September Competition

The winners of the September Competition, in which three Deutsche Grammophon Pluscores (see MusicTeachers.co.uk Journal September 2000) were Peter Gunstone, Louisa Hennessy and Ian McBride. The conductor of DG's recording of Dardanus by Jean-Philippe Rameau is Marc Minkowski and the virtuosi were André Previn and David Finck.

Courses

Music for Youth is looking for entrants to next Summer's National Festival of Music for Youth. There are no entry qualifications or fees, and there will be classes for all styles of music and all levels of attainment. The festival will tale place on the South Bank between 2 and 7 July, 2001. Application forms may be obtained from Music for Youth, 102 Mount Pleasant, London, SW18 1PP; tel.: 020 8870 9624; fax: 020 8870 9935; email mfy@mfy.org.uk; website: www.mfy.org.uk.

Competitions

In the Britten-on-the-Bay Composition Competition 2000, Category X is available for any entrant of any nationality who has passed the age of 21. The requirement is to compose a work for trombone, with or without piano accompaniment, that lasts no longer than 25 minutes. The deadline for submissions is 31 December 2000. The first prize is $250, a performance of the work in New York and its publication. Further information may be obtained from the BMIC, 10 Stratford Place, London WX1C 1BA; tel.: 020 7499 8567; fax 020 7499 4795.

Publishers and recording companies

The IFPI, which represents the recording industry, has announced that global sales of recorded music in the first six months of this year has increased by 2% in value on the same period in 1999. Worldwide, CD sales have shown a growth of 7%, the biggest yet, with the strongest increases in Europe and Asia. If there were any need for proof that the sales of cassettes is on the decline, this last 12-month period has seen a decline of 16%.

Jeunesses Musicales International (JMI) have announced a global educational initiative based on the children's opera Brundibár, by the Jewish Czech musician Hans Krasa, published by Tempo Praha and represented through Boosey & Hawkes/Bote & Bock.
Krasa wrote Brundibár as the storm clouds of persecution were spreading across Europe in the late 1930s. Premiered in secret at an orphanage in Prague, the work is most famous for its many subsequent performances at the Terezín concentration camp, where the composer, children and teachers were housed, en route to their doom. A performance for the visiting committee of the International Red Cross was captured on celluloid as part of a Hitler propaganda film, called Theresienstadt ein Dokumentarfilm aus dem jüdischen Siedlungsgebiet, intended to deflect attention from the Holocaust. The renewed popularity of Brundibár throughout the world acts as fitting recognition of the human tragedy of Terezín, and a testament to the creative spirit in the face of terrible adversity. Brimming with folk-inspired Czech melodies and rhythms, the 30-minute work is ideal for both professional and schools performance, and an English translation is available in the vocal score on sale.
Jeunesses Musicales International launched a promotional tour and community-based educational outreach programme in September 2000, designed to bring the opera and its message of tolerance and hope to thousands of children around the world. JMI has produced an educational package which includes a CD and a CD-ROM which interacts with the Brundibár website and contains extensive documentation in eight languages. Boosey & Hawkes is pleased to be funding the promotional tour and the creation and maintenance of the Brundibár website.
To officially launch the project, Jeunesses Musicales International took the opera on a European promotional tour from 28 September to 8 October 2000, with performances in Oslo, Lund, Copenhagen, The Hague, Barcelona, Paris, Brussels and London, under the direction of Michel Turkin.
Boosey & Hawkes is supporting the international promotion of the opera, which transcends the borders of race, nationality, language, historical experiences and suffering, to the benefit of younger generations across the world. Visit the website at www.jmi.net and www.brundibar.net

Boosey and Hawkes have released The Music Diary 2001, which is pocket-sized and full of useful information, including a table of foreign musical terms, a chronological survey of music during the 20th century and lists of record producers, concert halls and music publishers. Priced at £5.95, it is available from most good music retailers and comes in a variety of colours. For those of you who like to know useless information, such as which famous performer or composers were born on your birthday, you will not be disappointed. So don't forget that our editor and Marlene Dietrich share the same day (and probably the same year). www.boosey.com

Appointments

The English Chamber Orchestra has announced the appointment of Ralf Gothoni as its new principal conductor.

In an new initiative, The London Mozart Players have appointed actor Simon Callow as their theatrical adviser, who will work alongside Andrew Parrott in devising programmes for the orchestra that blend elements of theatre, narrative and orchestral repertoire.

Obituary

The American baritone Jess Walters has died at the age of 71. During an active career, he sang more than 650 roles at Covent Garden, including the title role in the English premiere of Berg's Wozzeck.