March 2010

photo: Felix Broede / DG

Van Walsum Management is delighted to announce the signing for general management of violinist Daniel Hope

Beyond his distinguished and enterprising career as a solo violinist, Daniel Hope spent six seasons as the youngest violinist of the Beaux Arts Trio and is active as a festival director, author and broadcaster. The Observer has described him as “the most exciting British string player since Jacqueline du Pré,” while, in the words of the New York Times, he is: “... a violinist of probing intellect and commanding style… a compelling performer whose work involves standard repertory, new music, raga, and jazz… In his most personal undertakings, he puts classical works within a broader context – not just among other styles and genres but amid history, literature, and drama – to emphasize music’s role as a mirror for struggle and aspiration.”

Van Walsum’s Chairman, Stephen Wright, commented: “We are very happy to be developing, with Daniel, the wide scope of his creative musical activities - and also believe that these will be effectively partnered by Van Walsum’s own range of varied management services”.

Click here to read the press release from 12 March 2010 in full.

photo: Mathias Bothor

Van Walsum Management is delighted to announce the signing for worldwide management of conductor Gustavo Dudamel

Stephen Wright, Chairman of Van Walsum Management, announced today that Gustavo Dudamel has moved his general management to VWM with immediate effect. Commenting on this widely reported move, Wright said that Gustavo Dudamel “was joining one of the world’s most creative, stimulating and innovative agencies” and added that Dudamel would be benefiting, as all artists on the VWM roster, from its comprehensive, new and exciting opportunities in the areas of artist management, orchestral tours and multimedia. Together with senior management team members Costa Pilavachi (Executive Vice Chairman), Peter Savory (Head of Projects and Tours) and Mark Newbanks (Head of Artist Management), VWM prides itself on providing highly individual and creative management services to today’s generation of artists.

Click here to read the press release from 9 March 2010 in full.

photo: Herbie Yamaguchi

Van Walsum Management is delighted to announce the signing for worldwide management of conductor Kazushi Ono.

Stephen Wright, Chairman of Van Walsum, says:

“I am delighted that Kazushi Ono is joining Van Walsum for worldwide management. For many years now, I have both admired, and enjoyed, his passionate and elegant conducting.”

The Financial Times has praised Ono’s ability to combine “sheer excitement with breadth of vision and exquisite timing,” while the New York Times, reviewing his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2007, observed that: “People on both sides of the footlights seemed impressed by Kazushi Ono’s conducting, filled with a musical energy narrowed and pinpointed by elegant technique.” At the end of March 2010 he returns to the Metropolitan Opera, New York, to conduct Der fliegende Holländer together with performances of Stravinsky’s Le Rossignol at the Aix-en-Provence Festival this summer and Verdi’s Nabucco at the Bayerische Staatsoper in 10/11.

Click here to read the press release from 1 March 2010 in full.

photo: Guy Vivien

This month François-Frédéric Guy embarks on a nine concert tour of Australia. After a piano recital of Beethoven and Chopin he travels to Brisbane to perform Brahms’ Piano Concerto No 2 with the Queensland Orchestra conducted by Johannes Fritzsch. In Sydney he performs Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No 5, The Emperor, with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra conducted by Alexander Briger and in Perth performs the same work with the Western Australian Symphony Orchestra conducted by Paul Daniel.

President Barack Obama presented Michael Tilson Thomas the National Medal for Arts last month. He received the award for his 'outstanding achievements and support of the arts', along with such stars as Bob Dylan and Clint Eastwood. The medals, regarded as the nation’s highest honour for artistic excellence, were presented by the President and Mrs Michele Obama in an East Room ceremony at the White House.

photo: Benjamin Ealovega

Nicholas Collon has conducted a new work, the Knight Crew by Julian Phillips for Glyndebourne Youth Opera this month with Gareth Malone as chorus master. The creation of this work from its early audition stages through to performance has been recorded for a television documentary by the BBC and this ambitious children’s education project featured in a full length article in The Spectator in February. ‘Add to the mix Es Devlin's ingenious stage design and Nicholas Collon's excellent, transparent conducting and the overall effect was exhilarating, and not a little humbling’. (The Guardian)

photo: Jaroslaw Deluga-Gora

Continuing his celebration of the 200th anniversary of Frédéric Chopin’s birth, Antoni Wit is conducting the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra in Poland with performances of Bellini’s Norma, the theme of the concert performances being Bellini in the time of Chopin.

photo: D. Vass

In anticipation of taking up his post as Principal Conductor of the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra in September, Pablo González conducts the orchestra in a performance of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No 5, The Emperor with VWM artist Javier Perianes and Shostakovich’s Symphony No 10.

photo: Frank Hülsbröhmer

Hugh Wolff returns for concerts with the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg and the Dresden Philharmonic. In Luxembourg he conducts works by Brahms and is joined by Viviane Hagner for Bruch’s Violin Concerto No 1. His Dresden programme includes Spohr’s rarely performed Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra in A minor.

photo: Uwe Arens/Sony Classical

François Leleux is in Aarhus and Viborg with the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra. He play/conducts performances of Mozart’s Oboe Concerto and his own arrangements of Mozart arias from The Magic Flute and Don Giovanni.

photo: Anders Krison

Sharon Bezaly has been re-invited to perform with the Lahti Symphony Orchestra in its hometown in Finland this month and also returns to the Seoul Philharmonic. With both orchestras she performs the Khachaturian Flute Concerto, a work she recorded in February for the BIS label.

photo: Marco Borggreve

Gérard Korsten makes his début with the Leipzig Gewandhausorchester in performances including the Elgar Cello Concerto with Marie-Elisabeth Hecker, Haydn Symphony No 94, The Surprise and Mendelssohn Symphony No 1.

photo: Sheila Rock

Semyon Bychkov conducts the London Symphony Orchestra later this month in a programme that includes Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No 2 with Denis Matsuev and Brahms’ Symphony No 4.

photo: Nicolas Ruel

Kent Nagano is currently in Munich where he conducts an exciting new production of Les dialogues des Carmélites and a revival of Don Giovanni for the Bayerische Staatsoper at the National Theatre. Performances continue into April.