Word was just released about a new initiative spearheaded by the BBC in British primary schools to awaken youth to classical music, and to get them enthusiastic from a young age. The program, as described by the BBC, is to bring professional musicians into schools...
The current role, and expectations, of women in music have been in the headlines as of late—all surrounding reception of a recent production Der Rosenkavalier and the size (not the talent) of the singer playing Octavian. The critical reviews of acclaimed...
I recently learned about the only orchestra for blind women musicians in the world. Named Al Nour Wal Amal (Light and Hope), the blind woman orchestra of Egypt was founded in 1954. The ensemble has traveled the world and has taken great care in training these women...
Public Radio International (PRI) aired a story yesterday on Nazanin Aghakhani – the first woman to conduct an orchestra in Iran. Listen (or find the full text) here. Here is a clip from Aghakani’s YouTube page: A composer as well as a conductor, you...
Alex Ross has a great piece being published in the next New Yorker about Australian composer Liza Lim. Read the full piece here to learn more about Lim’s background as well as to get a sense of her musical style and how her song cycle “Mother Tongue”...
