Classical Notes: August 13, 2007 Archive

Hip Hop Violin

Posted at 6:06 AM on August 13, 2007 by John Birge

Classical violinists? A dime a dozen.

That is, when you compare their numbers to those would take on hip hop violin.

And Paul Dateh takes on hip hop violin!!

And Paul Dateh isn't unique. Search for "hip hop violin" on YouTube, and you'll find others. Perhaps part of a larger trend toward new violin sounds in other genres.

Opera Boom

Posted at 1:53 PM on August 13, 2007 by John Birge

Did you know?:

The U.S. now has 125 professional opera companies, 60 percent of them launched since 1970

The U.S. has more opera companies than Germany and nearly twice as many as Italy.

Annual admissions are now estimated at 20 million, roughly the same attendance as NFL football games

Click here for these fun facts and more (including a nice writeup-up of our own Minnesota Opera).