1 January – At the 2023
Vienna New Year's Concert by the
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of
Franz Welser-Möst, the Vienna Girls Choir (Wiener Chormädchen) performs in its first-ever appearance in the concert, the first female choir ever to participate in the event.[1] The Wiener Chormädchen also performed at the 30 December 2022 and 31 December 2022 concerts of the same programme.
Glyndebourne Festival Opera announces that its originally planned 2023 Glyndebourne on Tour season will not occur, as a result of the reduced funding from Arts Council England for the 2023–2026 National Portfolio.[3]
The
Royal Albert Hall announces the appointment of James Ainscough as its next chief executive director, effective in the late spring of 2023.[4]
The
Südwestdeutsche Philharmonie Konstanz announces that Insa Pijanka is to stand down as its Intendantin, earlier than the currently scheduled time of her most recent contract extension through 2024.[5]
The
BBC announces the appointment of Sam Jackson as the new controller of BBC Radio 3, effective April 2023.[9]
The new organ of the
NOSPR Concert Hall in
Katowice is inaugurated with the world premiere of the Sinfonia concertante of
Esa-Pekka Salonen, with
Iveta Apkalna as the soloist and the NOSPR conducted by the composer.[10]
Arts Council England (ACE) announces the presentation to
English National Opera (ENO) of a one-year grant of £11.46M for the period of April 2023 – March 2024, following its previous November 2022 announcement of a total withdrawal of ACE's funding to ENO for the period 2023–2026 unless ENO relocates outside of London.[11][12]
The
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Matthew Kraemer as its next music director, effective with the 2023–2024 season.[13]
The
Hawai'i Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of Dane Lam as its first-ever music director, effective with the 2023–2024 season, with an initial contract of 5 years.[14]
The Munich Philharmonic Orchestra and the Munich City Council officially announce the appointment of Lahav Shani as its next chief conductor, with an initial contract of 5 years.[21]
In an interview on Finnish Radio, Sir
Mark Elder states that he is to stand down as music director of
The Hallé in August 2024, at the close of the 2023–2024 season.[23]
The
New York Philharmonic announces the appointment of
Gustavo Dudamel as its next music director, effective with the 2026–2027 season, with an initial contract of 5 seasons.[26]
The
Los Angeles Philharmonic announces that Gustavo Dudamel is to conclude his tenure as its music director at the close of the 2025–2026 season.[27]
Lausanne Opera announces the appointment of Claude Cortese as its next general director, effective 1 July 2024.[28]
Opera Saratoga announces the appointment of Mary Birnbaum as its next general and artistic director, with immediate effect.[29]
11 February –
Pensacola Christian College cancels a concert appearance by
The King's Singers two hours before the scheduled performance time, after objections from a group of students, parents and college staff to the presence of homosexuals in the ensemble.[30]
17 February – The
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Vineta Sarieka-Völkner as one of its first concertmasters (1.Konzertmeisterin), the first woman ever named to a first concertmaster post with the orchestra.[33]
22 February – The Orchestre classique de Montréal announces the appointment of
Jacques Lacombe as its next artistic director, effective 1 July 2023, with an initial contract of 5 years.[34]
23 February – The
Dover Quartet announces the appointment of Juliane Lee as its new violist, effective September 2023.[35]
22 March – A publication in Current Biology describes analyses of hairs from
Ludwig van Beethoven, which indicates hepatitis B as a principal cause of his terminal illness and death.[48]
24 March – The BBC announces a reversal of its intended closure of the BBC Singers, following public reactions in protest at the original 7 March 2023 announcement.[50]
12 April –
Opera North announces the appointment of Laura Canning as its next general director, the first woman named to the post, effective December 2023.[58]
On Site Opera announces the appointment of Piper Gunnarson as its next general director and chief executive officer, effective 1 May 2023. In parallel, Eric Einhorn is to stand down as general director ahead of schedule, whilst retaining his title of artistic director through the end of 2023.[61]
Artis-Naples announces the appointment of
Alexander Shelley as its next artistic and music director, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of four seasons.[62]
4 May – The
Council of Ministers of the government of Italy announces a mandatory retirement age of 70 for non-Italian directors of Italian opera houses.[65]
Nigel Hess, Roderick Williams, Shirley Thompson – Be Thou My Vision
Iain Farrington – Voices of the World
Patrick Doyle – King Charles III Coronation March
Paul Mealor – Kyrie Eleison (the first composition sung in Welsh at a coronation)
Christopher Robinson – The Recognition
Debbie Wiseman – Alleluia
Andrew Lloyd Webber – Make A Joyful Noise
Roxanna Panufnik – Coronation Sanctus
Tarik O'Regan – Coronation Agnus Dei
9 May – The
Kansas City Symphony announces the appointment of
Matthias Pintscher as its next music director, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of 5 seasons.[68]
The Boston Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of Chad Smith as its next president and chief executive officer, effective in the autumn of 2023.[69]
The Los Angeles Philharmonic announces the departure of Chad Smith as its chief executive, effective in the autumn of 2023.[70]
22 May – The
Copenhagen Philharmonic announces the appointment of Christoph Gedschold as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024–2025 season.[71]
23 May – The
Dallas Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of Anthony Blake Clark as its next chorus director, effective with the 2023–2024 season.[72]
The
Paris Opera announces the resignation of
Gustavo Dudamel as its music director, effective August 2021, four years ahead of his initial contract.[75]
8 June – The
Juilliard School dismisses
Robert Beaser from its faculty, following an investigation into accusations of sexual misconduct by Beaser towards several Juilliard students.[84]
The
Vienna Symphony announces the appointment of
Petr Popelka as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of five seasons.[85]
The
Norwegian Radio Orchestra announces the conclusion of the tenure of Petr Popelka as its chief conductor at the close of the 2022–2023 season.[86]
The
Schleswig-Holstein Landestheater announces the appointment of Harish Shankar as its next Generalmusikdirektor (GMD), effective August 2023.[87]
13 June – The
Florida Orchestra announces the appointment of Ignacio Barrón Viela as its new president and chief executive officer, effective August 2023.[88]
The
BBC Concert Orchestra announces the appointment of
Anna-Maria Helsing as its next chief conductor,[89] the first female conductor to be named to the post and the first female conductor to be named chief conductor of any BBC orchestra, effective 1 October 2023.
