Weekly Digest: Ballet takes center stage, orchestra survival, music storytelling, and more…

FEATURE: BALLET TAKES CENTER STAGE DURING CORONAVIRUS

RESEARCH AND OPINION
The Vinyl? It’s Pricey. The Sound? Otherworldly.
The New York Times: Ben Sisario
The Electric Recording Co. in London cuts albums the way they were made in the 1950s and ’60s —

For American Orchestras, Survival Lessons from the Woman who Rescued the L.A. Phil
Los Angeles Times: Mark Swed
Three years ago, Deborah Borda left the Los Angeles Philharmonic, which she had run for 17 years, to take on the problems of the troubled New York Philharmonic. Hear her valuable story.

In Ballet, Conductors are the Dancers’ Guardian Angels
The Washington Post
As costume disasters go, what two National Ballet of Canada dancers suffered in “The Merry Widow” some years ago was extreme. At one point in Act 2, the French attaché’s jacket buttons caught on his lover’s gown, and as he spun her in his arms she began to lose her dress.

Cellist Alexander Ramm – ‘The Positives of Overcoming Adversity’
The Violin Channel
In a VC-exclusive blog, cellist Alexander Ramms shares his difficult experience of breaking his bow arm – and the mental and physical strength to come back.

Kronberg Academy’s Raimund Trenkler- ‘What Should Music Schools Be Doing Now?
The Violin Channel
In a VC-exclusive blog, Kronberg Academy Director Raimund Trenkler shares his thoughts on what music schools should be doing during these uncertain times.

5 Minutes That Will Make You Love Opera
The New York Times: Angie Wang
We asked Patti Smith, John Turturro, Renée Fleming and others to pick the music that moves them. Listen to their choices.

A Month To Celebrate Jazz, Turned Tragic
88.3fm WBGO.org: Jack Bartoogian
In an alternate timeline, I know precisely how I would have spent the evening of April 17. The dynamic South African pianist Nduduzo Makhathini had been booked for an album-release engagement at Dizzy’s Club, the in-house nightclub at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Quarantour and Conference Calls: How Artists are Collaborating in Isolation
MTV News: Patrick Hosken
Churches, real estate, cautious clay, and more weigh in on creating in harmony while staying apart.

NATIONAL
Jacobs Pre-College alumnus, Nathan Meltzer, 19 – Windsor Festival String Competition 1st Prize
The Violin Channel
19-year-old American violinist Nathan Meltzer is quickly building an international reputation as a rising young virtuoso of outstanding potential.

Lynn Harrell, Acclaimed American Cellist, Is Dead at 76
NY Times: Anthony Tommasini
Known to many in the Jacobs School – Critics called him a “gentle giant,” a 6-foot-4 internationally renowned musician and frequent soloist whose playing could be sensitive and subtle.

Can Musicians Survive the Furlough? The Met Orchestra on the Brink
VAN: Jeffrey Arlo Brown
One instrumentalist, who has been performing with the Met for 25 years, has been living on a combination of unemployment benefits and his savings. He’s currently in the process of liquidating his retirement assets for use during the crisis.

The NEA hopes to keep arts jobs alive in the US—with limited federal relief funds
The Art Newspaper: Wallace Ludel
With its relief funding, the NEA is switching tack from supporting individual art projects to ensuring that non-profit institutions and organizations are able to reopen.

L.A. City Council working on turning developer fees for cultural events into arts relief fund
LA Times: Carolina Miranda
For every private development project of $500,000 or more in the city of Los Angeles, the developer must pay an arts fee to the city based on the square footage of the building or a percentage of the value of the permit.

Arts groups upset over Gov. Tom Wolf’s sudden move to freeze Pa. grant money
The Philadelphia Inquirer: Stephan Salisbury
Facing his own burgeoning budget problems, Gov. Tom Wolf has directed some state agencies to rescind grant money previously awarded to arts groups.

NEC MUSICAL STORYTELLING | Cellist Alex Fowler
The Violin Channel
The New England Conservatory has launched their annual 2020 ‘Musical Storytelling’ series – geared towards children aged 3 to 7 and families.

Coronavirus Has Left Recording Studios in Limbo
VICE: Josh Terry
Studios like SoundScape and Spacebomb are trying to weather the pandemic as the best they can, but some face furloughs or even closures if things don’t change.

Listen to Phil Kline’s ‘Every Night at 7,’ a Musical Tribute to Our Evening Ritual
Vulture: Justin Davidson
New York’s noise has a distinctive grain, a multilayered clangor that changes with the decades but retains its personality. Composers have often mined the soundtrack of the streets for raw material.

INTERNATIONAL
The Berlin Philharmonic Tests a Musical Path Out of Lockdown
NY Times: Anthony Tommasini
The orchestra’s concert on Friday used few players and observed social distancing guidelines.

Czech Republic’s Janáček Philharmonic Announces New Music Director
The Violin Channel
The Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra has announced the appointment of Russian conductor Vassily Sinaisky as its new Music Director.

Peter Jonas, Innovative Opera Impresario, Is Dead at 73
NY Times: Antony Tommasini
He ran first the English National Opera and then the Bavarian State Opera, emphasizing vibrant theatrical interpretations as well as high musical values.

Lang Lang, Andrea Bocelli, Celine Dion, Lady Gaga & John Legend – ‘The Prayer’
The Violin Channel
Pianist Lang Lang and singers Andrea Bocelli, Celine Dion, Lady Gaga and John Legend performing the hit song ‘The Prayer’
literally.

Bayreuth Festival’s Katharina Wagner Battling Long-Term Illness
Opera Wire: David Salazar
The Bayreuth Festival has revealed that Katharina Wagner will no longer continue as its director for the time being due to a long-term illness.

2020 Sibelius Violin Competition jury announced and website launched
The Strad
The Jean Sibelius Violin Competition will be held in Helsinki from 22 November to 3 December.

Vancouver Symphony appoints 21-year-old principal cellist
The Strad
21-year-old American cellist Henry Shapard has been appointed as Vancouver Symphony’s new principal cellist.

BBC Philharmonic appoints new co-concertmaster
The Strad
Zoë Beyers has been appointed as co-leader alongside Yuri Torchinsky.

Tony Allen, Drummer Who Created the Beat of Afrobeat, Dies at 79
NY Times: Jon Pareles
Tony Allen, the drummer who created the steadfast, subtle beat of the Nigerian protest funk known as Afrobeat, died on Thursday in Paris. He was 79.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Violinist Tasmin Little Launches New E-Greeting Charity Initiative
The Violin Channel
Violinist Tasmin Little has announced the launch of a new charity initiative – whereby she will record personalized e-greetings for people to send to their loved ones.

Live after lockdown: Venues on the idea of gigs with social distancing
NME: Andrew Trendell
Could there be gigs in the UK soon with restrictions?

Benedetti Foundation launches the Virtual Benedetti Sessions
The Strad
The Benedetti Foundation is set to provide musicians of all ages and stages with three weeks of free online tuition and activities.

OFF THE BEATEN TRAIL
Dogs go Baroque
Classical FM
Oscar-winning actress Tilda Swinton, best known for films The Beach, The Grand Budapest Hotel, and The Chronicles of Narnia, has turned her hand to directing in this unconventional music video.

Police question string quartet on London street
The Strad
A family string quartet performance is brought to a halt with a polite intervention from the police.

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