Negin Khpolwak: Afghanistan’s First Female Conductor

Negin Khpolwak: Afghanistan’s First Female Conductor

As we continue to receive devastating news  as a result of the violence in the Middle East, it was wonderfully heartwarming and reassuring to read the BBC News story of Negin Khpolwak. She is only 17 years old but already has big talent – and big ambitions....

Monday Link Round Up: October 26, 2015

Some links to start your week: Earlier this month Kaija Saariaho was interviewed by the San Francisco Classical Voice discussing her role not only as a composer, but as an educator.  Read the full interview here. Mexican conductor Alondra de la Parra has been...
New Associate Conductor for LA Phil

New Associate Conductor for LA Phil

The Los Angeles Philharmonic has announced that Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla has been promoted from Assistant Conductor to Associate Conductor.  The LA Times has the story here. Gražinytė-Tyla, Lithuanian by birth, was a Dudamel Fellow in the 2012-2013 season, after already...
Featured Guest Blogger: Amy Zigler reviews “The Wreckers”

Featured Guest Blogger: Amy Zigler reviews “The Wreckers”

    Dr. Amy Zigler is Visiting Assistant Professor of Music at Salem College in Winston-Salem, NC.  She specializes in music of the 19th and 20th centuries, with a focus on the cultural study of chamber music, the social history of music in Germany and Great Britain,...

The Wreckers: An Opera for our Time

Ethel Smyth’s “The Wreckers” (1906) will receive its’ first staged US performance Friday night (July 24) at Bard Summerscape (total of 5 performances).  NPR’s All Things Considered aired a feature (available here)  about this historic performance (Musicologist...
Women-Only Conducting Workshops with Alice Farnham

Women-Only Conducting Workshops with Alice Farnham

It is hard to not be encouraged and inspired by the recent attention and action around the lack of opportunities for women conductors.  The momentum continues with the announcement that Alice Farnham will expand the workshop series she began in 2014 to provide even...