Lucy Crowe and
Nicky Spence are each made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.
17 June – The
Antwerp Symphony Orchestra announces that
Elim Chan is to stand down as its chief conductor at the close of the 2023–2024 season, one season earlier than her previously announced contract extension through 2025.[91]
20 June –
The Hallé announces the appointment of
Kahchun Wong as its next principal conductor and artistic advisor, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of 5 seasons.[93]
The
Deutsche Oper am Rhein announces the appointment of
Vitali Alekseenok as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of 3 seasons.[95]
La Monnaie announces the appointment of Christina Scheppelmann as its next general director, effective 1 July 2025, with an initial contract of six years.[96]
Renée Fleming is announced as one of the laureates of the 46th Kennedy Center Honors.[97]
23 June – The newly formed Chamber Orchestra of Limburg gives its first concert at the Theater De Maaspoort in Venlo, The Netherlands.[98]
29 June –
National Youth Orchestras of Scotland announce the appointment of Catherine Larsen-Maguire to the newly created post of music director, effective 2024, with an initial tenure of 3 years.[99]
13 June – The
Tonkunstler Orchestra announces the appointment of
Fabien Gabel as its next principal conductor, effective with the 2025-2026 season, with an initial contract of four years.[100]
26 June – The San Antonio Philharmonic announces the appointment of Roberto Treviño as its first-ever executive director.[101]
4 July – Britten Pears Arts announces that
Roger Wright is to stand down as its chief executive in July 2024.[102]
Best conducting of contemporary music: Kevin Fitzgerald
The
Hofer Symphoniker announces the appointment of Martijn Dendivel as its new chief conductor, the first conductor to be named to the post in over 20 years, effective with the 2024-2025 season, with an initial contract of 4 seasons.[107]
At the 2023 Puccini Festival, Alberto Veronesi conducts the first night of the festival's new production of La bohème blindfolded, in protest at the production by Christophe Gayral and Christophe Ouvrard. The festival subsequently dismisses Veronesi from the production several days later.[109]
18 July –
Symphony in C announces the appointment of Noam Aviel as its next music director, the first female conductor ever named to the post, with immediate effect.[110]
20 July – Opera Lafayette announces simultaneously the scheduled departure of Ryan Brown as its artistic director at the close of the 2024-2025 season, and the appointment of Patrick Dupre Quigley as the company's next artistic director, effective with the 2025-2026 season.[111]
28 July –
Hyperion Records announces that it is to make available for streaming access 200 albums from its catalogue, for the first time in the company's history.[114]
30 July – The
Malta Philharmonic Orchestra announces the suspension of Sergey Smbatyan as its music director with immediate effect, after external accusations of fraud against Smbatyan separate from the orchestra.[115]
At the district court in
Harris County, Texas,
David Daniels and his spouse Scott Walters plead guilty to the second-degree felony charge of sexual assault of an adult, following accusations by Samuel Schultz against the couple.[118]
The Bellingham Festival of Music announces the appointment of
Marcelo Lehninger as its new artistic director, with immediate effect, with an initial contract of 5 years.[119]
5 August – At the 2023 Australian Festival of Chamber Music, the Goldner String Quartet announces that it is to disband at the close of the 2023-2024 concert season.[120]
9 August – The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Grzegorz Nowak as its next music director and principal conductor, with immediate effect.'[122]
14 August – The BBC announces the sale of its
Maida Vale Studios to a consortium that includes Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner of Working Title, and
Hans Zimmer and Steven Kofsky.[124]
The
Metropolitan Opera Guild announces that it is to cease operations and make its staff redundant in the autumn of 2023, with various functions to be absorbed by the
Metropolitan Opera and the publication Opera News to be absorbed into the British publication Opera.[125]
Opera Philadelphia announces the scheduled departure of David B. Devan as its general director as of 31 May 2024, along with a 20% reduction of its budget for the 2023-2024 season and planned staff redundancies.[126]
22 August – After a concert performance of Les Troyens at the Festival Berlioz in La Côte-Saint-André, France, Sir
John Eliot Gardiner reportedly strikes bass William Thomas in the face, after erroneous egress from the stage by Thomas.[127]
31 August – Sir John Eliot Gardiner announces his withdrawal from his remaining 2023 concert engagements to seek psychological treatment, following his striking of bass William Thomas on 22 August at the Festival Berlioz in La Côte-Saint-André, France.[128]
1 September – The
Deutsche Oper Berlin announces that Sir
