Lincoln Center Face-lift Is On!
The Met is ready to rejoin Lincoln Center’s $1.5 billion renovations after being given a larger voice in the matter. The Met seceded for two months after feeling that their objectives in the project were being ignored by Lincoln Center’s administration. Previously, each constituent of Lincoln Center was given an equal single vote. Now, weighted voting will give the largest vote to the largest resident: the Met. The new agreement also provides for new committees to discuss matters of finance, budget and auditing, design and construction, and legal representation. Each committee will have representation from each arts organization. Previously, these crucial decisions were almost solely the responsibility of the chairman of the project corporation, Marshall Rose, and the president of Lincoln Center, Gordon J. Davis. The final adoption of the master plan still requires a unanimous vote by the 11 participating arts organizations.
Goerke Awarded Honor
The Richard Tucker Music Foundation has named soprano Christine Goerke the recipient of the 2001 Richard Tucker Award, a prestigious honor conferred each year to an American opera singer on the verge of a major international career. The award includes a cash prize of $30,000, among the highest in monetary grants for singers, and participation in the annual Richard Tucker Gala, a nationally televised concert featuring the world’s most prominent opera stars at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall. Miss Goerke joins a long list of distinguished artists who have won the Richard Tucker Award in previous years, including Deborah Voigt, Renée Fleming, Ruth Ann Swenson, Dolora Zajick, Jennifer Larmore, Richard Leech, and Dwayne Croft.
California Raising the Bar for Arts Support
In a successful attempt to bring the arts to the forefront in the Sunshine State, the California Arts Council was pleased last year to raise the state arts budget by 60% to $32 million. They are even more pleased to hear that Gov. Gray Davis has proposed an additional $27.3 million increase for next year totaling $59.3 million, which is the highest state arts budget in the country, topping New York’s $56.7 million. Maybe this will start to catch on…
World Premiere of Sacco & Vanzetti
Anton Coppola conducted the premiere of his new opera, Sacco & Vanzetti, on March 16 at Tampa Opera. Coppola originally wrote the music for a documentary that his nephew, Francis Ford Coppola, was producing about Sacco and Vanzetti, two Italian immigrants that were executed in 1927 for the murders of two shoe-factory workers. When Francis Ford heard his uncle’s music, he apparently suggested that it should be an opera instead.
Beethoven Dominates the Webwaves
Arbitron Webcast ratings report that Beethoven.com was the most popular webstation in December, beating out other news-talk stations and popular music stations. A victory in our battle for interested audiences!
Disaster at Covent Garden
In commemoration of Hans Werner Henze’s 75th birthday, Covent Garden plans to celebrate with a production of Boulevard Solitude, which is Henze’s reworking of Manon Lescaut. This contemporary opera is not selling tickets, however. The traditional Royal Opera House audiences want to pay money for a familiar opera with big names, in spite of Henze’s compositional success and notoriety. The Royal Opera House has had to resort to discount tickets and special offers to fill the seats for the birthday party.
Blueprint Budget Doesn’t Forget NEA
President Bush’s projected budget for the ‘02 fiscal year has an overall goal of reducing the growth of federal spending, yet the numbers for NEA funding are staying the same: $105 million. NEA Chair Bill Ivey responded that, “…we are pleased with his funding request for the Arts Endowment. It shows that the Bush Administration values the importance of a strong and continuing federal commitment to the arts.”
Philadephia Joins the Renovation Bandwagon
The Regional Performing Arts Center has announced that it has raised 95% of its target $245 million for upcoming renovations. This is the largest sum ever raised by a Philadelphia cultural institution. Excited by the proximity of the goal, the chairman of the RPAC has announced a 4% increase, raising the target amount to $255 million to cover additional expenses such as inflation and electrical systems.
Kennedy Center Promotes Young Musicians With Disabilities
Five talented young musicians with serious health issues had their debut at the Kennedy Center on March 28. The performance was hosted by Composer Jamie Bernstein Thomas, daughter of the famed Leonard Bernstein. The musicians included: a 19-year-old vocalist, Shannon DeVido, who suffers from muscular atrophy; an 11-year-old autistic marimba player, Thristan Mendoza; a 24-year-old singer, pianist and percussionist, Mikko Herranen, who has been blind since birth; a 20-year-old saxophonist, Quamon Fowler, with asthma and visual impairment, and an 18-year-old violinist, Justin Mackewich, with Crohn’s disease.
Grammy Awards
Best Opera Recording: Ferruccio Busoni’s Doktor Faust, conducted by Kent Nagano (Erato) Best Classical Vocal Performance: Cecilia Bartoli’s The Vivaldi Album (Decca)
Voigt Heads up Benefit for Plus-Sized Org
Deborah Voigt, in addition to several other divas, will perform May 2 at the Manhattan School of Music as part of a benefit for the NYC-based Beauty Beyond Size, a non-profit organization dedicated to the empowerment of full-figured women. The artists will share their personal insights and experiences on their road to success in the world of opera. The panelists will provide tips on getting started in the music business, overcoming obstacles, and thriving in the demanding world of classical singing.
