Alexander Shelley Featured on "Fred Plotkin on Fridays"

The celebrated conductor Alexander Shelley appeared on the IDAGIO show “Fred Plotkin on Fridays.” The author of Opera 101 and Classical Music 101, Plotkin is a passionate opera expert who speaks with fascinating people in the music world every Friday.

In this episode, Plotkin speaks with the distinguished English conductor, currently serving as the Music Director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa and Principal Associate Conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London. Shelley is also the music director of the Naples Philharmonic (Florida), incoming principal conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, and incoming music director of the Pacific Symphony.

Born in 1979 to concert pianist parents, Shelley studied cello and conducting in Germany before winning first prize at the 2005 Leeds Conductors Competition, which marked the start of his acclaimed international career. A passionate and articulate advocate for the role of music in society, Shelley has spearheaded multiple ground-breaking projects, unlocking creativity in the next generation and bringing symphonic music to new audiences.

Listen to the conversation here.

Sandbox Percussion Featured on KMTV, Nebraska

Sandbox Percussion, which the New York Times has called “exhilarating” and the Guardian “utterly mesmerizing,” appeared at KANEKO, in Omaha, to perform brand-new music by Andy Akiho, who joined the quartet on steelpan.

For this new piece, as a quintet, they're building on the success of their Grammy-nominated and Pulitzer Prize-finalist work Seven Pillars, which has captivated audiences across 40+ performances worldwide, from Paris to Beijing.

The performance gave Omaha audiences the first glimpse into their new project, brought to life at KANEKO, whose unique creative environment is shaping the new piece. The event was previewed by KMTV 3 News Now.

"A lot of the sounds we're making on these instruments are ones that you wouldn't always necessarily hear. We have some wooden sticks on a vibraphone," Victor Caccese, from Sandbox Percussion, said.

Watch the full segment here.

Marin Alsop Joins PENTATONE Roster

(Credit: Andrej Grilc)

PENTATONE is proud to announce that Marin Alsop, one of the foremost conductors of our time and a powerful and inspiring voice, has joined the label’s roster of distinguished artists. Among the recording plans that will form part of this new partnership are extensive symphonic surveys of Mahler and Shostakovich. Alsop will become the first woman conductor ever to record these surveys.

“I’ve had the great honor of working with Marin Alsop for two decades, including as a composer under her baton, and in helping guide her wide and diverse recording strategy,” said Sean Hickey, the label’s managing director. “We welcome her to PENTATONE and we look forward to shaping her legacy further in the coming years with new recordings of timeless orchestral music.”

“I’m delighted to join the roster of a record label as respected as PENTATONE,” said Alsop, who has been making acclaimed recordings since the early 1990s, championing not only European classics but also American composers and contemporary music. Alsop is Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Polish National Radio Symphony, Principal Guest Conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, and Principal Guest Conductor of London’s Philharmonia Orchestra, among other appointments. “These symphonic surveys will be a thrilling undertaking, and I am confident that this wonderful music will reach new audiences around the world with PENTATONE’s support,” she added.

The Mahler symphony cycle will feature both the Philharmonia and the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, demonstrating Alsop’s close relationship with the two ensembles and showcasing their unique sound and performing traditions.

The first recording planned for release is Mahler’s poignant Symphony No. 9 — his last completed symphony — with the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, for which Alsop served as Chief Conductor from 2019 to 2025. She is now Honorary Conductor with the orchestra. The recording is scheduled to be released by the end of 2027.

More details on this and Alsop’s other upcoming recording projects on PENTATONE will be announced soon. 

(Credit: Grant Leighton)

Alsop is a visionary leader and a passionate advocate for the transformative power of music. She is celebrated for her innovative programming, dedication to audience engagement, and commitment to education. Alsop has broken barriers throughout her career, becoming the first woman to lead major orchestras in the United States, South America, Austria, and Great Britain. As The New York Times aptly described, she is “a formidable musician and a powerful communicator,” and “a conductor with a vision.” 