Donald Runnicles is to stand down as its Generalmusikdirektor at the close of the 2025-2026 season, one season earlier than his most recent contract extension, at Runnicles' own request.[129]
The
Bern Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of
Krzysztof Urbański as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024-2025 season, with an initial contract of three seasons.[132]
The Vienna Volksoper announces simultaneously the scheduled departure of
Omer Meir Wellber as its music director on 31 December 2023, and the appointment of Ben Glassberg as its new music director effective 1 January 2024.[133]
Lyric Opera of Chicago announces that Anthony Freud is to stand down as its general director, president and chief executive officer at the close of the 2023-2024 season.[136]
The
San Francisco Symphony announces the appointment of Jenny Wong as the next director of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, with immediate effect.[137]
The
Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony announces the cancellation of its 2023-2024 season, because of insufficient financial resources.[138]
At the Bösendorfer piano factory in
Wiener Neustadt, a fire broke out late in the evening, continuing after midnight into the next day, with the loss of the piano factory building.[140]
The Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Sunwook Kim as its next music director, as of January 2024, with an initial contract through December 2025.[141]
The Staatsoperette Dresden announces the appointment of Michael Ellis Ingram as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024-2025 season.[142]
The
BBC announces the winners of its BBC Young Composer 2023 competition:[143]
22 September –
NorrlandsOperan announces the appointment of Eduardo Strausser as its next principal conductor and music director, effective in the autumn of 2024, with an initial contract of three seasons.[146]
26 September –
Calgary Opera announces the appointment of Sue Elliott as its next general director and chief executive officer, effective 20 November 2023.[147]
28 September – The Los Angeles Master Chorale announces the appointment of Scott Altman as its next president and chief executive officer, effective 2 January 2024.[149]
29 September – The
Boston Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of Edward Gazouleas as the next director of the Tanglewood Music Center, effective 31 May 2024.[150]
In parallel with his appointment to the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Bill Chandler is to stand down as director of the
BBC Concert Orchestra, as of December 2023.[159]
The BBC announces the appointment of Adam Szabo as director of the
BBC Philharmonic, effective February 2024.[159]
Manchester Collective announces that Adam Szabo is to stand down as its artistic director and chief executive, effective January 2024.[160]
The
Dartington College of Arts announces that its planned 2024 summer school season is on hold, and the resignation of Sara Mohr-Pietsch and the summer school staff, with immediate effect.[161]
The
Barbican Centre announces the appointment of Helen Wallace as its new head of music, effective February 2024.[165]
Kings Place announces that Helen Wallace is to stand down as its artistic and executive director at the close of January 2024.[166]
English National Ballet announces the appointment of Maria Seletskaja as its next music director, the first female conductor to be named to the post, effective with the 2024-2025 season.[167]
15 November –
Leipzig Opera announces the appointment of Ivan Repušić as its next Generalmusikdirektor, effective with the 2025-2026 season.[168]
Glyndebourne Festival Opera announces the appointment of Adam Hickox as the new principal conductor of Glyndebourne Sinfonia, with immediate effect.[174]
Trinity Church (Manhattan) announces the appointment of Melissa Attebury as its new director of music, the first woman to hold the post, effective with the 2024-2025 season.[175]
English National Opera announces Greater Manchester as the site of its planned new headquarters.[176][177]
The Grawemeyer Awards announce
Aleksandra Vrebalov as the recipient of the 2024 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition, for her composition Missa Supratext.[178]
The
Residentie Orchestra announces simultaneously that
Anja Bihlmaier is to stand down as its chief conductor at the close of the 2024-2025 season, and the appointment of
Jun Märkl as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2025-2026 season, with an initial contract of 4 years.[179]
The
National Youth Orchestra of Canada announces the appointment of Naomi Woo as its next music director, the first female conductor ever named to the post, for the 2024/2025 seasons.[180]
8 December – The mayor of Nice and the Orchestre philharmonique de Nice announce the appointment of
Lionel Bringuier as the orchestra's next principal conductor, effective with the 2023-2024 season, with an initial contract of two seasons.[182]
11 December –
Minnesota Opera announces the appointment of Christopher Franklin as its new principal conductor, with immediate effect, with an initial contract of 3 years.[183]
