+ Andris Nelsons has pulled out of a production of Parsifal that opens the Bayreuth Festival.
“Owing to a differing approach in various matters, the atmosphere at this year’s Bayreuth Festival did not develop in a mutually comfortable way for all parties,” said a written statement that was issued on behalf of Mr. Nelsons and his management team, Konzertdirektion Schmid.
+ Long-time proponent of new new music, violinist Anahid Ajemian has passed away at the age of 92.
+ His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada announced 113 new appointments to the Order of Canada. See a list of arts appointments here: (English/French).
+ Canadian pianist and composer David Braid talks about composing for Born to be Blue, a Chet Baker biopic.
“The main theme is that he was broken down physically and mentally and had to rebuild. We had to express the artistic recovery of this person clearly.”
+ British composer Benedict Mason on transforming his piece Meld into a film.
“My inspiration for this approach comes from a deep fascination with film, and montage – especially the editing of sequences of less important shots and the many ways that these can build into something more significant. In my music I am fascinated by how the logic and order of different elements is crucial to how the expression, tension and argument comes over. As in a film, every cut is a turning point – though as a viewer or listener, one hardly notices these corners. I felt the same way about the composition of Meld, and how a potential re-ordering of sections or elements would collapse the tension.”
