Rachel Barton Pine.
A child prodigy, Rachel Barton Pine began playing the violin at the age of 3½. She performed with the Chicago Symphony at age 10.
Lady Gaga turned down $1 million to perform during last summer's Republican National Convention, according to the chief congressional correspondent of the Washington Examiner.
The revelation is included in a lawsuit filed by the American Action Network, a GOP fundraising organization, against a vendor retained to stage entertainment outside the doors to the convention in Tampa.
On her new double-CD release “Peace Becomes You,” singer/songwriter and activist Holly Near draws on the various influences and inspirations of her musical career to create a song collection to satisfy a diverse audience. Standards from the Great American Songbook and songs of protest mix comfortably with a few contemporary pop tunes and compositions by women’s music legends – including songs by Near herself.
Twin singer/songwriters Tegan and Sara. Or is it Sara and Tegan?
Tegan and Sara, the band fronted by out Canadian twin sisters Tegan and Sara Quin, has evolved from simple acoustics to fuller arrangements drawing on a variety of influences, particularly electronic. Their latest disc “Heartthrob” is the culmination of that evolution. It pulses with irresistible songs, incorporating the duo’s trademark infectious melodies, vocal interplay and harmonies, and a distinctive use of lyric repetition. The songs “Closer” and “Drove Me Wild” are full-fledged club anthems, placing the twins firmly in dance diva territory.
During his brief life, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart changed the very nature of symphonic and chamber music, as well as opera. In the next few weeks, Wisconsin fans will be treated to contrasting sides of the master’s operatic style, as Wisconsin’s premier opera companies mount two of his greatest works.
Face covered and mouth taped shut, alternative folk and rock singer Michelle Shocked staged a sit in outside a Santa Cruz nightclub that canceled her show because she made an anti-gay slur at a San Francisco club earlier this month.
The tape across her mouth said “Silenced By Fear.” When asked a question, Shocked shook her head vigorously and strummed her guitar while seated on the ground outside popular music venue Moe’s Alley. She pointed to a sign inviting people to pick up a Sharpie marker and write on the white disposable safety suit she was wearing.
The Lambuth campus of the University of Memphis is sponsoring a panel discussion about the relationship between politics and music.
The university says the symposium is scheduled for March 22 in the Hamilton Performing Arts Center on the Jackson campus.
Even in the entertainment industry, prejudice – or fear – about sexual orientation sometimes rears its ugly head. Apparently, even the winning act on one of the most popular network talent shows is not immune to censure.
Terry Baxter and Prince Poppycock at the Manor in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., last year. -Photo: Courtesy Terry Baxter
He calls his fans “Poppies” and they come from all over the world to pay homage, ranging in age from 18 to 80. Carrying flash cameras and cell phones, they lovingly record his majesty’s every move, connect with other like-minded minions on Facebook, dish about the latest performance and schedule meet-ups to gush about their prince.
Singer/songwriter Martha Wainwright waxes domestic when asked what would constitute her perfect day.
Europe’s Perpetuum Jazzile has returned to the United States for select concert performances.
Having performed for sold-out crowds in America in 2011, the a cappella group from Slovenia features 35 voices creating a “Vocal Orchestra” with vocal percussions, a human beat-box imitating an incredible array of drums, electronic beats and choreographed hand movements that simulate storms for an intense sound experience.
Music mogul Clive Davis, an inductee in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, has come out as bisexual in his autobiography “The Soundtrack of My Life.”
