The Arts

Seattle Times arts reporter Michael Upchurch has lodged this follow-up to his recent story about Seattle Symphony’s new record label: The Seattle Symphony officially launched its record label, Seattle Symphony Media, on April 1, when downloads of three new releases became available online. But this week brings actual physical CDs that you can give as…

Seattle Symphony music director Ludovic Morlot is the new chair of orchestral conducting studies at the University of Washington, effective fall 2013, the university has announced.  Morlot became an affiliated professor of music at UW in spring 2012. Also new to the music school: composer/conductor David Rahbee, who has accepted an initial one-year appointment…

Former Seattle Times classical-music critic and current freelancer Melinda Bargreen reports the following, from Southern California: “The weather is balmy, the palm trees are swaying, and Seattle Symphony’s new music director is in Palm Springs – on a California tour with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. “Before he arrived in Seattle, Ludovic Morlot was the BSO’s…

Seattle Symphony music director Ludovic Morlot is not just a man about town – he is a man about a couple of continents. He recently left Europe to help out at the Boston Symphony, left conductorless after James Levine resigned earlier this year. Morlot is no stranger in Boston as he was assistant conductor…

A definite perk of being an arts journalist: spending a Wednesday lunch hour watching the Seattle Symphony rehearse “An American in Paris” for Saturday’s season-opening concert, and listening to new SSO music director Ludovic Morlot share his everybody-is-welcome philosophy regarding the orchestra (and classical music in general). Saturday evening’s program certainly reflects a…