September 13, 2013   |
| | | Thought of the Day | "Patience is the art of hoping." --Luc de Clapiers |
| Quote of the Week | | "When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace." --Jimi Hendrix |
| | | |  PORTLAND, Ore. -- Ray Dolby, the man who revolutionized recording through the noise reduction system invented by and named for him, died yesterday at his home in San Francisco. He was 80 years old and had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease for some time; he was diagnosed with acute leukemia this summer. He founded Dolby Laboratories in 1965 and grew it into an industry leader. In the end, Dolby held 50 U.S. patents and was worth $2.3 billion, according to Forbes magazine. His work ranged from helping to reduce the hiss in cassette recordings to bringing Star Wars to life on the big screen in Dolby Stereo. "Though he was an engineer at heart, my father's achievements in technology grew out of a love of music and the arts," said Tom Dolby, son, filmmaker, and novelist. "He brought his appreciation of the artistic process to all of his work in film and audio recording." "Today we lost a friend, mentor, and true visionary," said Kevin Yeaman, president and CEO of Dolby Laboratories. MA.com subscribers read the full story |
London Symphony Reportedly Nabs Simon Rattle | Simon Rattle is to succeed Valery Gergiev as principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra after he exits the Berlin Philharmonic in 2017, according to the Times of London. It will be the first time the British conductor has accepted a permanent position with one of his own since leaving the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in 1998. He has been in the Berlin job, not without bumps along the way, since 2002. Times queries to the LSO yielded a noncommittal answer: "Simon is conducting the orchestra in the coming season, and there is nothing else to say." Industry sources indicate otherwise. |
| | | | It's Official: Mortier's Out of a Job |  Teatro Real has made it official: Joan Matabosch [pictured] is in as artistic director and Gerard Mortier is out. Rumors of a replacement for Mortier--who recently announced that he had been diagnosed with cancer--have been circulating since Sept. 9, when Spanish newspaper El Pais reported Matabosch's appointment only awaited executive-committee approval. That finally arrived Sept. 11. But questions remained: Mortier had told the same newspaper last week, "I can't see anybody in Spain [doing this job] at the present moment." He had his own list of candidates, he said, and anyway must approve his successor or he would quit before his contract ended in 2016. Looks like he didn't have to. Matabosch, artistic director at the Liceu opera house in Barcelona, is to fill the post with "immediate effect," according to Teatro Real. |
Musical America Launches NEW Job Board |  JOB SEEKERS: From instrumentalists to executive directors and administrators, search over 4,000 jobs on MusicalAmerica.com.
Post resumes, create alerts, get hired! EMPLOYERS: Post your jobs for reasonable rates. Special discount packages available. Post a job, find the perfect hire! Visit Job Board |
Lissner to Take Over Paris Opera Early | | 
La Scala Intendant Stéphane Lissner [pictured] will take charge of the Opéra National de Paris in August of 2014, one year earlier than scheduled. Current Intendant Nicolas Joel, who planned this season and the next, is amenable and plans to resume his work as a stage director.
Lissner's early departure from La Scala was easily arranged because the Salzburg Festival and its current Intendant Alexander Pereira, designated to take over La Scala in 2015, had already agreed to part ways early. Now Pereira and Lissner will work together on the 2014-15 season in Milan.
Lissner's leadership at La Scala has stabilized and restored that Italian cultural monument to its former glory and attracted much needed private support during a time of severe budget cuts by the Italian government. The announcement of his return to his native country has been greeted with much enthusiasm. MA.com subscribers read the full story |
| Musicians Dominate KenCen Honors |  Four of this year's five Kennedy Center Honorees, announced Thursday, are musicians: soprano Martina Arroyo [pictured]; jazz guru Herbie Hancock; and singer/songwriters Billy Joel and Carlos Santana. Actress and onetime show-stopping dancer Shirley MacLaine is the fifth. The Kennedy Center Honors, now in their 36th year, celebrate "individuals who...have elevated the cultural vibrancy of our nation," said Kennedy Center Chairman David M. Rubenstein in his comments. The ceremony honoring the group will be attended by the President and First Lady and consist of tributes and performances from friends and colleagues of the celebrants. It takes place Dec. 8 in the Kennedy Center Opera House and is to be broadcast Dec. 29.
MA.com subscribers read the full story |
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100 Years Ago...in Musical America: 13 September 1913 | |  MME. GATTI-CASAZZA MAKES DIPLOMAT OF-FRANCES ALDA Being the Wife of an Opera Director Has Taught Prima Donna How to Be Nice to the Newspapers and Still Keep Them at Arms' Length--Two New Roles Added to Her Repertoire in Summer Abroad--Concert Plans--Is Present-Day Operatic Study as Thorough as It Once Was? See the Original Page and Read the Full Story |
| Inspiration and Mentoring in the Workplace | |  From Ask Edna by Edna Landau
Over the summer months, I had the opportunity to speak with a number of young people who are currently working in artist management, as well as others who have moved on to different areas of the classical music business. Having felt for a long time that we are not doing enough to nurture the next generation of artist managers, I asked for their opinions and suggestions. Overall, they tended to concur with my supposition; however, they all felt that the situation could be improved despite changes in the industry and the minimal profit margins that many artist managements face. The most immediate problem for those entering the field is the limited opportunities for upward mobility. They often have a music background and are willing to start at a low salary with entry-level responsibilities, with the hope that their situation will improve before too long. They soon learn that there is no built-in system for advancement, and that promotions are often dependent on someone leaving the company since the budget rarely allows for adding new positions unless there are significant new artist signings or touring attractions. What can make a real difference during this indefinite "apprenticeship" period is if those senior to them take advantage of opportunities to inspire and mentor them in ways that will nurture their talents and groom them for future higher positions within the company as they open up. |
| Minnesota Chicken |  From Why I Left Muncie by Sedgwick Clark Will the Minnesota Orchestra board of directors and musicians union commit corporate hari-kari? The deadline imposed on the players by the board is this Sunday, September 15. Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak is quoted in the local StarTribune, "Lock yourself in a room and shut up about it until you come back with a solution. The community is disgusted and desperate." Among my vivid memories of these artists is a program of Beethoven's Grosse Fuge and Sibelius's Kullervo at Carnegie Hall on February 28, 2010. One does not need to live in Minneapolis to be "disgusted and desperate." See my blog of August 31 for details. Are Recordings "Honest"? For over three decades now, digital editing has rendered studio recordings unreliable as documents of a performance, just as photoshop has destroyed the verity of photographs. It's only in a live concert that we can truly judge a performer's technical acumen or artistic ability--and still one may legitimately wonder if the hall might be assisted by discreet miking. |
| Latest Roster Changes |  Musical America is helping presenters keep up with its advertisers! Managers whose rosters appear in the 2013 edition of the Musical America Directory should write to listings@musicalamerica.com with the names of artists and attractions that have been either added or removed, and please be sure to indicate "added" or "removed." NEW THIS WEEK Collins, Finghin, piano, added, Clarion/Seven Muses
Fujimoto, Akiko, conductor, added, William Reinert Associates
Weston, Megan, soprano, removed, Alpha Artists Management |
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