Ontario’s Orchestra London is on the verge of a possible musicians’ strike over low pay and lack of benefits. “Most of the 29 full-time musicians (there are also 17 part-time musicians) are paid $23,223 for working a 36-week season… They receive no dental, drug, disability or health benefits. But the musicians are even more incensed by the fact that at a time when the symphony’s operating revenue is at an all-time high, tickets sales are healthy and wages in other sectors of the organization have increased… base pay for musicians has inched up only 1.5 per cent per year since 2000.”
Tag: 12.07.06
Domingo Roundly Booed At Met
A performance of Puccini’s La Boheme at the Metropolitan Opera went awry this week to the extent that conductor Placido Domingo found himself getting lustily booed before the beginning of the third act. Domingo’s offense was apparently to not have followed star soprano Anna Netrebko closely enough during her big arias in the first two acts. “In order to fully realize her artistic vision, she allowed each phrase to develop organically, unhurriedly, employing tasteful rubato and holding high notes expertly and impressively. But Mr. Domingo trudged along inattentively at metronomic speed, running noticeably ahead of his diva.”
News Flash: Some Critics Not Popular With Those They Critique
In New York, a play, concert series, or art exhibit can be made or broken on the say-so of a handful of extremely influential critics. So how do the artists who submit their work for the approval of such tastemakers feel about the job the critics do? Time Out New York found out, and the results were, well, predictable.
Tate Seeking £5m To Keep Turner In UK
“The Tate launches a major campaign today to purchase one of Turner’s late masterpieces, The Blue Rigi, a heartstopping view of Mount Rigi seen from Lake Lucerne in Switzerland, in which he captured the elusive moment when night fades into the pale light of dawn. The work is, according to the Tate, one of the finest watercolours painted. It needs to be, for Tate Britain must raise £4.95m to prevent it leaving the country. This would be the biggest sum it has ever paid for a single work of art.”
German Critic Slams Turner Honoree
In the hours since German-born artist Tomma Abts was named the recipient of this year’s Turner Prize, British art critics have been lining up to praise the selection. But Germany’s leading critic begs to differ, saying in a blistering article that Abts’s paintings look like East German wallpaper samples.
You Might Even Argue That A Normal Building Is Out of Place There
“A proposed residential tower designed by Foster and Partners for New York’s Upper East Side has sparked conflict between neighbors, pitting preservationists against the local artists, designers, and gallery owners who hope to see the building constructed… Foster argued that such ambitious architecture isn’t out of place in the neighborhood, and pointed to the Carlyle, the Guggenheim Museum, and the Whitney Museum as examples.”
Well-Timed Windfall In Tampa Bay
The Florida Orchestra managed to raise 20% of the money it needs for day-to-day operations in 2007 in only a few minutes this week, when a prominent Tampa family foundation kicked in a cool million. The hefty donation comes at an important moment for the orchestra, which recently announced a $677,000 deficit.
The Finn Factor
Finland is a nation of just 5 million people that gained its independence less than a century ago, and yet its impact on the world of classical music has been growing exponentially in the last few decades. “It didn’t happen by accident, of course. The country has earned its international reputation for music by seriously investing in it. Total spending by the ministry of culture last year amounted to €364 million ($615 million).”