The
Opéra de Lille announces the appointment of Barbara Eckle as its next general director, effective 1 July 2025.[185]
The
Cincinnati May Festival announces the appointment of Matthew Swanson as its next director of choruses, effective 1 June 2024.[186]
14 December –
Dutch National Ballet announces the appointment of Koen Kessels as its next music director, which includes the posts of artistic director and chief conductor of
Het Balletorkest, effective 1 August 2024.[187]
Louis Wayne Ballard – Devil's Promenade, Scenes From Indian Life (selections), The Four Moons (selections), Fantasy Aborigine No. 3 ("Kokopelli") (first recordings)[337]
Schoenberg, Hindemith, Berg, Chausson – Infinite Voyage (Emerson String Quartet and
Barbara Hannigan; final commercial recording of the Emerson String Quartet)[343]
Iannis Xenakis, Vivian Fung, Roger Reynolds, Sarah Hennies – Weather Systems II: Soundlines[336]
Jessye Norman: The Unreleased Masters (first commercial issue of previously unissued recordings by Jessye Norman of music by Berlioz, Britten, Franz Joseph Haydn, Richard Strauss, Wagner)[345]
Compositrices: New Light on French Romantic Women Composers – recordings of music by Mel Bonis, Lili Boulanger, Nadia Boulanger, Marthe Bracquemond, Cécile Chaminade, Hedwige Chrétien, Marie Damaschino, Jeanne Danglas, Clémence de Grandval, Hélène de Montgeroult, Louise Farrenc, Augusta Holmès, Marie Jaëll, Madeleine Jaeger, Marthe Grumbach, Madeleine Lemariey, Virginie Morel-du Verger, Henriette Renié, Charlotte Sohy, Rita Strohl, Pauline Viardot[346]
Best Opera Recording:
Terence Blanchard and
Kasi Lemmons – Fire Shut Up In My Bones;
Angel Blue,
Will Liverman,
Latonia Moore, Walter Russell III; The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, The Metropolitan Opera Chorus; Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor (David Frost, producer)
Best Engineered Album, Classical: Mason Bates: Philharmonia Fantastique – The Making of the Orchestra; Chicago Symphony Orchestra;
Edwin Outwater, conductor; Shawn Murphy, Charlie Post and Gary Rydstrom, engineers; Michael Romanowski, mastering engineer (Sony)
Producer of the Year, Classical: Judith Sherman[447]
Victoires de la musique classique 2023
Soliste instrumental: Bertrand Chamayou
Artiste lyrique: Marina Viotti
Révélation, soliste instrumental: Aurélien Pascal
Révélation, artiste lyrique: Alexandra Marcellier
Révélation, chef d’orchestre: Victor Jacob, Lucie Leguay
Composer: Fabien Waksman – L’Île du temps (concerto for accordion & orchestra; from Warner Classics album J’ai deux amours)
Recording: Johann Sebastian Bach – Matthäus-Passion (Pygmalion. Raphaël Pichon)
2023 Gramophone Classical Music Awards
Choral:
John Cage – Choral works; Latvian Radio Choir / Sigvards Kļava (Ondine)
Concerto: Elgar – ‘Viola Concerto’ / Bloch - Suite For Viola and Orchestra; Timothy Ridout, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Martyn Brabbins (harmonia mundi)
Chamber: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – String Quintets No 3 (K. 515) and No 4 (K. 516); Ébène Quartet with Antoine Tamestit (Erato)
Concept Album: '‘Battle Cry: She Speaks'’; Helen Charlston and Toby Carr (Delphian)
Contemporary: Lotta Wennäkoski – Sigla / Flounce / Sedecim; Sivan Magen, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Nicholas Collon (Ondine)
Early Music:
Ludwig Daser – Polyphonic Masses; Huelgas Ensemble, Paul Van Nevel (Deutsche Harmonia Mundi)
Instrumental: Bartók, Eötvös, Ligeti, Veress: Music for Solo Violin and Viola; Nurit Stark (BIS)
Opera:
Michael Tippett – The Midsummer Marriage; Robert Murray, Rachel Nicholls, Ashley Riches, Jennifer France, Toby Spence, Claire Barnett-Jones, Susan Bickley, Joshua Bloom; English National Opera Chorus; London Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir, Edward Gardner (LPO)
Orchestral:
Carl Nielsen – Symphonies Nos 4 ('The Inextinguishable') and 5; Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Fabio Luisi (Deutsche Grammophon)
Song:
Gabriel Fauré – Complete Songs; Cyrille Dubois and Tristan Raës (Aparté)
Spatial Audio:
Richard Wagner – Die Walküre, James King, Hans Hotter, Christa Ludwig, Régine Crespin, Gottlob Frick et al., Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra; Sir Georg Solti (Decca)
Voice and Ensemble: Rivales; Véronique Gens, Sandrine Piau, Le Concert de la Loge, Julien Chauvin (Alpha)
Recording of the Year: Carl Nielsen – Symphonies Nos 4 ('The Inextinguishable') and 5; Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Fabio Luisi (Deutsche Grammophon)
Young Artist of the Year: Stella Chen – ‘Stella x Schubert’ (Schubert: Fantasie, D.934; Rondo brillant, D. 895; 'Sei mir gegrüsst', D. 741; 'Ständchen', D. 920); Stella Chen and Henry Kramer (Platoon)
^
abcdefghijkDavid Allen, Joshua Barone, Oussama Zahr, Zachary Woolfe, Seth Colter Walls (21 December 2023).
"Best Classical Music Albums of 2023". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 December 2023.{{
cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link)
^Keith Bramich (January 2023).
"January 2023 Obituaries". Classical Music Daily.
