As states hit particularly hard by the Covid-19 virus extend their stay-at-home directives into May, festivals and competitions are doing their best to adapt. In California, the Festival Mozaic has been forced to postpone its 50th-anniversary … » Read

For Stephen Hough, the coronavirus is proving to be both a curse and a blessing. “Covid-19 is an evil messenger,” he writes in The Guardian , “bringing fear of contagion, leaving families in terrible distress . . . and … » Read

Classical music lovers regularly tout its beneficial effects, and in the time of pandemic it has become a common refrain that listening can positively impact one’s well-being. While most such claims are based on anecdotal evidence, several … » Read

The Cleveland Orchestra, which cancelled the remainder of its season last mont h, has crafted a layoff and furlough plan  designed to save more than $3 million; simultaneously, the orchestra has launched a “Preservation Fund” … » Read

We will be updating this every Wednesday. Please note that British Summer Time (BST) is currently five hours ahead of U.S. Eastern Time (ET) and Central European Time (CET) is currently six hours ahead. Central Daylight Time (CDT) is currently … » Read

To the Editor: I watched your Musical America One to One interview with Jasper Parrott about Force Majeure, with Jasper’s implication that the artists he manages –  piano and violin soloists, singers, conductors – … » Read

Germany, a nation of some 83.8m people, loves its music festivals. One survey reports a “subjective selection” of more than 570 festivals of all musical genres that take place across the country each year. In the face of the … » Read

On April 17 the California legislature announced forthcoming changes to Assembly Bill 5 (AB5), which took effect on Jan. 1, 2020. Intended to protect the rights of gig workers, the law came in for harsh criticism because it curtailed the ability … » Read

Music Academy of the West has sidestepped the use of the word “postponed” to characterize its scheduled June 15 opening by rebranding and repurposing its first four weeks as the “new Music Academy Remote Learning … » Read

The Lucerne Festival Academy has appointed a new managing director. He is Felix Heri, 34, current managing director of the Basel Sinfonietta; he starts on June 1, succeeding Dominik Deuber and reporting to Lucerne Festival Executive and Artistic … » Read