Sad Reaction - China says a meeting between Lady Gaga and the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has unleashed anger in the country. The American singer posted photos and a video on social media of the meeting on Sunday at the US Conference of Mayors in Indianapolis. She spoke to the Dalai Lama about topics including generosity to the poor and mental health. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said, "There is a broad consensus internationally about what kind of person the Dalai Lama is and what he does internationally. After the relevant incident happened, if you look at comments on the Chinese Internet, their anger has welled up."
Lady Gaga has never held a concert in mainland China, but she has played concerts in its Hong Kong and Macau territories, and her music is popular with many young Chinese. The Ministry of Culture, which regulates the activities of foreign artists in China, has yet to comment, but controversial meetings have previously put artists on blacklists in China.
Music in Schools - A scheme backed by Andrew Lloyd Webber to give free music lessons to school children has had its future secured for the next four years, with a boost of £1.4m from the composer's foundation. The grant will be paid over four years and secures the future of the Music in Secondary Schools Trust Andrew Lloyd Webber Programme, which was first launched in 2013. It means that the scheme will continue to run in its eight existing London partner schools from September, and that 4,000 children will be receiving free instruments and tuition from September this year. Lloyd Webber said: "Never has a musical education been more important. The arts and music in particular are proven to empower young people with the life skills needed for a successful future." He added that he was "delighted" that his grant - which matches the same amount from the Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust - would help 4,000 children, but said he wished the "government would join in to make it 4 million".
Heartbreak Hotel - Scotty Moore, the rock guitarist who was best known for being a member of Elvis Presley's original band and inspiring other musicians including Keith Richards and Jimmy Page, has died aged 84. Moore, who played on Presley's first hit, That's All Right (Mama), as well as such singles as Heartbreak Hotel and Hound Dog, died in Nashville after several months of poor health. "We lost one of the finest people I have ever met today," Matt Ross-Sprang, an engineer at the Sun Studio in Memphis said on Instagram. "The guitarist that changed the world ... especially mine; I hope you don't mind if I keep stealing your licks."
(Jim Evans)