Her discography comprises more than 200 titles, some of which have been recognized by BBC Music and have received Emmy nominations, in addition to GRAMMY, Classical BRIT, and Gramophone awards. She has recorded works from the standard repertoire and by a variety of contemporary composers. Her recordings include releases by Decca, Harmonia Mundi, and Sony Classical, as well as acclaimed Naxos cycles of Brahms with the London Philharmonic, Dvořák with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and Prokofiev with the São Paulo Symphony. Her 2024 album featuring John Adams’ City Noir, performed by the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, was nominated for a Best Orchestral Performance GRAMMY Award. Her latest album is Abstractions, featuring music by Anna Clyne and performances by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (Naxos). Other recent releases include a live account of Candide with the London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus; a Kevin Puts collection with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra; a Margaret Brouwer collection and a complete Schumann symphonic cycle for Naxos, and the world premiere recordings of two concertos by Malek Jandali for Cedille Records, all with the Vienna RSO. 

One of the leading classical music labels in the world, PENTATONE presents a diverse range of world-class artists, and is dedicated to premium quality productions captured in exceptional sound. Alsop joins a renowned lineup that includes conductors Vladimir Jurowski, René Jacobs and Esa-Pekka Salonen, singers Piotr Beczala, Lisette Oropesa, Javier Camarena, Ian Bostridge and Magdalena Kožená, pianists Pierre-Laurent Aimard and Francesco Piemontesi, cellist Alisa Weilerstein, guitarist Sean Shibe and renowned ensembles that include the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and the Czech Philharmonic. 

Postcard from Sun Valley: Sun Valley Music Festival Featured in "The Strad"

“The Sun Valley Music Festival is a unique experience where visitors can hear free concerts performed by first-rate musicians in a beautiful setting,” reports Emma Baker, editor from The Strad, who visited the festival this past summer. That setting is in Sun Valley, central Idaho, 130 miles north of the border with Nevada, and about 5,945 feet above sea level.

The festival is in its 41st season, and for 31 years it has been in the hands of its music director, the globetrotting Alasdair Neale. The Sun Valley Music Festival orchestra is made up of top players and section principals from major U.S. ensembles, such as the Buffalo and Rochester philharmonics, and the Colorado, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Seattle symphonies, among others. Most return year after year.

Read the full piece here.

For Your GRAMMY® Consideration

Clients are listed in alphabetical order by category:

—Best Orchestral Performance—

Coleridge-Taylor 
Michael Repper, Curtis Stewart, National Philharmonic 


—Best Choral Performance—

Beloved featuring Anne Akiko Meyers
Los Angeles Master Chorale, Grant Gershon

Chamber Music by James Joyce, Vol. 1
Desmond Earley, Choral Scholars of University College Dublin, Solstice Ensemble


—Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance—

Philip Glass: Echorus
Anne Akiko Meyers, Aubree Oliverson, Academy Virtuosi from the Colburn School 

Woodland Songs: Music of Jerod Impichcha̱achaaha' Tate, Pura Fé, and Dvořák
Dover Quartet

Dvořák & Price: Piano Quintets
Marc-André Hamelin, Takács Quartet

French Impressions: Chamber Music by Chausson & Tailleferre
Rachel Barton Pine, Pacifica Quartet, Orion Weiss

Andy Akiho: Pentalateral I
Sandbox Percussion, Andy Akiho


—Best Classical Instrumental Solo—

Philip Glass: Violin Concerto No. 1
Anne Akiko Meyers, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Gustavo Dudamel

Michael Daugherty: Blue Electra from Michael Daugherty: Blue Electra, Last Dance at the Surf, & To the New World
Anne Akiko Meyers, Albany Symphony, David Alan Miller

Haochen Zhang Plays Beethoven and Liszt
Haochen Zhang

Karen LeFrak: Miami Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra from ROMÁNTICO
Sharon Isbin, Enrico Lopez-Yañez

Beethoven: Hammerklavier Piano Sonatas Op 106 & Op 2 No 3
Marc-André Hamelin

3 Selections from “24 Negro Melodies” from Coleridge-Taylor
Curtis Stewart, Michael Repper

Stories (re)Traced
Nancy Zhou

J. S. Bach: The Complete Violin Concertos
James Ehnes, National Arts Centre Orchestra

Corelli Violin Sonatas, Op. 5
Rachel Barton Pine, David Schrader, John Mark Rozendaal, Brandon Acker

Shostakovich Preludes & Fugues, Op. 87
Yulianna Avdeeva


—Best Classical Compendium—

Beloved
Anne Akiko Meyers, Los Angeles Master Chorale, Grant Gershon

Michael Daugherty: Blue Electra / Last Dance at the Surf / To the New World
Anne Akiko Meyers, Albany Symphony, David Alan Miller

