In a speech before the Association of Colleges’ annual conference in the U.K., Amanda Spielman, chief inspector for the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted) recently claimed that colleges that … » Read

The centenary of the end of the first world war has been marked with an outburst of cultural activity, notably Peter Jackson’s superb film They Shall Not Grow Old , which not only colorizes war footage but has used lip readers to enable … » Read

Johann Zietsman, a former CEO of ISPA (International Society for the Performing Arts), is to be the new president and CEO of the Arsht Center in Miami. He takes over in February, succeeding John Richard, who is retiring after ten years and after … » Read

This year the Boston Early Music Festival (BEMF) will renew its decade-long tradition of presenting a chamber opera on the weekend following Thanksgiving. La liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina , by the Florentine singer and … » Read

A recent spate of indignities might seem to suggest that the gods of travel have it in for professional string players. Cellist Amit Peled, flush from performing the Penderecki Cello Concerto No. 2 with the Warsaw Philharmonic to celebrate the … » Read

Noh theater has been fascinating the West since the fall of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1868 opened up Japan and its cultural institutions. Beckett, Yeats, and Peter Brook have all been drawn to Noh. Of its 2000 or so traditional tales, … » Read

Two key Minnesota Orchestra positions have been filled, their prior vacancies due in both cases to retirements. Felicity James [pictured] is the new associate concertmaster, succeeding Roger Frisch, a 35-year veteran. And Erich Rieppel is the new … » Read

The Würth Philharmonic Orchestra, based in Baden-Württemberg and launched last year by German billionaire Reinhold Würth, has named Milan-born Claudio Vandelli [pictured] as chief conductor effective in January, 2020. Based in the … » Read

A recent study bolsters the argument that music training enhances the brain’s functioning. Research published in the journal Psychology of Music measured cognitive skills among 72 college undergraduates grouped according to the extent of … » Read

The Metropolitan Opera and WQXR, New York’s classical music station, have announced ARIA CODE, a collaboration designed to decode some of opera’s most well-known arias. The 10-episode podcast series debuts on Dec. 4 with a program … » Read