Guardian Music — Pushkin, Dostoevsky and Chaliapin are among the Russian cultural icons whose St Petersburg dwellings have been preserved for posterityAn elderly woman, trudging slowly up and down the dilapidated stairwell of a once-magnificent mansion, is the only r... more info

Guardian Music — Influential conductor and teacher with a remarkable talent for inspiring his studentsGeorge Hurst, who has died at the age of 86, may not have been a household name on the podium, but the mark he made on British conducting of the past half-century wa... more info

Guardian Music — Manchester Arena As one of the genuine British pop superstars of the last 30 years, it must trouble George Michael that incidents such as crashing his car into Snappy Snaps under the influence of cannabis – which landed him an eight-week stretch in... more info

Guardian Music — Piccolo trumpeter on Penny LaneDavid Mason, who has died of leukaemia aged 85, was a classical trumpeter best known for playing the piccolo trumpet solo on the Beatles' hit Penny Lane. He was, in his era, a distinguished figure on the British orches... more info

Guardian Music — They've survived bombs, random attacks and power failures during performances – which puts our worries about the role of the arts in perspectiveHere's a story to put our worries about arts cuts – Will all the London orchestras survive the next fe... more info

Mjsbigblog — ‘American Idol’ Contestant Siobhan Magnus on Meeting Hanson, Corsets and Writing Music Do you know what your tour set looks like yet? Are you going to do any Hanson songs? I’m not, only because it just didn’t fit really with... more info

All About Jazz — Allegra Klein, first American woman ever to join Iraqi National Symphony, and first foreign member since 2003, makes Baghdad debut as violinist in the orchestra. An(other) American Musician in Baghdad This past weekend in Baghdad, an extraordinar... more info

Guardian Music — Cadogan Hall, LondonThe surge of ­nationalist ­sentiment that spread through Europe during the second half of the 19th ­century had profound artistic as well as political consequences. In music, few countries were served as well as ­Bohem... more info

Live Daily — Singer/songwriter/pianist Ben Folds [ tickets ], fresh from his recent judging duties on an NBC talent show, has lined up headlining dates for next month as he continues to support 2008's "Way to Normal." The trek gets underway March 13 in Myrtle ... more info

Detroit Free Press — Composer Jennifer Higdon is on a roll. Her Piano Concerto was premiered last month by Yuja Wang and the National Symphony Orchestra. Her Percussion Concerto is up for a Grammy Award. She's writing a concerto for new music ensemble Eighth Blackbi... more info