Local and Industry News

The Knight foundation has announced finalists for the 2013 Knight Arts Challenge Grants.

Finalists include the Broward Center (to support outdoor performances featuring local talent), Community Arts Program (to create an after-school year-round Jazz Institute), FIU School of Music (to create a lecture series on the history of recorded music), Key West Council of the Arts (to create a month-long series of concerts and educational lectures), Miami Music Project (to expand program to Liberty City), Orchestra Miami (to commission an opera based on the history of Liberty City), Palm Beach Opera (to support free, outdoor concerts), WDNA-FM (to expand the monthly Jazz Encounter), and WLRN (to support live concerts and interviews featuring local musicians and songwriters).

The Master Chorale has hired Brett Karlin as its new artistic director. Karlin is director of choral studies at Hillsborough Community College and assistant conductor of the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay. He was also assistant conductor of Seraphic Fire and the Firebird Chamber Orchestra.

Nationwide attendance at Broadway touring shows has declined three percent since last season, to 12.7 million people. Attendance peaked in the 2009-10 season at 15.9 million patrons.

The Broward Center for the Performing Arts has received $1 million from the estate of the late Mary N. Porter.  The funds will be used to help build an arts-education pavilion.

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Executive director Michael Finn has left the Palm Beach Symphony, citing a difference of opinions with the board of directors. Finn had been executive director since 2011, and was responsible for a proposed residency between the orchestra and the Juilliard School, and gave his consent to artistic director Ramon Tebar's replacement of over half of the musicians.

The Orlando Philharmonic has announced plans to buy the 1000-seat Plaza Live Theatre. The plaza will become the first permanent home for the orchestra, and will be renovated to make office and rehearsal space and room for their music library. Music shows and chamber concerts will take place at the Plaza, but the orchestra will continue to perform its large-scale classical concerts at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre.

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