Oops! Check Your Promo CDs!
After sending out 8,000 promo CDs, the New Zealand Symphony discovered that an internet whiz had sabotaged the CD so that when it was played with a specific media player, the track names were replaced with text from hard-core pornography. After receiving phone calls from several disturbed patrons, New Zealand Symphony was able to remove the offensive material from the internet database on which it was stored. The problem was corrected without recalling any of the promo CDs.
AGMA to Supervise Use
of Smoke and Fog
Because the excessive use of smoke and fog on stage during productions has been causing vocal problems for singers, its use will now be regulated by AGMA. The decision comes after litigation was filed against San Francisco Opera. Numerous singers have been so badly affected by stage smoke and fog that they have had to be hospitalized.
Pavarotti to Take
a Different Kind of Encore…
BBC news has reported that Pavarotti’s partner, Nicole Mantovani, is pregnant with twins, who will be born early next year. These are Mantovani’s first children, but Pavarotti’s fourth and fifth. His other three daughters are 35, 38 and 40 years old.
Opera Companies Faced
with Budget Deficits
Many opera companies are finding it difficult to find the funds necessary to mount their planned productions. Edmonton Opera recently had to cancel its planned production of Turandot due to a debt of $425,000, and it hopes to save $125,000 by canceling the production. Meanwhile, San Francisco Opera lacks $7.7 million of its annual budget of $60 million and is hoping to have a spectacular season in order to inspire the support of local patrons.
Barenboim Transcends Political Borders
In late September, as conductor Daniel Barenboim and his wife sat in a restaurant in Jerusalem’s Yemin Moshe quarter, they were approached and verbally assaulted by a group of Kach activists because of Barenboim’s appearance in Ramallah, a Palestinian city, a few days before. Barenboim crossed the border and gave a concert and masterclass at the Fifth International Chamber Music Festival for several hundred music students. The activists called Barenboim a traitor and are demanding that he be legally prosecuted for entering the occupied territories without proper permission. Barenboim’s wife responded by throwing vegetables at the activists.
A Good Reason to Find a Replacement…
Metropolitan Opera will replace Olga Borodina with Lorraine Hunt Lieberson in their upcoming production of Berlioz’s Les Troyans, due to Borodina’s pregnancy.
9/11 Having an Impact on
Vocal Coaches
“I thought it was just me,” reported one New York vocal coach when asked if he too had been affected. Coaches everywhere are reporting that singers aren’t calling as often since 9/11 and that business has been off by as much as 50 percent.
Opera America’s 2003
Conference Announced
Opera Theatre of Saint Louis will host the 2003 conference June 13th-18th and will give the U.S. premiere of Jonathan Dove’s opera Flight.
The Third World Voice Congress
Held in Antalya Turkey from June 29th- July 3rd 2003, this conference is for otolaryngologists, singing teachers and other professionals to share their experience with voice science. Conferences, panels and audiovisual demonstrations will be held. The Congress is currently accepting papers, posters, and videos to be presented. Awards will be presented by the World Voice Consortium. For more information, visit the website at www.voice2003.org.
Vinson Cole Joins University of Washington
Tenor Vinson Cole, featured on the cover of CS magazine in our February issue on the topic of discrimination, is now a senior artist in residence at the University of Washington School of Music. He also a Seattle Opera Board trustee, teaching masterclasses for Seattle Opera’s Young Artists Program and serving as a member of the program’s advisory board. He has sung 15 roles at Seattle Opera in the last 14 years.
Arts Groups Receive $4M
from J.P. Morgan Chase
We’ve all heard that 9/11 cut into philanthropy, so it is welcome news to hear that New York arts groups will receive help. Lincoln Center is one of the recipients of the funding ($300,000).