Archived from the original on 18 January 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
1 January – At the 2023
Vienna New Year's Concert by the
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of
Franz Welser-Möst, the Vienna Girls Choir (Wiener Chormädchen) performs in its first-ever appearance in the concert, the first female choir ever to participate in the event.[1] The Wiener Chormädchen also performed at the 30 December 2022 and 31 December 2022 concerts of the same programme.
Glyndebourne Festival Opera announces that its originally planned 2023 Glyndebourne on Tour season will not occur, as a result of the reduced funding from Arts Council England for the 2023–2026 National Portfolio.[3]
The
Royal Albert Hall announces the appointment of James Ainscough as its next chief executive director, effective in the late spring of 2023.[4]
The
Südwestdeutsche Philharmonie Konstanz announces that Insa Pijanka is to stand down as its Intendantin, earlier than the currently scheduled time of her most recent contract extension through 2024.[5]
The
BBC announces the appointment of Sam Jackson as the new controller of BBC Radio 3, effective April 2023.[9]
The new organ of the
NOSPR Concert Hall in
Katowice is inaugurated with the world premiere of the Sinfonia concertante of
Esa-Pekka Salonen, with
Iveta Apkalna as the soloist and the NOSPR conducted by the composer.[10]
Arts Council England (ACE) announces the presentation to
English National Opera (ENO) of a one-year grant of £11.46M for the period of April 2023 – March 2024, following its previous November 2022 announcement of a total withdrawal of ACE's funding to ENO for the period 2023–2026 unless ENO relocates outside of London.[11][12]
The
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Matthew Kraemer as its next music director, effective with the 2023–2024 season.[13]
The
Hawai'i Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of Dane Lam as its first-ever music director, effective with the 2023–2024 season, with an initial contract of 5 years.[14]
The Munich Philharmonic Orchestra and the Munich City Council officially announce the appointment of Lahav Shani as its next chief conductor, with an initial contract of 5 years.[21]
In an interview on Finnish Radio, Sir
Mark Elder states that he is to stand down as music director of
The Hallé in August 2024, at the close of the 2023–2024 season.[23]
The
New York Philharmonic announces the appointment of
Gustavo Dudamel as its next music director, effective with the 2026–2027 season, with an initial contract of 5 seasons.[26]
The
Los Angeles Philharmonic announces that Gustavo Dudamel is to conclude his tenure as its music director at the close of the 2025–2026 season.[27]
Lausanne Opera announces the appointment of Claude Cortese as its next general director, effective 1 July 2024.[28]
Opera Saratoga announces the appointment of Mary Birnbaum as its next general and artistic director, with immediate effect.[29]
11 February –
Pensacola Christian College cancels a concert appearance by
The King's Singers two hours before the scheduled performance time, after objections from a group of students, parents and college staff to the presence of homosexuals in the ensemble.[30]
17 February – The
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Vineta Sarieka-Völkner as one of its first concertmasters (1.Konzertmeisterin), the first woman ever named to a first concertmaster post with the orchestra.[33]
22 February – The Orchestre classique de Montréal announces the appointment of
Jacques Lacombe as its next artistic director, effective 1 July 2023, with an initial contract of 5 years.[34]
23 February – The
Dover Quartet announces the appointment of Juliane Lee as its new violist, effective September 2023.[35]
22 March – A publication in Current Biology describes analyses of hairs from
Ludwig van Beethoven, which indicates hepatitis B as a principal cause of his terminal illness and death.[48]
24 March – The BBC announces a reversal of its intended closure of the BBC Singers, following public reactions in protest at the original 7 March 2023 announcement.[50]
12 April –
Opera North announces the appointment of Laura Canning as its next general director, the first woman named to the post, effective December 2023.[58]
On Site Opera announces the appointment of Piper Gunnarson as its next general director and chief executive officer, effective 1 May 2023. In parallel, Eric Einhorn is to stand down as general director ahead of schedule, whilst retaining his title of artistic director through the end of 2023.[61]
Artis-Naples announces the appointment of
Alexander Shelley as its next artistic and music director, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of four seasons.[62]
4 May – The
Council of Ministers of the government of Italy announces a mandatory retirement age of 70 for non-Italian directors of Italian opera houses.[65]
Nigel Hess, Roderick Williams, Shirley Thompson – Be Thou My Vision
Iain Farrington – Voices of the World
Patrick Doyle – King Charles III Coronation March
Paul Mealor – Kyrie Eleison (the first composition sung in Welsh at a coronation)
Christopher Robinson – The Recognition
Debbie Wiseman – Alleluia
Andrew Lloyd Webber – Make A Joyful Noise
Roxanna Panufnik – Coronation Sanctus
Tarik O'Regan – Coronation Agnus Dei
9 May – The
Kansas City Symphony announces the appointment of
Matthias Pintscher as its next music director, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of 5 seasons.[68]
The Boston Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of Chad Smith as its next president and chief executive officer, effective in the autumn of 2023.[69]
The Los Angeles Philharmonic announces the departure of Chad Smith as its chief executive, effective in the autumn of 2023.[70]
22 May – The
Copenhagen Philharmonic announces the appointment of Christoph Gedschold as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024–2025 season.[71]
23 May – The
Dallas Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of Anthony Blake Clark as its next chorus director, effective with the 2023–2024 season.[72]
The
Paris Opera announces the resignation of
Gustavo Dudamel as its music director, effective August 2021, four years ahead of his initial contract.[75]
8 June – The
Juilliard School dismisses
Robert Beaser from its faculty, following an investigation into accusations of sexual misconduct by Beaser towards several Juilliard students.[84]
The
Vienna Symphony announces the appointment of
Petr Popelka as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of five seasons.[85]
The
Norwegian Radio Orchestra announces the conclusion of the tenure of Petr Popelka as its chief conductor at the close of the 2022–2023 season.[86]
The
Schleswig-Holstein Landestheater announces the appointment of Harish Shankar as its next Generalmusikdirektor (GMD), effective August 2023.[87]
13 June – The
Florida Orchestra announces the appointment of Ignacio Barrón Viela as its new president and chief executive officer, effective August 2023.[88]
The
BBC Concert Orchestra announces the appointment of
Anna-Maria Helsing as its next chief conductor,[89] the first female conductor to be named to the post and the first female conductor to be named chief conductor of any BBC orchestra, effective 1 October 2023.
