Latest news – Page 239
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Marvin Ayres to play cello, violin and viola on Nelson's HMS Victory
A British composer, violinist and cellist is recording on HMS Victory, the ship on which Admiral Nelson was killed during the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, reports BBC News. Marvin Ayres has been commissioned to compose and record on the ship by the National Museum of the Royal Navy. ...
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Iraqi youth orchestra to tour with cellist Julian Lloyd Webber in UK
The National Youth Orchestra of Iraq (NYOI) is to give a series of UK performances this August. The musicians will collaborate with cello soloist Julian Lloyd Webber and will perform a new concerto written for Iraqi oud player Khyam Allami. The NYOI will also work with members of the Edinburgh ...
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British cellist Oliver Coates wins Royal Philharmonic Society young artist award
British cellist Oliver Coates has won the young artists category at the Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) Music Awards. Coates is artist-in-residence at London's Southbank Centre, and has performed with the Aurora Orchestra, London Contemporary Orchestra and London Sinfonietta. Other RPS Music Award winners included composer Sally Beamish, who won ...
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Concert violinist and teacher Roman Totenberg dies at 101
The Polish-born American violinist and teacher Roman Totenberg has died at the age of 101. An acclaimed concert soloist, noted for his refined technique and musical taste, Totenberg was passionate about teaching, and served on the faculty at Boston University for half a century. Born in Lodz in 1911, ...
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Cellist Yo-Yo Ma wins Polar Music Prize
Yo-Yo Ma has been awarded this year's Polar Music Prize, Sweden's most prestigious music award. The cellist shared the prize with singer-songwriter Paul Simon. The two musicians each receive SEK1m (£90,000).The Polar Music Prize was founded in 1989 by Stig Anderson, who managed the pop group ABBA. The annual award ...
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Detroit Symphony Orchestra appoints Yoonshin Song as concertmaster
The Detroit Symphony Orchestra has appointed South Korean-born Yoonshin Song as its new concertmaster. The 30-year-old will join the orchestra this September, becoming its first new concertmaster for 24 years. Kimberly Kaloyanides Kennedy has been serving as acting concertmaster since May 2011, when Emmanuelle Boisvert left after 23 years as ...
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Eastman School violinist Zvi Zeitlin dies aged 80
Violinist and pedagogue Zvi Zeitlin has died at the age of 90. He taught at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, for more than 40 years. As a performer he toured internationally, gave the world premieres of concertos by Gunther Schuller and Paul Ben Haim, and championed ...
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German violinist Augustin Hadelich receives career development prize
German violinist Augustin Hadelich has received the 2012 Martin E. Segal Award, a $7,500 prize to support career development and further study. The award is given to artists associated with the Lincoln Center's resident arts organisations. Hadelich was nominated by the New York Philharmonic. The violinist received an Avery Fisher ...
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Queen Elisabeth Competition unveils media archives
The Queen Elisabeth Competition has unveiled an extensive collection of audio recordings and video footage to celebrate its 75th anniversary. The competition's revamped website features hundreds of archive audio performances by such violinists as Gidon Kremer, Ana Chumachenko and Zakhar Bron, as well as video footage of artists such as ...
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Ex-violin teacher accused of fondling student is jailed for four years after plea deal
A former violin teacher from Columbus, Georgia, has been sentenced to four years in prison, reports the Opelika-Auburn News. Mario Urbina, 46, was accused of fondling a female student in 2010, but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of interference with custody, as part of a plea bargain with prosecutors. ...
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Louisville Orchestra management and musicians sign temporary agreement
After 20 months of negotiations, the Louisville Orchestra and its musicians have signed an agreement that will mean the players will return to work for the start of the 2012–13 season. The deal calls for a one-year bridge contract with a longer contract to be determined by binding arbitration. ...
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Violinist Leonidas Kavakos will launch new Decca contract with Beethoven sonatas recording
Leonidas Kavakos has signed an exclusive recording deal with Decca Classics. The Greek violinist's first release on the label will be a set of the complete Beethoven sonatas, timed to coincide with his performance of the cycle at this summer's Salzburg Festival.The pianist on the new recording will be Enrico ...
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South African violinist Annake de Villiers found dead
South African violinist Annake de Villiers was found dead on Tuesday at her parents' home near Steynsrus. The 35-year-old was discovered with a single gunshot wound to her head. A gun was found near her body, and police do not suspect any foul play. South Africa's Channel 24 reported the ...
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Afghanistan student orchestra could perform at Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall in 2013
A youth orchestra from Afghanistan's National Institute of Music could be set to perform in New York and Washington DC next year, reports the New York Times. The institute's Afghan director, Ahmad Sarmast, and American musician William Harvey, who teaches violin at the school, want to bring around ...
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Cellists Natasha Brofsky and David Finckel to join Juilliard faculty
The Juilliard School has recruited cellists David Finckel and Natasha Brofsky. They will join the school's cello faculty and chamber music faculty this autumn. Finckel, who studied at Juilliard, recently announced that he will retire from the Emerson Quartet at the end of the 2012/13 season. Brofsky is the ...
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Tokyo Quartet to retire after 2012–13 season
The Tokyo Quartet has announced that it will retire at the end of the 2012–13 season. Second violinist Kikuei Ikeda and violist Kazuhide Isomura had already said last November that they would be stepping down from the group in June 2013, leaving violinist Martin Beaver and cellist Clive Greensmith with ...
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Extreme Cellists to run London Marathon carrying instruments
Three British cellists will run this Sunday's London Marathon with their cellos strapped to their backs. Clare Wallace, James Rees and Jeremy Dawson are aiming to raise £10,000 for spinal cord injury charity Aspire. The trio, known as the Extreme Cellists, has performed a range of other challenges, including the ...
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Violin dealer Geoffrey Fushi dies in Chicago
Geoffrey Fushi, who co-founded Chicago dealership Bein & Fushi with Robert Bein, has died at the age of 68. Fushi and Bein started their business in 1976. It grew to become one of the biggest names in the violin trade. Fushi also launched the Stradivari Society in 1985 with ...
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Violinist Sarah Chang held at Moscow airport owing to visa issue
Sarah Chang had her passport confiscated for two hours by immigration officials at Moscow airport who said there was a problem with her visa. The frustrated violinist posted a series of messages on Twitter:'Seriously, if there's a problem, send me home. Really. I haven't been home in months. Just ...
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American violinists Kenneth Arthur Renshaw and Kevin Zhu triumph in Menuhin contest
Americans Kenneth Arthur Renshaw and Kevin Zhu won the top prizes in their respective divisions at the Menuhin Competition in Beijing for violinists under the age of 22. Renshaw, 18, received the £6,000 first prize in the senior division. Zhu, 11, won the £4,000 first prize in the junior division. ...