild of Musical Artists, concluded that the accounts from 27 people showed a clear pattern of sexual misconduct and abuse of power by Domingo spanning at least two decades … when he held senior management positions at Washington National Opera and Los Angeles Opera.” (Domingo has now issued a statement saying “I am truly sorry for the hurt that I caused them.”) – Yahoo! (AP)

In late June and early July, music director Yannick Nézet-Séguin will lead the orchestra in concerts at the Barbican in London, the Philharmonie de Paris, and the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden in Germany. The singers joining them will be Joyce DiDonato, Christine Goerke, Brandon Jovanovich, and Günther Groissböck. – Playbill

The Earth Harp is a massive stringed instrument that its inventor, William Close, says makes audiences feel like they’re “inside the instrument” during performances. Indeed, because he has to string the instrument across canyons or from a stage to an upper level of a concert hall or from a large piece of ceremonial architecture to the ground, audiences often are inside the sound. – BBC

Is this a city-led marriage made in heaven? One city councillor claims, “If we lose the DIY spaces we lose the next generation of live musicians.” – CBC

Carlo Rozzi, conducting the Welsh National Opera in Cardiff on February 22, stopped Verdi’s Les Vêpres Sicilienes twice – and he wasn’t afraid to go directly to the audience about why. Said a member of the audience, “He got a warm round of applause after he stopped and ticked off the audience member. Both incidents were right at the beginning of the show and all was well after that.” – BBC

They’re different from the quality of movie soundtracks, many of which don’t stand alone, and they’re “a marvelous untapped source of experimental instrumental electronica. … The context of gameplay encourages compositions that are melodically specific, sharp-edged, and hummable.” – Hyperallergic