January 17, 2008

Nicola Benedetti - and the Jacksonville Symphony

Yes, there are TWO entries today.

With our business being what it is and the media being what "it" is, there have been many articles talking about how women have been gaining ground in classical music. In the the first, printed in the Denver Post, writer Kyle McMillan asserts that "It doesn't hurt that along with enormous talent these young women possess no shortage of sex appeal, something not lost on market-savvy concert presenters and record companies." This statement is somewhat agreed to later in the article by a very prominent musician, one who is included in this article.
Marketing and musicmaking being the subject of much debate (sigh), it was very interesting and refreshing to read a recent article about Nicola Benedetti, who is also mentioned in the Denver Post.

In this article from the Los Angeles Times Mark Swed, while commenting on Ms. Benedetti's frustrations that people speak more about her beauty than her musicmaking, asserts that Ms. Benedetti "deserves credit for tenaciously sticking to her art", adding that "she's certainly earned the right to be taken seriously." Having heard a few of Ms. Benedetti's performances, I have to agree, as well as thank Mr. Swed for being quite frank about the "state of the state", as it is.

In other news, the Jacksonville Symphony seems to have come to a settlement. Read on.


No comments: