William Eddins News
Last update
2024-04-26
Refresh
2021-06-03 06:23:15
High ambitions: Edinburgh International Festival's classical music programme for 2021
[…] a dramatic performance of Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale which will be unconducted, performed as large-scale chamber music. Chineke! will also be resident at the festival and they will be performing Judith Weir's song-cycle woman.life.song which was written for Jessye Norman and has never been performed in Scotland. The soloist will be Scotland-based mezzo-soprano Andrea Baker who was looking for a work that spoke about women's journey through life and career. The conductor will be William Eddins, who conducted Gershwin's Porgy and Bess at the festival a few years ago, and there will be a new piece by Ayanna Witter-Johnson in the programme too. Explore the full range of classical and contemporary music, traditional music, opera, theatre, dance and more at the festival's website, and details of the festival's digital programme will be announced in late June. The blog is free, but I'd be delighted if you […]
2020-12-14 08:00:40
You Can’t Spell Classical Music Without Classism
The latest entry in the realm of meaningful conversation about diversity in classical music comes from Robert Jackson Wood in the 12/10/2020 edition of The New Republic. Wood takes a different view on the topic by taking aim at those who help influence the discussion: critics (and by extension, media outlets). This is an absolute must-read (h/t Bill Eddins) and the author does a terrific job at adding a great deal ...
2020-07-21 23:00:00
Gilbert and Sullivan Operettas - Sir Malcolm Sargent
[…] overtures to other Gilbert & Sullivan operettas, and Sullivan's "serious," concert works -- don't contribute much to the compilation. Most feature conductors other than Sargent, and the performances range from fine to decidedly mediocre. Overall, though, the musical quality of Sargent's performances makes this a collection that should be of interest to any serious fan of Gilbert and Sullivan, and there are some complete works and individual performances that are genuinely transcendent. AllMusic Review - Stephen Eddins
2020-06-05 23:39:00
This Made Me Wince, a Lot.
[…] has or should have a pretty darned good idea of who is playing in its constituent orchestras (98% white or Asian or of Asian descent) and who the executives and staff of the constituent orchestras are. The CEOs are almost entirely white men, with a smattering of women. Off the top of my head, I know of maybe four orchestras currently led by Black conductors (Edmonton, Berkeley, Oakland, Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra). (Oh, wait, William Eddins is now Emeritus at Edmonton, sorry!)So this gives you an idea of why you get a lot of denial about the existence and impact of racism: if you're one of those who have the lowest possible difficulty setting, it's pretty easy to not notice the situation of other people. And it might take being hit over the head by an obvious police murder or ten (these go on all the time, people) and a lot […]