Music Biz Headlines, Sept. 28, 2018
The remarkable career of Buffy Sainte-Marie (pictured), Drake's extravagant Toronto mansion, and Ticketmaster’s ‘TradeDesk’ scalper tool explained. Others in the headlines include Borns. the Beatles, Elton John, Polaris Prize, Venus Fest, Planets suite, Metric, Keith Urban, La Force, Prince, Regina Symphony Orchestra, WSO, Alejandro Escovedo, and Gordon Bintner.
By Kerry Doole
Buffy Sainte-Marie’s merriment and perseverance shine through in new biography
At just 22, she was boarding and disembarking flights across North America, performing in not-yet legendary folk coffee houses of the sixties, when she made a preternatural decision. In her purse she began carrying with her, recorded on cassettes, the voices of then-unknowns: Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen. – Maggie Rahr, Globe and Mail
Drake’s new house in Toronto is totally in touch with normal life
You already knew about the basketball court, but did you know about the wine and champagne bar? The "snack lounge"? – Maija Kappler, Huffington Post
Ticketmaster’s ‘TradeDesk’ scalper tool explained
Days after two senior U.S. senators asked the world’s biggest entertainment monopoly to answer pointed questions about its role in the mass scalping of tickets – in response to a Toronto Star/CBC investigation – Ticketmaster’s president has provided the first public mea culpa to the “explosive” revelations. – Robert Cribb and Marco Oved, Toronto Star
Pop singer Børns accused of sexual misconduct
Garrett Clark Borns, 26, describes allegations of manipulation, grooming and sexual aggression as ‘disturbing and false’. – Ben Beaumont-Thomas, The Guardian
The Beatles' best album gets the deluxe box-set treatment
I've always felt that The White Album was the best Beatles album ever, for the simple reason that it was their only double album--and therefore twice as good as everything else! – Steve Newton, Georgia Straight
Concert Review: Elton John bids his farewell to Yellow Brick Road and T.O.
The Rocket Man, now 71, played the first of two consecutive shows at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday night as part the Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour and I was fortunate enough to be sitting very close to him on the floor. It was one classy, fun, incredibly moving night of music and even downright spiritual at times. –Jane Stevenson, Toronto Sun
Polaris Prize founder touts Community Development Program as way to boost diversity
'It was a very white event for years" -- Steve Jordan. – Karen Bliss, Billboard
Venus Voices: people at Venus Fest tell us what representation means to them
Portraits and live photos of fans and artists at the community-focused celebration of women and non-binary artists in music in Toronto. – Kate Killet, NOW
I’m about to try out Not Impossible’s latest attempt to solve a perceived absurdity — in this case, the gap between how the deaf and hearing communities experience live music. – Andy Hermann, BizBash
Cosmic composers: how scientists helped reinvent Holst's Planets suite
Picnics on Mars, sunsets on Uranus, sculptures on Venus … 100 years after Holst unveiled his epic masterpiece, musicians are reimagining it using the latest scientific discoveries. – Tim Jonze, The Guardian
Review: Metric go back to the beginning to sound new again on Art of Doubt
On their seventh album, the long-running modern rock band shows familiarity doesn't have to be a curse. – Sarah MacDonald, NOW
Concert review: Country superstar Keith Urban keeps summer vibes flowing
Opening with the loose-limbed twang-funk of Never Comin’ Down, the country superstar went into full party mode for the 40th show on his Graffiti U world tour, packing over twenty songs into a two-hour set. – Tom Murray, Calgary Herald
Ariel Engle is La Force to be reckoned with
You know her as a singer with indie-rock kingpins Broken Social Scene, as one half of the poetic electro-rock duo AroarA (with husband Andrew Whiteman) and as a member of the seven-headed supergroup Hydra. Then again, you really don’t know Engle at all. That’s due to change with the arrival of La Force, the synth-pop solo project of the Montreal musician and vocalist. –Brad Wheeler, The Globe and Mail
Regina Symphony Orchestra, Tracy Dahl sparkle during season-opening concert
While each selection told vivid stories, the concert's two-hour journey included a deep variety of styles and moments for both guest performer and orchestra to sparkle. – Joe Couture, Leader-Post
University of Minnesota awards honorary degree to Prince
The honour recognizes his influence on music and his role in shaping his hometown of Minneapolis. – AP
A fiery autumn brings a red-hot classical music lineup
There’s a rich bounty of concerts from which to pick and choose. Here are a few that have caught my eye from now until New Year’s, listed in (roughly) chronological order. The WSO's Mahler’s Titan symphony is a likely highlight. – Holly Harris, Winnipeg Free Press
Alejandro Escovedo’s return to the border
Preparing to perform his new album, “The Crossing,” the singer-songwriter and son of Texas takes a sentimental journey backward through time, from Dallas down to old Mexico. – Nick Paumgarten, New Yorker
Gordon Bintner aims for decency in title role in Canadian Opera Company’s Eugene Onegin
Since graduating from the faculty of music at Montreal’s McGill University in 2010, the bass-baritone's career has been on a steady rise. He is now back in Toronto to sing a title role in a major opera, Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin. – John Terauds, Toronto Star
