Butterfly Lovers Concerto evades thought police
For the first time ever, the Austin Symphony Orchestra featured the erhu. While the word is likely known to few readers, the sound it emits is at once recognizable as…
Can Robots Create Life-Changing Songs?
In a SXSW panel moderated by Bill Hochberg, music industry experts contemplated the role of artificial intelligence in the creation of songs. Hochberg, a specialist in music and media law,…
Current State of Classical Music: The Percentage Problems
“Classical music – the level of musicianship and artistry – has never been higher.” This optimistic start to a SXSW session on the state of classical music was made by…
Candlelight Series Features A Night with Sinatra
If you’re a fan of the late and great Rat Pack singer and all-time best crooner Frank Sinatra, this show will not disappoint you. The candlelight series is just a…
Felix III in Austin: I Chose Life
The recording artist Felix III debuted a smouldering song released the very week he made his appearance in Austin recently at The Vortex, during the annual Outsider Fest. “I was…
Lurleen Ladd – Holding the Torch for Female Musicians Over 40
Austin-based musician and performing singer-songwriter Lurleen Ladd is becoming the standard bearer for female musicians over 40 who are in a similar space. She started a dialogue and connected with…
World Premiere: The Sounds of Eternity
The symphony orchestral performance featuring the Turkememi conductor Farhkad Hudiyev and his extraordinary guest Mugham singer Alim Hamza Qasimov, a national living treasure of Azerbaijan, was sold out on March…
A Night of Mahler
Leonard Bernstein recorded it three times. Several distinguished critics have concluded it is a failure. Whichever side of the fence you are on (and few indeed can be found sitting…
Michelle Cann Dazzles at Symphony Concert
Michelle Cann was front and centre at the Austin Symphony this weekend. Fresh off two major awards in 2022 (the Sphinx medal of excellence, and the Andrew Wolf Chamber Music…
Sweeney Todd and Austin
We all know Austin is weird (just think of the local government response to the ice storm), but I did not realise until this week the fascination held by many…