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Opera Star Montserrat Caballé Receives Six-Month Suspended Prison Sentence and a €240,000 Fine for Tax Evasion

Opera star Montserrat Caballé has reached a deal with the public prosecutor in Spain to receive a six-month suspended prison sentence and a 240,000 euro — or $291,814.80 — fine for defrauding the Spanish tax office of 500,000 euros — or $607,947.50.It is unlikely that Caballé will ultimately serve any jail time for tax evasion, given that the sentence is under two years and she has no prior convictions. The Spanish soprano has already returned the defrauded 500,000 euros to the Tax Agency and signed the agreement drawn up by the public prosecutor. The document will have to be ratified before the criminal court judge to avoid the case going to trial.The 81-year-old Caballé reportedly pretended to be living most of the year in Andorra, which is a tax haven, meaning she obtained substantial reductions in her annual return for the year 2010 on earnings from her live shows and recorded albums.But in reality, she was living in Barcelona and only visited Andorra for professional reasons.Sources close to Caballé say the soprano is not in good health and rarely leaves her house.
By Jaime Prisco

  • 28-Year-Old American Violinist David Radzynski Has Been Voted Concertmaster of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra

    American violinist David Radzynski, 28, has been announced as the new concertmaster of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.Radzynski is from Columbus, Ohio, and was selected following an audition that ended Dec. 19 in Tel Aviv, Israel. Radzynski will assume his position in March 2015. Thirty violinists were invited to compete for the position through a pre-screening process by the orchestra.He was one of the four finalists and earned the appointment after performing Johannes Brahms’s “Violin Concerto” alongside the Israel Philharmonic and maestro Zubin Mehta. After only five minutes of deliberation, the jury voted him the unanimous winner.“I am still trying to digest all that is happening. It is such an incredible honor,” said Radzynski, a graduate student who was pursuing an artist diploma in violin performance at Park University’s International Center for Music.
    By Jaime Prisco

  • Greek Soprano Dimitra Theodossiou on Board Burning Ferry Norman Atlantic, Rescued by Helicopter

    Greek opera star Dimitra Theodossiou is reported to have been one of the 478 people among the burning ferry "Norman Atlantic" in the Mediterranean Sea.Theodossiou was rescued by helicopter and taken to the hospital in Lecce, but is safe and located in Rimini, Italy.The ferry caught fire Sunday, Dec. 28, en route to Ancona, Italy, from the Greek port of Patras. But the boat workers are undergoing criticism for how they handled the emergency situation. Theodossiou described a harrowing wait for rescuers on the bridge of the ship. She said men had rushed forward from lower decks, even after being told to “give precedence to children, the elderly and women.”“They pulled people away, pushing people aside to save themselves,” she said. “I was also struck, but I reacted to get to the helicopter, I had rage inside. I thought, it’s now or never. It was awful. I will never forget it.”She told the newspaper that no alarms had sounded and that she awoke in her first-class cabin after smelling smoke. Initially, she said, she went to the lower deck because the lifeboats were there.
    By Jaime Prisco