A Century of New Sounds
Dover Quartet, Imani Winds, Kristin Andlauer, Justin Bernardi, Dasara Beta, Maya Anjali Buchanan, Matthew Christakos, Diogo Fernandes, Emmalena Huning, Sumin Kim, Ania Lewis, Delvan Lin, Daniel Matsukawa, Tae McLoughlin, Katherine Needleman, David Shifrin, Noah Urquidi, Patrick Williams, Jiacheng Xiong, Amy Yang, Natalie Zhu

Cerrone: Don’t Look Down
Sandbox Percussion, Conor Hanick, Elspeth Davis

Censored Anthems
Ian Niederhoffer, Aubree Oliverson, Parlando

ROMÁNTICO
Karen LeFrak, Sharon Isbin, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Enrico Lopez-Yañez


—Best Contemporary Classical Composition—

Billy Childs: In the Arms of the Beloved featuring Anne Akiko Meyers

Michael Daugherty: Blue Electra featuring Anne Akiko Meyers

Philip Glass: New Chaconne featuring Anne Akiko Meyers

Jerod Impichcha̱achaaha' Tate: "Woodland Songs" featuring the Dover Quartet

Karen LeFrak: Miami Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra from ROMÁNTICO

Andy Akiho: Pentalateral I featuring Sandbox Percussion

Chris Cerrone: Don’t Look Down featuring Sandbox Percussion


—Best Engineered Album, Classical—

Karen LeFrak: ROMÁNTICO
Gintas Norvila, Jennifer Nulsen

Coleridge-Taylor
Rick Jacobsohn, Jeanne Velonis

Cerrone: Don’t Look Down featuring Sandbox Percussion
Mike Tierney, Alex Conroy  


—Producer Of The Year, Classical—

Coleridge-Taylor featuring Michael Repper
Judith Sherman


—Best Arrangement, Instrumental, or A Cappella—

Deep River from Coleridge-Taylor 
Curtis Stewart, Hamilton Berry 


—Best Album Notes—

Coleridge-Taylor
Michael Repper

Click here for the official First Round GRAMMY® voting guide from the Recording Academy.

"Music in the Rockies": Bravo! Vail, Anne-Marie McDermott, and Yulianna Avdeeva featured on Pianist magazine

Pianist magazine (October/November 2025)

Founded in 1987, Bravo! Vail Music Festival has grown from a small chamber-music series into a six-week orchestral festival, with supporting events, chamber recitals, and masterclasses. Erica Worth, editor of Pianist magazine, visited Bravo! Vail in the summer of 2025; she reports on this classical music haven high up on the Rocky Mountains for the October/November issue of the magazine.

“In contrast to European festivals which seem to attract a global public, the Vail vibe is decidedly American, at least for now. 'You're right, it's a domestic audience,' replied [executive director since Caitlin] Murray, when I raised the issue with her. 'However, Vail as a whole is an international tourist destination. We added our fourth orchestra almost a decade ago, with the aim of making the festival more international. In the 2025 season, we have had five orchestras from three continents. And in terms of the level and the quality of music that happens here, well - let's be "The American Verbier!"'

Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater

“A festival is only as good as its artistic director. At Bravo! Vail, it’s the charismatic American pianist Anne-Marie McDermott in charge... During that time, she has increased the visibility of female composers, and introduced composer-focused 'Immersive Experiences' as well as fully staged opera productions. In both concerts and masterclasses, she takes an active role at the festival as well as setting its tone.

“On my first evening, Yulianna Avdeeva made me sit up and listen with fresh ears to Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1. This was a strong, muscular account from the outset, decisive and full-bodied... She brought a pearly touch to the slow movement when she took over from the opening flute solo, and in the third movement she demonstrated admirable imagination as well as technique when voicing the lyrical second thee, before really going for it in the torrents of octaves at the climax.”

McDermott (credit: Sophie Zhai); Avdeeva (credit: Kevin Kinzley)

Read the full piece here.

