Analekta, the largest independent classical music label in Canada, is now an Apple Music Curator.  In addition to sharing its own classical music knowledge and expertise in the form of thematic playlists, it will also call upon its artists to curate playlists of their own favourite music and share on Apple Music.  Analekta will propose an initial selection of 17 playlists based on themes such as Classical Sunday Brunch, Weekend Music, Classical Music For Roadtrip and others focusing on the repertoire of some of its artists, such as Angèle Dubeau, Charles Richard-Hamelin and Alain Lefèvre.  New playlists based on moods and activities will be added throughout the year.  

Analekta's president and founder, François Mario Labbé, said: "We are very happy to become an Apple Music Curator.  We have a rich catalogue and we will provide tasteful and inspired playlists, and an outstanding listening experience for those who enjoy classical music."

Founded in 1987, Analekta was one of the pioneers in the classical music industry to invest on the digital platforms, including the development of a leading website which allowed consumers to listen to its complete music catalogue, as well as offering them the possibility to download files in MP3 and FLAC digital formats. Throughout the years, its recordings have received numerous national and international awards and Gold certifications for sales in Canada.  Analekta recently announced that the musical works from its catalogue have now been streamed 100 million times. VIEW Analekta's Itunes Profile

 

p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Arial} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Arial; min-height: 11.0px} PCPA plans a 54th season of world-rocking plays and musicals from November 2017 through September 2018. PCPA's Artistic Director Mark Booher says, "We're thrilled to be bringing a season of plays that we trust will engage our audience in new ways, through stories of genuine transformation and electrifying discovery. This is our time to use great theatre to reflect, connect, and illuminate the path forward. As we all encounter the unprecedented trials and possibilities of modern life, we'll be presenting new-fashioned classics to ground us and sizzling new work to help us soar. We're counting on the Central Coast community to rise up with us." Launching the season November 9, and playing through December 23, in the Marian Theatre is the Disney musical Freaky Friday. When an overworked mother and her contrary teenage daughter magically swap bodies, they have just one day to put things right again before mom's big wedding.  In this hilarious modern day fairytale based on two Disney hit movies, a mother and daughter really see what it is to be a family and experience each other's lives first-hand, if only for a day.  Freaky Friday is a delightfully entertaining musical for anyone with a perfectly imperfect family. PCPA has announced its slate of plays and musicals for its 54th season, from November 2017 through September 2018. Four of the shows are getting runs at the Solvang Festival Theater. "We're thrilled to be bringing a season of plays that we trust will engage our audience in new ways, through stories of genuine transformation and electrifying discovery. This is our time to use great theater to reflect, connect, and illuminate the path forward. As we all encounter the unprecedented trials and possibilities of modern life, we'll be presenting new-fashioned classics to ground us and sizzling new work to help us soar," said PCPA Artistic Director Mark Booher. Launching the season Nov. 9 in the Marian Theatre is the Disney musical "Freaky Friday." When an overworked mother and her contrary teenage daughter magically swap bodies, they have just one day to put things right again before mom's big wedding. Based on two Disney movies, a mother and daughter really see what it is to be a family and experience each other's lives first-hand. READ THE FULL Santa Ynez Valley News ARTICLE

 

Members of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble provided an open workshop at The Music District in Fort Collins on Tuesday. The musicians were cellist Mike Block, percussionist Shane Shanahan and flutist Kaoru Watanabe. The workshop was part of the Silk Road Ensemble's circuit in Colorado. The circuit began Monday at New Belgium with a screening of Yo-Yo Ma's documentary "The Music of Strangers" and will continue through the week with a performance on Friday at The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park on Friday and a children's show at The Music District on Saturday. READ THE FULL Rocky Mountain Collegian ARTICLE   p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Arial} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Arial; min-height: 11.0px}

 

Surprisingly, composer Edgar Meyer was not nervous. His new work, "Overture for Violin and Orchestra," was being played for the first time by Joshua Bell and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields on Thursday to the delight of a nearly packed house to start Bravo! Vail's 30th season. Meyer commented during intermission at Vail's opening night at the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater. "Well, I've been hearing it all week in rehearsal, so I just tried to enjoy it,"  after his piece premiered. "It's been a joy getting to know the Academy. I've known Josh for three decades, and it's been a joy." READ THE FULL Vail Daily News REVIEW

 

Pairing Bruckner's Symphony No 3 with Wagner's Tannhäuser Overture, this album launches Deutsche Grammophon's new Bruckner Symphony cycle featuring Grammy-winning conductor Andris Nelsons and the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. To highlight not only Wagner's influence on Bruckner, but also the differences between the two composers, selected works by Wagner will be included in each release in the cycle. The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra led by Andris Nelsons: Bruckner & Wagner on Deutsche Grammophon is the WFMT: Chicago - Featured Track for Thursday June 22, 2017. Featured track is  - Wagner: Tannhäuser: Overture (15:11)   p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Arial} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Arial; min-height: 11.0px}

 

On the latest release from Rachel Barton Pine, Bel Canto Paganini: 24 Caprices and other Works for Solo Violin, the violinist plays all of the 24 famed Paganini Caprices, plus a few other works by the virtuoso composer. She sees them as much more than just flashy examples of what the instrument is capable of, especially after deciding to play all the repeats that Paganini indicated. "All of these years, I've been striving to treat Paganini's music with just as much respect as any other serious composer," she says. "Not to treat his Caprices as mere fireworks, just showy pieces, but really to find the musicality in each one, and what its character is. If I were recording Beethoven or Schubert, or anybody else from the early 1800s, I would pay attention to what repeats they indicated. And Paganini is very specific, sometimes he wants repeats of the first and second half, sometimes only the first half… So he obviously meant it, it wasn't just there for convention's sake." Making that decision has helped her discover hidden depths to the Caprices. "It makes you learn things about them. Certain ones are longer, the proportions between them are different, and you know, the onus is on the performer, on me, to make sure that I can sustain the interest with doing certain repeats and hearing the music again, but the music is great enough that it really does sustain that."  Pine decided one way to help be faithful to the spirit of Paganini was to think of vocal lines. "I actually coached with an Italian opera coach because Paganini's music comes from the same time as Rossini and Verdi and all of those quys. And so I wanted to make sure that it had that flavor." Listen to Pine full interview with KDFC: San Francisco - State of the Arts host, Jeffrey Freymann    p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica}

Interview with KDFC's Jeff Freymann

 

Requiem For My Mother by acclaimed composer Stephen Edwards was a ground breaking event, staged in one of the most beautiful and sacred places in the world, the Basilica of St. Ignatius of Loyola in Rome. Featuring the 160-voice Continuo Arts Symphonic Chorus, including their 60-member children's choir, and the 50 piece City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, under the direction of Candace Wicke, the 11-movement work commemorates Edwards mother, and her influence on him – both personally and professionally – from his first music lessons as a child to his career as a professional film score composer. "I wrote Requiem For My Mother as a remembrance for my mother, Rosalie Edwards, whose passion for music transformed my life and was my constant inspiration. I began the Requiem as a way of dealing with my deep sense of loss at my mother's death in 2006" Edwards said. Requiem earned high praise from acclaimed composer John Williams, who calls the work "heart-felt and honest," and "a touching tribute to a Mother from a loving son."   The audio recording / CD has been receving great airplay on radio stations throuout the US. In conjunction Edwards will be interviewing with outlets nationally and in local cities including - Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Toledo, Lafayette IN, Interlochen MI and Richmond VA. Watch for our tweet-updates throughot the day.