Kaija Saariaho, who wrote acclaimed works that made her the among the most prominent composers of the 21st century, died Friday. She was 70. Saariaho died at her apartment in Paris, her family said in a statement posted on her Facebook page. She had been diagnosed in February 2021 with glioblastoma, an aggressive and incurable…

The challenges facing classical music institutions worldwide have been well-publicised. Declining audiences and tightening revenue streams are a constant in the industry—only exacerbated during the pandemic years. Many large-scale performing arts groups cannot survive purely off ticket sales and rely on government handouts, grants, and philanthropy to prop up their finances. One young composer says…

NEW YORK—Nicholas Lloyd Webber, the Grammy-nominated composer, record producer and eldest son of Andrew Lloyd Webber, died Saturday in England after a protracted battle with gastric cancer and pneumonia. He was 43. “His whole family is gathered together and we are all totally bereft,” the 75-year-old Webber said in a statement emailed by a representative….

In this musical comedy, a struggling songwriter (Patricia Ellis) fakes a letter of admittance into the apartment of a rich composer (Warren Hull). It is most convenient as the successful fellow is out of town. The girl is hungry and unable to pay her own rent, so she takes full advantage until he returns and…

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—Bramwell Tovey, the London-born composer and conductor who’s been the principal conductor and artistic director of the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra since 2018, has died. Tovey died Tuesday at his Barrington home surrounded by his family, one day after his 69th birthday, the orchestra said in a statement Wednesday. Tovey was diagnosed with a…

LONDON—Monty Norman, a British composer who wrote the theme tune for the James Bond films, has died. He was 94. A statement posted Monday on Norman’s official website said: “It is with sadness we share the news that Monty Norman died on 11th July 2022 after a short illness.” Born Monty Noserovitch to Jewish parents…

ATHENS, Greece—Vangelis, the Greek electronic composer who wrote the Academy Award-winning score for the film “Chariots of Fire” and music for dozens of other movies, documentaries, and TV series, has died at 79. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and other government officials expressed their condolences Thursday. Greek media reported that Vangelis—born Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou—died in…