Seattle Chamber Music Society Acquires The Concert Truck

Move Furthers SCMS Mission of Making Classical Music More Accessible to All

Photos available here
Courtesy: Seattle Chamber Music Society

Seattle, Sept. 29, 2025 — Seattle Chamber Music Society (SCMS) has acquired The Concert Truck, a traveling music venue that presents concerts across the country and redefines how people experience live music. By converting a box truck into a fully equipped mobile concert hall, complete with lights, a sound system, and a grand piano, The Concert Truck brings world-class classical music directly into city streets, festivals, schools, neighborhoods, parks, and other everyday spaces. Now, as a core element of SCMS’s programming, The Concert Truck can further advance accessibility, engagement, and artistic excellence with renewed support, turning spontaneous outdoor moments into lasting connections with the community.

“We believe classical music is vibrant, magnetic, and belongs in everyday life,” says John Holloway, SCMS’s Dr. Oliver E. Cobb Executive Director. “By welcoming The Concert Truck and its visionary co-founder, Susan Zhang, into our organization, we are putting our money where our mouth is—investing in the future of classical music and partnering with organizations nationwide to bring world-class performances to wherever you can think to park a truck. We’ve seen firsthand how performances in public spaces can inspire new audiences to become ticket buyers, and we’re committed to sharing that blueprint so organizations across the country can turn community encounters into lasting support for classical music,” he adds.

Pianist Susan Zhang created The Concert Truck with pianist Nick Luby in 2016. Since its founding, The Concert Truck has partnered with leading arts organizations including the Kennedy Center’s Washington National Opera, Gilmore Piano Festival, Piano Cleveland, the Aspen Music Festival and School, and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Guest artists who have performed aboard The Concert Truck include James Ehnes, Lawrence Brownlee, Ursula Oppens, Shaun Martin, and Jerome Lowenthal.

“Chamber music is a remarkably flexible art form—it thrives anywhere people gather,” says James Ehnes, Gilbert Omenn and Martha Darling Artistic Director of SCMS. “One of the most powerful ways to show people that this music belongs to them is to bring it directly into their daily lives. The Concert Truck makes that possible in the most joyful and immediate way.”

The Concert Truck (Sean Scheidt)

Now at SCMS, Zhang will continue to lead the program as the Maryanne Tagney Director of The Concert Truck, while Opus 3 Artists will continue to handle booking and artist management. In addition to sharing original programming with local communities, The Concert Truck will continue to be available to leading performing arts organizations and musicians to use as a stage in their communities, strengthening their relationships with the audiences they serve. During September and October alone, The Concert Truck is booked to present performances at a Juvenile Probation Center, a winery, parks, museums, performing arts centers, and dozens of schools for students of all ages.

“Being part of Seattle Chamber Music Society is a powerful step forward in our mission to make classical music a vital, living part of today’s culture,” says Zhang. “We’re not just expanding access — we’re reimagining where and how people experience this art form. There’s a raw, magnetic energy when brilliant musicians perform in unexpected places. It breaks classical music out of the concert hall and into the heartbeat of the community. These performances help people see themselves in the music — and that’s how we build a future where classical music isn’t just preserved, but pulsing through the cultural zeitgeist for decades to come.”

Both organizations have been committed to inspiring the next generation of artists and music lovers through opportunities in education. In addition to playing for thousands of students and creating specialized programming for children across the country, The Concert Truck team co-created an online children’s program with the Four Seasons Chamber Music Festival that has reached more than 55,000 students in North Carolina public schools. The Concert Truck has been continually engaged by institutions including Rice University and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, mentoring young artists in community engagement and entrepreneurship.

The Concert Truck acquisition is made possible by the generous leadership support of Maryanne Tagney. Learn more about The Concert Truck’s Fall Tour here.

About Seattle Chamber Music Society

The mission of Seattle Chamber Music Society is to cultivate a deep appreciation for chamber music by presenting exceptional performances in welcoming and accessible formats. Through education, community engagement, and a commitment to excellence, SCMS seeks to position chamber music as a central cultural force, both locally and globally, while ensuring its enduring relevance and sustainability. 

Each year, SCMS presents a Winter Festival in January and a Summer Festival in July at the Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya Hall, bringing the world’s finest classical musicians to the stage. These intimate chamber music performances captivate both seasoned enthusiasts and newcomers alike. In addition to its renowned festivals, SCMS offers an expanded year-round lineup, including the new Signature Series, Crescendo Concerts in Seattle’s most stunning homes, and Concerts at the Center for Chamber Music, providing unparalleled access to extraordinary musical experiences. 

