Milton Babbitt, a Composer Who Gloried in Complexity, Dies at 94

"Milton Babbitt, an influential composer, theorist and teacher who wrote music that was intensely rational and for many listeners impenetrably abstruse, died on Saturday. He was 94 and lived in Princeton, N.J."

For the full story, please see the New York Times.

Learn more about Babbitt's musical life by searching the library catalog.

How Do We Fix Classical Music? Here's What You Told Us.

"Ten days ago, we posed the question: What's broken in classical music, and how do we fix it? We asked you, along with a few prominent musicians, to ponder that question and come up with a few thoughts and crafty ideas. And, heavens to Beethoven, you came up with a lot — hundreds of solutions, criticisms, praises and personal stories."

For the full story, please see NPR.org.

Larry Starr's George Gershwin

"As readers of this blog are aware, I have for some time been proclaiming a "new Gershwin" - in, e.g., the New York Times and the Times Literary Supplement. In Classical Music in America (2005), he ranks with Ives as our most important concert composer (my view of Copland, in that book, irked some reviewers). My book-in-progress is a study of Gershwin and Rouben Mamoulian, the theatrical genius who directed Porgy and Bess. And my latest Gershwin rant takes the form of a review of Larry Starr's superb new George Gershwin (Yale University Press), in the current Times Literary Supplement. Gershwin is no longer patronized as a "pops" composer, as an inspired dilettante. "The new Gershwin is versatile, protean, universal," I write. Here's the full review:"

For the full story, please see Arts Journal.

To read Dr. Starr's new book, please see the library catalog.

Shimon on marimba: Is this the new jazz?

"Shimon the robot is proving four arms are better than two. His extra limbs allow him to create a range of rhythms a human musician would find hard to replicate."

For the full story and video, please see Yahoo News.

Third of home insurers fail to cover downloads, warns Which?

"Music fans are at risk of losing thousands of pounds worth of digital music because their household insurer does not protect downloaded material, according to Which?."

For the full story, please see The Guardian.

The diva of all data: why we should take note of these musical numbers

"Here's a fun game: what was the most performed work of classical music throughout the world last year? Who was the busiest conductor? Which was the most performed opera? And who was the most overpaid diva? At last, answers to all of those questions and more (apart, alas, from the last one) are revealed today by Bachtrack, the classical music listing site."

For the full story, please see The Guardian.

Is the death of the CD looming?

"If you think the musical compact disc is dying or dead, you're probably younger than it is.

"Show me a teenager buying a Susan Boyle album on CD and I'll show you someone buying a gift for their grandparent -- for Christmas," jokes Billboard senior chart manager and analyst Keith Caulfield. "There is definitely an age component to the consumption of music.""

For the full story, please see CNN.com.