ICM and IMG Make Changes
ICM Artists has changed its name to the more distinctive Opus 3 Artists Management, say reports. Rival management firm IMG Artists has also made some changes, says playbillarts.com, reporting that the firm has brought formerly independent manager Tanja Dorn on board as a vice president. The seven artists on her roster are now part of IMG. Another new executive, Thia Knowlton, formerly worked at Golden Land Concerts. As of August, she will be IMG’s southern territory booking manager, said the report.
www.sciencedaily.com
NYC Group Provides Services for Early Music Organizations
Gotham Early Music Scene, GEMS, is a new organization whose mission is to provide much needed services for New York City’s early music groups for very modest fees, reports the New York Times. GEMS expects to assist amateur and professional musicians, ensembles, and church organizations. Many of these organizations use singers. Some of the concerts organized and promoted by GEMS are meant to attract presenters from regional theaters as well as local music lovers. Interest from theater presenters in various parts of the country could enable NYC musicians to tour, said the report.
www.gemsny.org
www.nytimes.com/2007/05/31/arts/music/31earl.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
German Festival Plays Verdi on Period Instruments
We don’t think of Verdi’s Falstaff as early music, but the instruments in use at the time Verdi composed the opera do not sound quite the same as their modern descendants. At the Whitsun Festival’s production of the opera in Baden-Baden, Germany, 62 of the orchestra’s 80 players used instruments made in the 1890s, reports the BBC.
You can get an idea of these instruments’ somewhat different sound by sampling a period instrument recording of the opera, such as the one made by John Eliot Gardiner.
www.bbc.co.uk/music/release/wgbd
www.deccaclassics.com/artists/gardiner/falstaff_feature.html
Beverly Sills Succumbs to Lung Cancer at 78
Dubbed “America’s Queen of Opera” by Time magazine, Beverly Sills was one of the most well-known opera singers of the ‘60s and ‘70s. She died on July 2, 2007 after a battle with lung cancer. During an era when most American singers were busy advancing their careers abroad, Sills intentionally stayed at home for family reasons, making her career at the then enterprising but second-tier New York City Opera. Her deep commitment to the arts, charismatic persona, and business savvy kept her in the operatic spotlight even after her retirement from the operatic stage in 1980. She served as general manager of New York City Opera, became chairwoman of the Lincoln Center, and eventually the Metropolitan Opera. An icon in the operatic industry for her work both on and off the stage, Beverly Sills leaves a long legacy not soon to be forgotten.
www.opera-l.org
Katharina Wagner Submits Bid for Bayreuth Top Job
The illustrious German Wagner festival is currently run by Wolfgang Wagner, 87, a grandson of the composer who has been given the position for life or until he chooses to retire. He has already tried to pass the job along to his wife, Gudrun, but she proved unacceptable to shareholders.
This summer their daughter, Katharina, is seeking the position. She has already directed the new production of Die Meistersinger, and if that is successful with both critics and audiences, there is a good chance she will take over from her father, says rawstory.com.
http://rawstory.com
