Sophie Kastner is writing music that is literally out of this world. The Montreal composer created Where Parallel Lines Converge from the same data from the Hubble, Chandra and Spitzer telescopes that scientists use to create pictures of deep … » Read

Carlos Izcaray’s journey from Venezuela to the podium of the Alabama Symphony, where he will celebrate his tenth year as music director in 2024, has had many twists and turns. Born into a musical family—his father was a conductor and … » Read

CHICAGO—Challenges don’t seem to intimidate Lidiya Yankovskaya, music director of Chicago Opera Theater since 2017. And there was no lack of challenges in the company’s most recent production, Shostakovich’s satirical … » Read

Adam Hickox , recent assistant conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic, has been appointed principal conductor of Glyndebourne Sinfonia (formerly the Glyndebourne Tour Orchestra), a post that entails both opera and concert performances in the … » Read

On Dec. 6 the Metropolitan King County Council unanimously approved a 0.1 percent sales tax increase to fund “Doors Open.” The program anticipates distributing more than $100 million annually to arts, heritage, science, and historical … » Read

On Dec. 8 the musicians of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, seeking increased wages, voted to approve a possible strike. Negotiations, which have been ongoing since April 2022, have thus far produced, according to a press release from the … » Read

The Detroit Symphony Orchestra has extended the contract of Music Director Jader Bignamini through the end of the 2030-31 season, lengthening the current agreement by five years to reach a total of ten by its completion. The DSO is planning to … » Read

Maria Callas’s 100th birthday on Dec. 2 became such an inescapable event in the opera world that she might as well have risen from the dead. Looking like Medea in disguise as Audrey Hepburn, Callas stared out of magazine covers, Facebook … » Read

Hollywood filmmakers, often subject to spasms of enthusiasm, recently seem to have fallen in love with classical music. Witness the focus of five films released in the last 18 months: Bradley Cooper’s Maestro and Cate Blanchett’s star … » Read

Far more classical music lovers will see Bradley Cooper’s Maestro once its available on Netflix in late December than during its current limited release in movie theaters. Those seeking a “soup to nuts” chronicle of the protean … » Read