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It’s that time of the year, when artist managers around the world edit the promotional biographies of their protégés. Can AI help? August is traditionally the month when classical musicians get to have fun with their buddies at music festivals in beautiful places, but spare a thought for their managers (and the people, like me, who help them). For this is the time of the Great Annual Biography Update. I wrote on the subject of musicians’ biographies in 2020 and my advice is l

GALLERY What do artists see when they look at a violinist? These portraits offer very different ways to represent musicians – and their instrument The fun thing about having a niche interest such as violins and violinists is that it often sends me down even nichier rabbit holes. Typing ‘violin’ into any search box acts like a compass for new adventures. In a recent quest for paintings of violinists, for example, I ended up in the Smithsonian archives, which hold the papers of

Every summer, 20-something musicians head off to courses around the world to hone their skills and have a lot of fun. Why aren’t these opportunities available to us oldies? There’s not much I envy young people today, especially those who have chosen music as their life’s work. It’s a tough existence, demanding resilience and drive, and more self-criticism and consistency than most civilians can muster. There’s just one thing, and I always feel the pinprick at this time of yea