28-year old Gustavo Dudamel takes over leadership of the Los Angeles Philharmonic

Anthony Tommasini reviews Gustavo Dudamel's first performance at Walt Disney Concert Hall as Music Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic in the New York Times.

YouTube Symphony Orchestra

Assembling an orchestra of musicians scattered all over the world for a live performance via YouTube is quite an endeavor. Michael Tilson Thomas did just that for a performance at Carnegie Hall yesterday. Read Anthony Tommasini's review for The New York Times here.

A Discussion of Bel Canto

Here is an interesting article on the term "Bel Canto":

Bel Canto: Audiences Love It, but What Is It? by Anthony Tommasini (New York Times, November 28, 2008).

Lists of Recent Recordings

If you are looking for lists of critically acclaimed recordings, here are several:

The Year In Jazz: Best CDs Of 2008 by Gary Walker. (NPR.org)

'World Cafe' Picks 2008's Top 10 CDs by David Dye. (NPR.org)

Holiday Gift Guide: Classical Music by Vivien Schweitzer, James R. Oestreich, Anthony Tommasini and Allan Kozinn. (New York Times)

Holiday Gift Guide: Pop and Jazz by Jon Pareles, Ben Ratliff and Jon Caramanica. (New York Times)