Lucy Crowe and
Nicky Spence are each made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.
17 June – The
Antwerp Symphony Orchestra announces that
Elim Chan is to stand down as its chief conductor at the close of the 2023–2024 season, one season earlier than her previously announced contract extension through 2025.[91]
20 June –
The Hallé announces the appointment of
Kahchun Wong as its next principal conductor and artistic advisor, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of 5 seasons.[93]
The
Deutsche Oper am Rhein announces the appointment of
Vitali Alekseenok as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of 3 seasons.[95]
La Monnaie announces the appointment of Christina Scheppelmann as its next general director, effective 1 July 2025, with an initial contract of six years.[96]
Renée Fleming is announced as one of the laureates of the 46th Kennedy Center Honors.[97]
23 June – The newly formed Chamber Orchestra of Limburg gives its first concert at the Theater De Maaspoort in Venlo, The Netherlands.[98]
29 June –
National Youth Orchestras of Scotland announce the appointment of Catherine Larsen-Maguire to the newly created post of music director, effective 2024, with an initial tenure of 3 years.[99]
13 June – The
Tonkunstler Orchestra announces the appointment of
Fabien Gabel as its next principal conductor, effective with the 2025-2026 season, with an initial contract of four years.[100]
26 June – The San Antonio Philharmonic announces the appointment of Roberto Treviño as its first-ever executive director.[101]
4 July – Britten Pears Arts announces that
Roger Wright is to stand down as its chief executive in July 2024.[102]
Best conducting of contemporary music: Kevin Fitzgerald
The
Hofer Symphoniker announces the appointment of Martijn Dendivel as its new chief conductor, the first conductor to be named to the post in over 20 years, effective with the 2024-2025 season, with an initial contract of 4 seasons.[107]
At the 2023 Puccini Festival, Alberto Veronesi conducts the first night of the festival's new production of La bohème blindfolded, in protest at the production by Christophe Gayral and Christophe Ouvrard. The festival subsequently dismisses Veronesi from the production several days later.[109]
18 July –
Symphony in C announces the appointment of Noam Aviel as its next music director, the first female conductor ever named to the post, with immediate effect.[110]
20 July – Opera Lafayette announces simultaneously the scheduled departure of Ryan Brown as its artistic director at the close of the 2024-2025 season, and the appointment of Patrick Dupre Quigley as the company's next artistic director, effective with the 2025-2026 season.[111]
28 July –
Hyperion Records announces that it is to make available for streaming access 200 albums from its catalogue, for the first time in the company's history.[114]
30 July – The
Malta Philharmonic Orchestra announces the suspension of Sergey Smbatyan as its music director with immediate effect, after external accusations of fraud against Smbatyan separate from the orchestra.[115]
At the district court in
Harris County, Texas,
David Daniels and his spouse Scott Walters plead guilty to the second-degree felony charge of sexual assault of an adult, following accusations by Samuel Schultz against the couple.[118]
The Bellingham Festival of Music announces the appointment of
Marcelo Lehninger as its new artistic director, with immediate effect, with an initial contract of 5 years.[119]
5 August – At the 2023 Australian Festival of Chamber Music, the Goldner String Quartet announces that it is to disband at the close of the 2023-2024 concert season.[120]
9 August – The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Grzegorz Nowak as its next music director and principal conductor, with immediate effect.'[122]
14 August – The BBC announces the sale of its
Maida Vale Studios to a consortium that includes Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner of Working Title, and
Hans Zimmer and Steven Kofsky.[124]
The
Metropolitan Opera Guild announces that it is to cease operations and make its staff redundant in the autumn of 2023, with various functions to be absorbed by the
Metropolitan Opera and the publication Opera News to be absorbed into the British publication Opera.[125]
Opera Philadelphia announces the scheduled departure of David B. Devan as its general director as of 31 May 2024, along with a 20% reduction of its budget for the 2023-2024 season and planned staff redundancies.[126]
22 August – After a concert performance of Les Troyens at the Festival Berlioz in La Côte-Saint-André, France, Sir
John Eliot Gardiner reportedly strikes bass William Thomas in the face, after erroneous egress from the stage by Thomas.[127]
31 August – Sir John Eliot Gardiner announces his withdrawal from his remaining 2023 concert engagements to seek psychological treatment, following his striking of bass William Thomas on 22 August at the Festival Berlioz in La Côte-Saint-André, France.[128]
1 September – The
Deutsche Oper Berlin announces that Sir
