In a recent article, composer Anna Clyne describes how she came to purchase--and ultimately play--her first violin. It all began in a thrift store in Oxford in 2008, where she had been browsing through second-hand CDs and LPs. Her eye fell upon … » Read

The Shepherd School of Music at Rice University is in the process of adding new orchestra and opera faculty, bringing Cristian Macelaru, an alumnus, on board as a distinguished visiting artist from fall 2025 to spring 2028, and Patrick Summers, … » Read

The Spoleto Festival appears to be experiencing issues that can often arise from a change in leadership. Since taking over from Nigel Redden as general director in 2021, Mena Mark Hanna has made major changes in staff , having vowed at the start … » Read

The decision by the management of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra to cancel a concert by pianist Jayson Gilham seems to have lit a firestorm among the ensemble’s musicians. In an Aug. 15 letter, an “overwhelming majority” … » Read

Although he was born without a right hand and most of his right forearm, Adrian Anantawan was determined to learn to play the violin. A team at Toronto’s Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital helped him do that, fashioning a … » Read

Over the past 25 years, Michael Haefliger has made the Lucerne Festival into one of the world’s premier summer musical events, working with Claudio Abbado to create the Lucerne Festival Orchestra and Pierre Boulez to launch the … » Read

SALZBURG—It’s been rough going recently for operas of the Salzburg Festival’s favorite son. Martin Kušej’s production of Le nozze di Figaro last year almost seemed calculated to annoy, while the 2021 Romeo … » Read

Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) musicians have ratified a new three-year agreement set to take effect on Sept. 2, while the ensemble is touring Europe. The contract’s key feature, a 12.6 percent compensation increase over the next three … » Read

Classical opera’s portrayal of women leaves much to be desired, particularly in the aftermath of the #MeToo movement and the efforts to increase the number of women composers, directors, and administrators in the industry. The San Francisco … » Read

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was anything but the tragic figure that history has portrayed. So argues Prof. Simon Morrison, a professor of music and Slavic languages and literatures at Princeton University, in his forthcoming biography, … » Read