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Music News for Today
Singer and Piaf songwriter Georges Moustaki dies at 79
 PARIS (Reuters) - French singer and songwriter Georges Moustaki, beloved in France for his songs celebrating liberty and collaborations with Edith Piaf, died on Thursday after a long illness. He was 79. The Greek-born singer grew up in Alexandria, Egypt, and arrived in Paris in 1951, where he began to play guitar at nightclubs and met some of the period's best-known singers. He was introduced to Edith Piaf in the late 1950s and started to write songs for the Parisian star, the most famous of which was "Milord" about a lower-class girl who falls in love with an upper-class British traveler. ...
Emeli Sande wins two top UK singer-songwriter awards
 By Paul Casciato LONDON (Reuters) - An invitation from the White House robbed Emeli Sande on Thursday of the chance to celebrate the latest mark of her success in an unstoppable rise to the front ranks of British female singers. The Scottish singer-songwriter's "Next To Me" single won both the best song and most performed work categories at Britain's 58th Ivor Novello awards for songwriting, putting her on a par with some of Britain's biggest music names. ...
Singer Bob Dylan made honorary member of U.S. arts academy
 NEW YORK (Reuters) - Singer Bob Dylan was made an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, joining the ranks of leading writers, composers and artists in the prestigious 115-year-old group. Henry Cobb, the president of the academy, said honorary members are people of great distinction in the creative arts. ...
U.S. soul singer Candice Glover wins "American Idol"
 By Patricia Reaney (Reuters) - Candice Glover, a soul singer from rural South Carolina, was named "American Idol" on Thursday, becoming the first female singer to win the television singing competition since 2007. Glover, 23, defeated country singer Kree Harrison in the popular vote with her powerful voice in what judges deemed a close contest to take the title on season 12 of the Fox network show. "You are officially our American idol," host Ryan Seacrest said as the crowd of more than 7,000 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles cheered. ...
Carole King hits D.C. for Gershwin salute
 By Ira Teinowitz LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Washington is truly feeling the earth move this week as singer-songwriter Carole King is honored with the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize for popular song and then saluted in two concerts, one in the White House. King is becoming the first female songwriter to win the prize, which was won by Stevie Wonder in 2009, Paul McCartney in 2010, and the songwriting team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David in 2012. ...
A Minute With: Pitbull on music, Jennifer Lopez and 'Epic'
 By Zorianna Kit LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Rapper Pitbull has taken his blend of American pop music fused with Latin beats from the clubs of Miami to international pop charts, but he now is crossing into film with his first acting role as an animated character in the upcoming movie, "Epic." Pitbull, whose real name is Armando Perez, has become a staple in the pop music field with lively dance-floor tracks including recent chart hits "Feel This Moment" with Christina Aguilera and "Live it Up" with Jennifer Lopez. ...
Hungary Wagner festival will not "Ring" in composer's birthday
By Michael Roddy BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Opera companies throughout the world are staging Richard Wagner's "Ring" cycle this year to fete his 200th birthday on May 22, but Hungarian conductor Adam Fischer is having no part of it during his "Wagner Days" festival in June. Fischer, who launched his festival in 2006 in the Bela Bartok concert hall at the Palace of Arts in Budapest, will have a new "Meistersinger von Nurnberg", rounding out productions of pretty much all the major operas in the Wagner canon. ...
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