Donald Runnicles is to stand down as its Generalmusikdirektor at the close of the 2025-2026 season, one season earlier than his most recent contract extension, at Runnicles' own request.[129]
The
Bern Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of
Krzysztof Urbański as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024-2025 season, with an initial contract of three seasons.[132]
The Vienna Volksoper announces simultaneously the scheduled departure of
Omer Meir Wellber as its music director on 31 December 2023, and the appointment of Ben Glassberg as its new music director effective 1 January 2024.[133]
Lyric Opera of Chicago announces that Anthony Freud is to stand down as its general director, president and chief executive officer at the close of the 2023-2024 season.[136]
The
San Francisco Symphony announces the appointment of Jenny Wong as the next director of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, with immediate effect.[137]
The
Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony announces the cancellation of its 2023-2024 season, because of insufficient financial resources.[138]
At the Bösendorfer piano factory in
Wiener Neustadt, a fire broke out late in the evening, continuing after midnight into the next day, with the loss of the piano factory building.[140]
The Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Sunwook Kim as its next music director, as of January 2024, with an initial contract through December 2025.[141]
The Staatsoperette Dresden announces the appointment of Michael Ellis Ingram as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2024-2025 season.[142]
The
BBC announces the winners of its BBC Young Composer 2023 competition:[143]
22 September –
NorrlandsOperan announces the appointment of Eduardo Strausser as its next principal conductor and music director, effective in the autumn of 2024, with an initial contract of three seasons.[146]
26 September –
Calgary Opera announces the appointment of Sue Elliott as its next general director and chief executive officer, effective 20 November 2023.[147]
28 September – The Los Angeles Master Chorale announces the appointment of Scott Altman as its next president and chief executive officer, effective 2 January 2024.[149]
29 September – The
Boston Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of Edward Gazouleas as the next director of the Tanglewood Music Center, effective 31 May 2024.[150]
In parallel with his appointment to the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Bill Chandler is to stand down as director of the
BBC Concert Orchestra, as of December 2023.[159]
The BBC announces the appointment of Adam Szabo as director of the
BBC Philharmonic, effective February 2024.[159]
Manchester Collective announces that Adam Szabo is to stand down as its artistic director and chief executive, effective January 2024.[160]
The
Dartington College of Arts announces that its planned 2024 summer school season is on hold, and the resignation of Sara Mohr-Pietsch and the summer school staff, with immediate effect.[161]
The
Barbican Centre announces the appointment of Helen Wallace as its new head of music, effective February 2024.[165]
Kings Place announces that Helen Wallace is to stand down as its artistic and executive director at the close of January 2024.[166]
English National Ballet announces the appointment of Maria Seletskaja as its next music director, the first female conductor to be named to the post, effective with the 2024-2025 season.[167]
15 November –
Leipzig Opera announces the appointment of Ivan Repušić as its next Generalmusikdirektor, effective with the 2025-2026 season.[168]
Glyndebourne Festival Opera announces the appointment of Adam Hickox as the new principal conductor of Glyndebourne Sinfonia, with immediate effect.[174]
Trinity Church (Manhattan) announces the appointment of Melissa Attebury as its new director of music, the first woman to hold the post, effective with the 2024-2025 season.[175]
English National Opera announces Greater Manchester as the site of its planned new headquarters.[176][177]
The Grawemeyer Awards announce
Aleksandra Vrebalov as the recipient of the 2024 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition, for her composition Missa Supratext.[178]
The
Residentie Orchestra announces simultaneously that
Anja Bihlmaier is to stand down as its chief conductor at the close of the 2024-2025 season, and the appointment of
Jun Märkl as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2025-2026 season, with an initial contract of 4 years.[179]
The
National Youth Orchestra of Canada announces the appointment of Naomi Woo as its next music director, the first female conductor ever named to the post, for the 2024/2025 seasons.[180]
8 December – The mayor of Nice and the Orchestre philharmonique de Nice announce the appointment of
Lionel Bringuier as the orchestra's next principal conductor, effective with the 2023-2024 season, with an initial contract of two seasons.[182]
11 December –
Minnesota Opera announces the appointment of Christopher Franklin as its new principal conductor, with immediate effect, with an initial contract of 3 years.[183]
The