SCMS also enriches the community through dynamic engagement programs designed for audiences of all ages. From inspiring young learners in elementary schools to enriching lives in retirement communities, and from performances in hospitals and parks to concerts on wheels, SCMS remains steadfast in its mission to bring world-class chamber music to every corner of our community. seattlechambermusic.org 

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Media contact:

Matt Herman, Managing Director
8VA Music Consultancy
New York | Los Angeles | Berlin
matt@8vamusicconsultancy.com

Calgary's "The Scene" Looks ahead at 2025 Honens International Piano Competition

The next edition of the triennial Honens International Piano Competition, one of the world’s most prestigious events of its kind, takes place this October. The Scene, from Calgary, recently caught up with Jon Kimura Parker, artistic director of Honens, and Illia Ovcharenko, the Laureate of 2022 Competition. “We’re not just looking for a pianist who plays the piano brilliantly, but we’re also looking for somebody who has something to say,” said Parker.

Since his win, Ovcharenko has performed solos with orchestras around the world, including the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. Until the next winner of the competition is announced on October 20, Ovcharenko keeps his title as the current prize laureate. “It’s truly like a dream come true moment,” he says. “Winning that competition and realizing that I might not need any other competitions to participate in; it’s truly miraculous.”

The 2025 Honens Piano Competition semi-finals will take place from October 16 to 20 at the Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall in the Rozsa Centre at the University of Calgary, and the finals will take place on October 23 and 24 at the Jack Singer Concert Hall in the Werklund Centre.

Read the full piece here.

2022 Honens Prize Laureate Illia Ovcharenko with Jon Kimura Parker. Photo: Monique de St. Croix

Letter From Vancouver: Ahead of VSO, Anne-Marie McDermott reflects on freedom won through discipline

This weekend, pianist Anne-Marie McDermott and Otto Tausk, the music director of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, unite to present Beethoven’s Second and Fourth Piano Concertos, in three concerts. Stir, an independent hub for local arts and culture, interviews McDermott ahead of the performances. She says:

“I’ve lived this repertoire for probably 40 years. I do feel like my personal voice with this repertoire is at a place of real authenticity, because I’ve spent so many years with this music. I have something to say about it. I love to play it as if it had just been written. This is really important to me in recording or in concerts.”

With tour stops and concerts filling up her 2026 calendar, McDermott looks forward to continuing her journey with Beethoven, and performing all five concertos with the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields as part of her final season as artistic director of the Bravo! Vail Music Festival in Colorado. Since taking on the role in 2011, McDermott has led the festival to a series of landmark achievements, including doubling the number of performance engagements, staging its first opera, expanding its commitment to commissioning new orchestral works, and continuing its emphasis on education and community outreach. To say her contributions required discipline would be a vast understatement.

To read the full piece, click here.

The Isidore Electrifies

Published on June 20, 2025 by Susan Miron for The Boston Musical Intelligencer.

Each of the times I have heard the Isidore String Quartet, I’ve been completely bowled over. Founded in 2019, they’ve won the big prizes (2023 Avery Fisher Career Grant, the 2022 Banff International String Quartet Competition) and, now in their 20s, have unquestionably risen to the top of the very crowded young quartet scene. Violinists Adrian Steele, Phoenix Avalon, violist Devin Moore, and cellist Joshua McClendon would seem to be predestined to play together. Their chemistry and goals are admirable, their performances electrifying.

The Isidore’s second appearance at Rockport, this Thursday evening, included the Ravel Quartet and a late Beethoven, but Steven Banks’s (b.1993)  Reflections and Exaltations for soprano saxophone and string quartet, featuring the composer as the masterful saxophone soloist, realty stole the show.

Composed in 1902-03 (when he was just 28), the Ravel is one of the most enduringly popular quartets. Composing it just before Scheherazade, Ravel dedicated it to Gabriel Fauré; it made its auspicious debut in 1904. Annotator Keith Horner’s pointed out that Ravel was soaking in the music of Claude Debussy, 12 years his senior. He attended the first 30 performances of Debussy’s Pelleas et Melisande and knew Debussy’s earlier string quartet well. Thus,  “…some of its lifeblood carried over into his own piece. From Debussy, he borrowed the use of Eastern exoticism and the modality of the harmony throughout all four movements.” Even its stunning second pizzicato movement makes an appearance in Debussy’s sole example in the genre.

Read more here.