I was listening just a bit ago to a classical station across the country (Capitol Public Radio in Sacramento, CA, to be precise) via the web.  Imagine my surprise when I heard the host celebrating the birthday of J.S. Bach--traditionally considered to be 10 days ago on March 21.

In doing a little research, I discovered that there is a school of thought that believes Bach was born today, March 31.  There's a link to an article about just that here.

What do you think?

Early Music America offers a number of grants and scholarships annually, and the application deadlines are approaching.

Grant & Scholarship Applications Due April 1, 2016

College-level Ensemble Development GrantEMA offers grants annually to college or university early music ensembles to support a specific project or event that will enrich or broaden the educational experience of the students, and/or help to elevate the profile of the ensembles on campus, in their community or nationally.  All funds must be used in the 2016-2017 school year. 

Application due Friday, April 1, 2016 by 11:59pm ET

Outreach GrantEMA's Outreach Grant is intended to support outreach and/or educational projects for children or adults by ensembles and individual artists. 

Application due Friday, April 1, 2016 by 11:59pm ET

Summer Workshop ScholarshipEach year EMA offers scholarships to students at all levels of experience to support attendance at early music workshops in the United States and Canada. 

Application due Friday, April 1, 2016 by 11:59pm ET


Competition Applications Due April 15, 2016


Battle of the Early Bands 

Groups of outstanding emerging early music ensembles from around the country compete in a fun and entertaining evening of "battle." Battle of the Early Bands will be held on Thursday, June 9, 2016 at 9pm at The Musical Offering Cafe - Bistro in Berkeley, CA. Entry to this event is FREE and open to the public. Soloists and ensembles are welcome to apply now. Various cash prizes will be awarded.

Application due Friday, April 15, 2016 by 11:59pm ET

Medieval & Renaissance Performance Competition
Early Music America announces the 4th Medieval & Renaissance Performance Competition. This competition encourages the development of emerging artists in the performance of music from between 1000 and 1600 CE. The competition finals are scheduled for Saturday, October 1, 2016 at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, MD. 
 
Application due Friday, April 15, 2016 by 11:59pm ET

Information can be found at earlymusicamerica.org.

Long Beach Opera recently premiered a new opera based on the true life experiences of Christian Ellis, a classically trained singer turned Marine who fought in Fallujah.

Jim Farber reviews it for San Francisco Classical Voice here.

Opera Birmingham (Alabama) is trying something a little different to get folks interested in opera.  It's a program called Opera Shots.  Here's a little more information (from a press release):

Opera Shots is an annual series of pop-up concerts in unexpected places throughout the community, designed as part of new initiatives to bring opera to the masses and increase Opera Birmingham’s presence in the community. Opera Birmingham’s director of marketing, Eleanor Walter, commented that people tend to have a misconception of opera. “Opera Shots is designed to break through that stereotype and celebrate this timeless art form in fun, casual settings.”
 
Keith A. Wolfe, general director of Opera Birmingham explained, “Opera can seem intimidating, so we wanted to find a way for people to give it a try in a relaxed environment. Opera Shots is the perfect way to give opera a ‘shot’ and hear some great music in a friendly, laid back atmosphere, while having a few drinks together.”

Opera Shots will feature members of the Opera Birmingham chorus and surprise guest artists presenting an open-mic-style concert of greatest hits of opera and musical theatre, chorus favorites, and jazz standards. As part of the festivities, there will be ticket giveaways, social media contests, and more. Also among the perks of attending Opera Shots, guests will receive a discount code to use in purchasing tickets for specific future Opera Birmingham performances. 

I'd be interested in seeing comments on this one.

(from a press release)

Recognized as “the young American string quartet of the moment” (New Yorker), last week the Dover Quartet added the Hunt Family Award – one of the inaugural Lincoln Center Emerging Artist Awards – to a string of honors that already includes the Cleveland Quartet Award, a sweep of the 2013 Banff International String Quartet Competition, and top prizes at the Fischoff and Wigmore Hall International competitions. Now the group returns to New York for another major career milestone, making its Carnegie Hall debut on April 8 with a thoughtfully curated program that pairs the first of Beethoven’s three Razumovsky quartets with Berg’s sole quartet and Dvorák’s “American,” in Weill Recital Hall. As Strad magazine observes, “With their exceptional interpretative maturity, tonal refinement, and taut ensemble,” the Dovers are “pulling away from their peers.”  (Photo by Lisa-Marie Mazzucco)

The American Academy of Arts and Letters makes a number of awards every year, and has this year made 17 awards to composers totaling $205,000.

A complete list is here.

Capital Public Radio is reporting that the Sacramento (CA) Philharmonic and Opera--which evidently operate as one unit--are recovering after a number of down years. 

Details are here.

Conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt--who retired in December--has passed away at the age of 86.  Harnoncourt was a seminal figure in the revival of baroque music, and founder of the ensemble Concentus Musicus Wien.

A link to a report by the BBC is here.

If you are in a market where the show Performance Today airs, Fred Child will be doing a retrospective on Harnoncourt's life and work.  Details here.