Opéra de Lille announces the appointment of Barbara Eckle as its next general director, effective 1 July 2025.[185]
The
Cincinnati May Festival announces the appointment of Matthew Swanson as its next director of choruses, effective 1 June 2024.[186]
14 December –
Dutch National Ballet announces the appointment of Koen Kessels as its next music director, which includes the posts of artistic director and chief conductor of
Het Balletorkest, effective 1 August 2024.[187]
Louis Wayne Ballard – Devil's Promenade, Scenes From Indian Life (selections), The Four Moons (selections), Fantasy Aborigine No. 3 ("Kokopelli") (first recordings)[337]
Schoenberg, Hindemith, Berg, Chausson – Infinite Voyage (Emerson String Quartet and
Barbara Hannigan; final commercial recording of the Emerson String Quartet)[343]
Iannis Xenakis, Vivian Fung, Roger Reynolds, Sarah Hennies – Weather Systems II: Soundlines[336]
Jessye Norman: The Unreleased Masters (first commercial issue of previously unissued recordings by Jessye Norman of music by Berlioz, Britten, Franz Joseph Haydn, Richard Strauss, Wagner)[345]
Compositrices: New Light on French Romantic Women Composers – recordings of music by Mel Bonis, Lili Boulanger, Nadia Boulanger, Marthe Bracquemond, Cécile Chaminade, Hedwige Chrétien, Marie Damaschino, Jeanne Danglas, Clémence de Grandval, Hélène de Montgeroult, Louise Farrenc, Augusta Holmès, Marie Jaëll, Madeleine Jaeger, Marthe Grumbach, Madeleine Lemariey, Virginie Morel-du Verger, Henriette Renié, Charlotte Sohy, Rita Strohl, Pauline Viardot[346]
Best Opera Recording:
Terence Blanchard and
Kasi Lemmons – Fire Shut Up In My Bones;
Angel Blue,
Will Liverman,
Latonia Moore, Walter Russell III; The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, The Metropolitan Opera Chorus; Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor (David Frost, producer)
Best Engineered Album, Classical: Mason Bates: Philharmonia Fantastique – The Making of the Orchestra; Chicago Symphony Orchestra;
Edwin Outwater, conductor; Shawn Murphy, Charlie Post and Gary Rydstrom, engineers; Michael Romanowski, mastering engineer (Sony)
Producer of the Year, Classical: Judith Sherman[447]
Victoires de la musique classique 2023
Soliste instrumental: Bertrand Chamayou
Artiste lyrique: Marina Viotti
Révélation, soliste instrumental: Aurélien Pascal
Révélation, artiste lyrique: Alexandra Marcellier
Révélation, chef d’orchestre: Victor Jacob, Lucie Leguay
Composer: Fabien Waksman – L’Île du temps (concerto for accordion & orchestra; from Warner Classics album J’ai deux amours)
Recording: Johann Sebastian Bach – Matthäus-Passion (Pygmalion. Raphaël Pichon)
2023 Gramophone Classical Music Awards
Choral:
John Cage – Choral works; Latvian Radio Choir / Sigvards Kļava (Ondine)
Concerto: Elgar – ‘Viola Concerto’ / Bloch - Suite For Viola and Orchestra; Timothy Ridout, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Martyn Brabbins (harmonia mundi)
Chamber: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – String Quintets No 3 (K. 515) and No 4 (K. 516); Ébène Quartet with Antoine Tamestit (Erato)
Concept Album: '‘Battle Cry: She Speaks'’; Helen Charlston and Toby Carr (Delphian)
Contemporary: Lotta Wennäkoski – Sigla / Flounce / Sedecim; Sivan Magen, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Nicholas Collon (Ondine)
Early Music:
Ludwig Daser – Polyphonic Masses; Huelgas Ensemble, Paul Van Nevel (Deutsche Harmonia Mundi)
Instrumental: Bartók, Eötvös, Ligeti, Veress: Music for Solo Violin and Viola; Nurit Stark (BIS)
Opera:
Michael Tippett – The Midsummer Marriage; Robert Murray, Rachel Nicholls, Ashley Riches, Jennifer France, Toby Spence, Claire Barnett-Jones, Susan Bickley, Joshua Bloom; English National Opera Chorus; London Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir, Edward Gardner (LPO)
Orchestral:
Carl Nielsen – Symphonies Nos 4 ('The Inextinguishable') and 5; Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Fabio Luisi (Deutsche Grammophon)
Song:
Gabriel Fauré – Complete Songs; Cyrille Dubois and Tristan Raës (Aparté)
Spatial Audio:
Richard Wagner – Die Walküre, James King, Hans Hotter, Christa Ludwig, Régine Crespin, Gottlob Frick et al., Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra; Sir Georg Solti (Decca)
Voice and Ensemble: Rivales; Véronique Gens, Sandrine Piau, Le Concert de la Loge, Julien Chauvin (Alpha)
Recording of the Year: Carl Nielsen – Symphonies Nos 4 ('The Inextinguishable') and 5; Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Fabio Luisi (Deutsche Grammophon)
Young Artist of the Year: Stella Chen – ‘Stella x Schubert’ (Schubert: Fantasie, D.934; Rondo brillant, D. 895; 'Sei mir gegrüsst', D. 741; 'Ständchen', D. 920); Stella Chen and Henry Kramer (Platoon)
^
abcdefghijkDavid Allen, Joshua Barone, Oussama Zahr, Zachary Woolfe, Seth Colter Walls (21 December 2023).
"Best Classical Music Albums of 2023". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 December 2023.{{
cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link)
^Keith Bramich (January 2023).
"January 2023 Obituaries". Classical Music Daily.
Archived from the original on 18 January 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2023.