This summer will mark the 50 th anniversary of Aston Magna, the summer music festival headquartered in Great Barrington, MA, and devoted to period-instrument performance. Among its many noteworthy accomplishments are the first live rendition of … » Read

Gordon Getty, one of the Bay Area’s most visible philanthropists, has struck again, gifting $1.5 million to the Berkeley Symphony as it prepares for its 52 nd season. In expressing his thanks, Artistic Director René Mandel said the … » Read

The Seattle Opera has announced that General Director Christina Scheppelmann will exit at the close of her current, five-year contract in 2024 to become the next general director of La Monnaie/De Munt in Brussels, Belgium, in 2025. She is to … » Read

To the dismay of many of San Francisco’s classical music groups, a consistently reliable source of funding—Grants for the Arts (GFTA)—has now become anything but. Drawn from the city’s hotel tax fund, GFTA has a $13.4 … » Read

Renée Fleming is among the The John F. Kennedy Center honorees for 2023, the 47 th annual, which celebrate “lifetime artistic achievements.” Fleming, 64, joins actor and comedian Billy Crystal; falsetto Bee Gees chief Barry … » Read

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s upcoming performances of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis will mark Riccardo Muti’s last subscription concerts as music director (a free “Concert for Chicago” on June 27 is the very last), … » Read

The Winston-Salem (NC) Symphony has hired its first female music director in Michelle Merrill , the only woman out of the six candidates who have been guest conducting the orchestra over the last three seasons in the search for Robert … » Read

LONDON—With its chamber forces and whispered intimacies, Ariadne auf Naxos is tailor-made for country-house opera. The conceit, that a wealthy patron is putting on a work its composer fears will go over the heads of an audience here for the … » Read

A new initiative will unite the Juilliard Extension Division with a Sunrise Senior Living community on Manhattan’s Upper East Side to provide live, in-person instruction to residents. During the academic year, three 12-week semesters will … » Read

The Sphinx Organization has named cellist Sterling Elliott, tenor David Portillo, and conductor Kalena Bovell as recipients of the 2024 Sphinx Medal of Excellence, an honor that carries a $50,000 cash award for each. Elliott earned an MM degree … » Read