Since Barrett Wissman became involved with IMG Artists, the company has been expanding with new offices and festivals around the world.

Robin Newton reports....

THERE WAS A TIME NOT SO LONG ago when IMG, along with CAMI, dominated artist management. The power they wielded gave them an unprecedented level of influence and control; and that was quickly turned into serious money.

The foundations of IMG, however, lay in sport where the constant influx of new stars and the constant exposure of existing champions provide seemingly endless revenue opportunities. The arts, with the exception of a few proven long-term performers, did not yield such riches. By the beginning of the 21st century, the artist management branch of IMG was failing; some reports claimed annual losses of £1m ($1.7m).

Clearly, something had to change. IMG decided to sell its artist management
arm but found buyers hard to come by. In 2003, Mark McCormack, the founder and heartbeat of IMG, died suddenly, making the situation more urgent: there was no clear way forward but swift action was essential.

Festival del Sole - 2012 Dates!

SAVE THE DATE! July 13-22, 2012


A dazzling lineup of guest artists including:

• Joshua Bell, violin
• Lisa Delan, soprano
• Sir James Galway and Lady Jeanne Galway, flute
• Susan Graham, mezzo soprano
• Nathan Gunn, baritone and Julie Gunn, piano
• The Russian National Orchestra
• and more...

More Info >

The TUSCAN SUN FESTIVAL Wins the Tuscan-American Award 2011

Festival Founders Barrett Wissman and Nina Kotova Accept Award 

The TUSCAN SUN FESTIVAL, produced by IMG Artists, won the Tuscan-American Award (TAA) for 2011 on September 22^nd in Florence.  Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2012, the Festival was given the award in recognition of its contribution to increasing cultural exchange and friendly relationships between the people of Tuscany and the people of the United States of America.  The award also recognises the quality and prestige of the Tuscan Sun Festival’s programming that has brought the little jewel town of Cortona, Italy, to international recognition. 

Beijing Music Festival Unveils 13th Edition

Long regarded as a cultural calling card for the city of Beijing, the capital of China, the Beijing Music Festival has thrived the urban recreational and spiritual life with awe and ease. For the past twelve years BMF has established itself as the premiere fiesta for music lovers and musicians alike in China, a landscape not to be missed. The 13th BMF will run from October 11th to October 31st this year, lasting for 21 days. There will be 22 performances, ranging from opera, symphony, chamber music, concerto, instrumental, choral, covering all genres of music, with children’s concert and education programmes，joined by a staggering array of international celebrities including the all-time-classic and fun-for-the-whole-family Lang Lang, Yundi (formerly known as Yundi Li, now happily surrenders his family name), Sa Chen, Christopher Hogwood, Shanghai Quartet, Ying Quartet, The Romeros, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Vassil Petrenko, The Choir of King’s College from the chapel of Cambridge, Paul Meyer, Kenny Garrett Quartet and Krzystof Penderecki, among many others, celebrating the theme From Baroque to Contemporary Music in the latest edition. Historically Informed Programming At one end of the spectrum are programmes dedicated to the great Baroque tradition of western music, heritage dated back to 17th century and originally an architectural movement. Baroque music is hailed as the cradle of western classical music, epitomized by J.S. Bach and G.F. Handel best known for polyphony and fugue music, both pairs heavily featured in the festival. However, Baroque music is not new to the BMF. Read More >>

Wine, wedding and song - Barrett Wissman

NAPA, California (CNN) -- If Barrett Wissman were in the ministry, his arts festivals would be sunny outposts on a fast-widening mission field. His Tuscan Sun Festival opens Saturday in Cortona, Italy. An all-new Singapore Sun Festival opens October 18.

And a secret known to missionaries everywhere is clearly in sway at the Festival del Sole in Napa Valley, which has just concluded its second year: Bonding with the locals.

With quick fervor, local leaders, the hospitality industry and those all-important vintners of Napa have embraced their festival.

When symphony conductor Stéphane Denève mentioned last year that he'd like to get married there, Tatiana and Gerret Copeland of the Bouchaine wine estate threw the ceremony for them in the vineyards. Read More @ CNN.com >>

Verbier Festival 2012 - Dates Announced

Be here from 20 July to 5 August 2012!

The 18th Verbier Festival concluded in magnificent style with a Crazy night in Verbier. Over 17 days, approximately 60 concerts attracted more than 35,000 concert-goers, which is an increase on last year.

The 2012 Verbier Festival will run from 20 July to 5 August. The programme will be unveiled in February, and once more it will bring together some of the biggest names in classical music. And if you cannot wait until next July, then there will be concerts by the Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra and the traditional winter concerts presented by the Friends of the Verbier Festival to keep you going until then.

Spotlight: Tuscan Sun Festival

The Tuscan Sun Festival is an annual music and arts Festival that takes place within the intimate setting of the medieval town of Cortona, in the province of Arezzo, Tuscany. This lifestyle Festival offers an exciting program that includes not only world class concerts, but a daily program of events that explore fine arts, culinary & wine, wellness, and local culture & history.

Each evening, concerts featuring some of the world's most distinguished artists are performed in the intimate setting of the Romantic-period theatre, Teatro Signorelli.

The Story of the Sun Festivals

In the 1990s, Barrett Wissman and cellist Nina Kotova had often discussed organizing an event somewhere in the world where friends could make music together in a warm and welcoming atmosphere.

As regular visitors and part-time residents in the Cortona area, Wissman and Kotova discussed their desire to bring together musicians, as well as artists from many disciplines, with their neighbour, Frances Mayes, author of Under the Tuscan Sun. Mayes suggested that Cortona might be the very location for such a gathering.

Barrett Wissman: Renaissance Man

PARVATHI NAYAR meets Barrett Wissman: chairman of arts management company IMG Artists, philanthropist, pianist and bon vivant

'have always been interested in doing many different things at the same time.' An unusual admission to make in these specialist times, when the age of the generalist, polymath or Renaissance man seems long gone. But Barrett Wissman - chairman of IMG Artists, also financier, philanthropist, classical pianist and bon vivant - is an unusual combination. You could call him a creative businessman, or a man interested in the business of creativity.

Photo: J. Henry Fair

Today, with an annual turnover exceeding US$100 million, 'we are the largest arts management company globally,' says Mr Wissman. IMG Artists represents some 500 top artists - Hilary Hahn, James Galway, Lang Lang, Murray Perahia, the Oslo Philharmonic with Andre Previn, and Pilobolus among others. Mr Wissman's personal contacts have expanded the areas of business, as in extending their representation of violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman to Europe.

Spoleto will honor Menotti's spirit

S.C. Festival will remember its founder
as it stages his opera, 'The Medium.'

If ever a life testified to the power of art, Gian Carlo Menotti's did.

He wrote his first opera as an 11-year-old in Italy, and he was still at work in his 90s. In between, he composed copious amounts, most famously operas - such as his Christmas classic "Amahl and the Night Visitors," a hymn to the healing power of generosity.

When he wasn't composing, he founded arts festivals that transformed two towns: Spoleto, Italy, and Charleston.

It's only been four years since Menotti's death. Yet the 100th anniversary of his birth falls soon after this year's Spoleto Festival USA.

Even though Menotti and the festival split in 1993, Spoleto - offering its own lesson about generosity - will celebrate his memory. The festival, which opens May 27, will unveil a new staging of "The Medium," Menotti's thriller about a fake psychic who loses control of her scam.

Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/04/17/2224263/spoleto-will-honor-menottis-spirit.html#storylink=misearch#ixzz1Yi3b5xB2