CHICAGO— Nearly 300 miles southwest of Chicago, in St. Louis, stands the only surviving house in which we know, beyond a doubt, Scott Joplin lived. The rest of the ragtime pioneer’s former homes have been razed; this one narrowly … » Read

The two annual festivals of Aix-en-Provence—one for concerts, the other for operas—have no endeavours in common beyond the city whose name they share. Nevertheless, when word of the sudden passing of Pierre Audi , artistic director of … » Read

ATLANTA—In an earlier era, the Atlanta Opera couldn’t have undertaken a project on the scale of Wagner’s Ring . But under Tomer Zvulun—general and artistic director of 12 years, and the cycle’s director—the … » Read

LOS ANGELES—For the last 15 years or so, L.A.’s merry collective Wild Up has been busy upending conventional notions of “classical” new music. Its latest contribution was a riotous performance of Arthur Russell’s … » Read

LONDON—It should come as no surprise that Barrie Kosky's new Royal Ballet and Opera production of Die Walküre should have its roots firmly in the German-domiciled director’s native Australia. The smoldering tree trunks, so … » Read

As one who frequently stresses the importance of innovative, imaginative productions, Metropolitan Opera General Manager Peter Gelb has been slow to engage a number of European directors who have significant reputations for doing precisely that. … » Read

LONDON—Spring is in the air in London and so is orchestral music courtesy of Multitudes, the ten-day multidisciplinary arts festival at the Southbank Centre. Underway since April 23, the event is presenting nine orchestras, many of them SBC … » Read

SIOUX FALLS, S.D.— What transpired in Sioux Falls last weekend was a testament to the power of words. In 2022, New Yorker music critic Alex Ross praised the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra (SDSO) as “bolder and savvier in its … » Read

During the rehearsal period for Juilliard’s mounting of Dialogues des Carmelites , the federal government revoked the visa of a participating student. This encounter with the current administration might have been expected to lend a degree … » Read

SAN FRANCISCO—On a night that began with baby pictures and ended with a balloon drop, San Francisco Symphony’s cherished former Music Director Michael Tilson Thomas got a farewell send-off on April 26 at a packed Davies Symphony Hall. … » Read