Art & Culture

Stuttgart – November 04, 2026 -- Electric bassist Wolfgang Schmid will receive the 2027 German Jazz Trophy, a lifetime achievement award worth €15,000, at a ceremony on June 30, 2027, at 19:00 in the SpardaWelt Eventcenter in Stuttgart.

The ceremony opens the Jazz Open Stuttgart 2027. Winners also receive a statue by Stuttgart sculptor Otto Hajek. The prize is presented by the Sparda-Bank Baden-Württemberg's Foundation for Art and Culture, the magazine neue musikzeitung and JazzZeitung.de.

The jury credits Schmid with establishing the electric bass in jazz

Martin Buch, a jury member and CEO of Sparda-Bank Baden-Württemberg, said Schmid established the electric bass over decades as a distinctive, virtuosic and stylistically boundless jazz instrument. As a musician, composer, producer and teacher, Schmid inspired generations of players and made German jazz visible far beyond the country's borders, Buch said.

NEW YORK – November 04, 2026 -- SiriusXM will carry live play-by-play of every MLS Cup Playoffs match, starting with the Wild Card games on November 19. Access is included in several subscription plans, and a new sports-focused tier costs $5 per month.

Home-team broadcasts for every playoff game

Through the MLS Cup Final, SiriusXM will carry the home team's broadcast for each match. The Final is on December 18, and SiriusXM will produce its own exclusive national audio broadcast of it. Keith Costigan will call the play-by-play, former English Premier League player Danny Higginbotham will be the analyst, and Toronto FC defender Walker Zimmerman will report from the sideline.

Listeners can find the match schedule at SiriusXM.com/Sports. Soccer broadcasts are available on the Platinum, All Access and Music & Entertainment plans, and on the new SiriusXM Sports Pass at $5 per month.

Columbia – November 04, 2026 -- "Where We Once Stood," a documentary following Vietnam Veterans back to the country for the first time since the war, will stream on Prime Video in the U.S. starting on Veterans Day. It is the first feature-length film from Veterans United Home Loans.

Golden Globe winner and longtime Veteran advocate Gary Sinise executive produced and narrates the film.

A 2025 trip marked the war's 50th anniversary

The crew filmed in 2025, 50 years after the Vietnam War ended. The Veterans revisit the pivotal places that defined their military service. Veterans United brought together men from the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force. Many had rarely spoken about their experiences, and the trip let them face those memories together.

Stamford, Conn. – November 05, 2026 -- Eligible Spectrum customers can get a free upgrade to Spectrum Internet 1 Gig from Nov. 9 to Nov. 30 by activating it in the My Spectrum App, just ahead of the Nov. 19 launch of Grand Theft Auto VI.

Spectrum says customers on Spectrum Internet Gig can start playing the game in less than 30 minutes. The offer has no cost and no strings attached, according to the company.

The upgrade takes one tap in the My Spectrum App

Customers with qualifying Internet plans and compatible equipment can opt in at any point through Nov. 30. Once the Gig Speed Lift starts on Nov. 9, they are boosted to Spectrum Internet 1 Gig. In select areas, customers who already have 1 Gig move up to 2 Gig.

Pre-loading opens Nov. 10, nine days before launch

Players with pre-ordered copies of Grand Theft Auto VI can download the game early starting Nov. 10, skipping the launch-day rush. The game itself launches Nov. 19.

Billings – November 05, 2026 -- Montana Silversmiths' master engravers will appear in an upcoming "All Access with Andy Garcia" segment for Public Television audiences, with filming set for November 5, 2026, in Columbus, Montana. The segment explores the craftsmanship behind rodeo championship buckles.

Master engravers demonstrate the techniques behind each buckle

Viewers will learn about hand engraving, bevel cuts, detailed etching and the company's signature bright-cut designs. These techniques demand precision, patience and years of experience.

The segment also covers what the buckles mean. In rodeo, a championship buckle represents years of dedication, perseverance and achievement, and families often pass buckles down as heirlooms.

Austin, Texas – November 05, 2026 -- "Austin's Music Scene: Your Guide to the City's Most Iconic Artists & Venues," a coffee table book that won three 2026 IBPA Book Awards, will be on sale at the 31st annual Texas Book Festival on Nov. 14–15, and half of its net proceeds go to the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM).

The book packs 160-plus artist profiles into one volume

Billed as the first coffee table book to celebrate the artists, venues and events shaping the city's music scene today, it includes more than 160 artist profiles, histories of iconic venues, hand-drawn maps and photography. Its awards include Best First Book (Nonfiction) and Best Gift Book. Publisher Thunderhouse Media Group designed it for longtime locals and first-time visitors alike.

Mainz – November 05, 2026 -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sits down with German satirist Jan Böhmermann for an exclusive ZDF interview, available in full on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, on the ZDF streaming portal and on YouTube.

The TV version airs on Friday, 6 November

ZDF broadcasts the conversation on "ZDF Magazin Royale" on Friday, 6 November 2026, at 11 p.m.

Zelensky explains his path from comedian to wartime president

Böhmermann asks Zelensky about his unusual journey from comedian to head of a country at war. The conversation also covers Elon Musk's influence on US politics, British pop star James Blunt and skiing in Ischgl.

Niederzissen – November 04, 2026 -- Parents shopping for a child's first instrument can now rent models from the new Keiper Music line for relatively low monthly fees instead of paying several hundred euros upfront. The instruments come from Thomas Keiper, a musician who runs his own music school and rents out instruments through his company Way of Music.

Why the first instrument is a hard choice

Prices range from budget starter models to professional instruments costing several thousand euros, and price alone says little about what suits a lesson. Digital pianos, for example, are marketed with many sounds and technical options, yet beginners mainly need a keyboard that is pleasant to play and a convincing piano tone. The cheapest models, on the other hand, can compromise on playing feel and build quality. Keiper says many parents struggle to recognize quality and have to rely on manufacturer claims.

Unterföhring – November 04, 2026 -- Season 9 of the crime drama "The Rookie" arrives on Sky and the streaming service WOW on January 8, 2027, with 18 new episodes in the English original with subtitles. The German dub follows on February 26.

The cliffhanger gets resolved right away

The new episodes pick up where the Season 8 finale of May 2026 left off. Tim Bradford (Eric Winter) and Lucy Chen (Melissa O'Neil) had just gotten engaged when unknown assailants abducted them.

Officer John Nolan (Nathan Fillion) and the Mid-Wilshire Police Department team face personal challenges, dangerous missions and old enemies. Antagonists from earlier seasons threaten to catch up with the squad.

Most of the main cast returns

Mekia Cox plays Nyla Harper, Alyssa Diaz is Angela Lopez, Jenna Dewan is Bailey Nune and Shawn Ashmore is Wesley Evers. Lisseth Chavez (Celina Juarez) and Deric Augustine (Miles Penn) round out the list.

Berlin – November 04, 2026 -- All four episodes of the rbb documentary podcast "Der Bruch – Unser Dorf zwischen Ost und jetzt" ("The Rupture – Our Village Between East and Now") arrive in ARD Sounds on Friday, November 6, 2026, and on other podcast platforms. A trailer is already available.

Season 2 follows one village across three generations

The story is set in Dahnsdorf, a small village in Brandenburg's Fläming region. Actress and host Lisa Hrdina searches for the traces that war, the GDR and reunification left in families. The first season, "Der Bruch – Frauen zwischen Ost und jetzt", was nominated for the German Podcast Award and the CIVIS Media Prize 2026.