Yo-Yo Ma
(c) Jason Bell

The concert organizer Washington Performing Arts announced that it will not utilize the Kennedy Center for any performances in its upcoming 2025-2026 season, reports Washingtonian. Instead, the organization will present events at other Washington, DC area venues, including the Music Center at Strathmore, Lisner Auditorium. This affects performances by Yo-Yo Ma, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, violinist Midori, the Pacifica Quartet and many more. Read More →

Karol Beffa
(c) Amélie Tcherniak

Karol Beffa loves Ravel. He practically fell in love with the composer as a child. He loves him, he adores him, and he defends him in the face of criticism. In a new book, En avant la musique, he paints Ravel’s portrait not chronologically, but via his works, embellishing his judicious and enriching analyses with a wealth of detail on the life and character of the composer, who magically becomes closer to the reader than ever before. Read More →

Das erste Event der ‘Klangbilder der Stadt Luxemburg’ – ein Projekt der Universität Luxemburg in Partnerschaft mit der Stadt Luxemburg – ist der ersten Komponistin des Landes, Josephine Schmoll gewidmet. Read More →

Parole in Musica; Leonard Bernstein: Szenen aus West Side Story (Arr. Maarten Vandenbemde) - Luca Isolani: Note fuori campo ‘Omaggio a Nino Rota’ - Maurice Ravel: Ma Mère l’Oye, Suite (Arr. M. Vandenbemden) - Manos Hadjidakis: Songs from Pornographia, Op. 43 (Arr. L. Isolani and M. Vandenbemden) - Edvard Grieg: Szenen aus Peer Gynt, Op. 23 (arr. M. Vandenbemden); The Volterra Project Trio (Antigoni Goni, Luca Isolani, Maarten Vandenbemden, Gitarren); # Naxos 8.579172; Aufnahme 2024, Veröffentlichung 23.05.2025 (59'13) - Rezension von Remy Franck ** (For English please scroll down)

Gegründet im Jahr 2017 am Volterra Project Summer Guitar Institute, entstand das Trio, das auf diesem Album spielt, « aus einer tiefen Freundschaft und einer gemeinsamen künstlerischen Vision. » Read More →

Opium; Alexander Scriabin: Klaviersonaten Nr. 3, op. 23, Nr. 4, op. 30, Nr. 5, op. 53, Nr. 8, op. 66; John Gade, Klavier; # La Scala Music SMU016; Aufnahme 2024, Veröffentlichung 23.05.2025 (52') - Rezension von Remy Franck ** (For English please scroll down)

Das ganz in schwarz-weiß gehaltene Album Opium ist das genaue Gegenteil der Scriabin-Interpretationen des 1997 in Cannes geborenen französischen Pianisten John Gade. Der Titel Opium aber sagt sehr viel aus über Gades Interpretationen. Und die bacchantischen Höhepunkte der Vierten und Fünften Sonate führen tatsächlich zu einem phänomenalen Klangrausch und dem Heraufbeschwören schillernd farbiger Bilder. Read More →

Richard Wagner

Das Nationalarchiv der Richard-Wagner-Stiftung Bayreuth hat Richard Wagners Erstschrift des Librettos zum Tannhäuser ersteigert. Der Zuschlag erfolgte bei 95.000 £, das ergibt mit Aufgeld und Steuern rd. 140.000 €. Die Erwerbung wurde zu je einem Drittel der Kosten von der Kulturstiftung der Länder und der Oberfrankenstiftung gefördert. An Richard Wagners Geburtstag, dem 22. Mai wird das Manuskript von Vertretern der Richard-Wagner-Stiftung und den Förderern im Haus Wahnfried erstmals öffentlich präsentiert. Read More →

Aufgrund einer Erkrankung muss der französische Dirigent Raphaël Pichon seine Teilnahme an der bevorstehenden Konzerttournee mit dem Mahler Chamber Orchestra (MCO) kurzfristig absagen. Davon betroffen sind alle Termine. Read More →

Esa-Pekka Salonen
(c) Andrew Eccles

The Hong Kong Philharmonic announced that the Finnish composer and conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen, 66, will be Composer-in-Residence for the 2025/26 season. The appointment matches with the inaugural season of Finnish conductor Tarmo Peltokoski as Music Director Designate. He will begin his tenure as Music Director in the 2026/27 season. Read More →

Giulio de Nardo

You studied organ and harpsichord, earning Master’s degrees in both, have won multiple prestigious awards in international competitions, and perform as a soloist on both instruments. You are Italian – so, forgive the cliché – were you simply born musical? Or, to put it another way: do you come from a family of musicians?
I don’t come from a family of musicians, but my family certainly passed on a deep passion for and appreciation of art, and music in particular. My father has always been a great lover of classical music, especially the organ and its repertoire. My uncle, meanwhile, is a regular at the opera and, though not a musician himself, a keen connoisseur of many operatic works. That’s where my own passion for the world of opera and theatre also began. So, even if I wasn’t actively involved in music from the start, it was always part of my life. Read More →

Kennedy Center, Washington

Deborah Rutter who served as the first woman president of the Kennedy Center from 2014 to 2025 and was fired by the fascist in charge of the American White House, was heavily criticized by the current Trump appointee, Richard Grenell, who accused the former management of financial mismanagement and “fraud”.  Deborah Rutter, an internationally respected arts manager, issued a detailed statement rejecting those claims of financial mismanagement. Read More →