An 80-minute film featuring a dozen soloists from all corners of the country, this unabashed celebration of Canadian multiculturalism has recast the work as a series of deeply personal video narratives. – The New York Times
Blog
Time To Drop “Concertmistress” From The Lexicon
“I remember being the “concertmistress” of my youth orchestra and the vague embarrassment over the name. It was an honor that put me in front of everyone, but I couldn’t quite figure out why the “mistress” thing felt weird. I mean isn’t “concertmistress” simply the female version of “concertmaster”? Honestly, it really doesn’t convey the same sense of authority.” – Violinist.com
The Virus Isn’t Changing Us, It’s Speeding Up What Was Already Happening
“There are decades when nothing happens; and there are weeks when decades happen,” Vladimir Lenin supposedly observed. It can sound profound and ominous when you read it the first time, but when three books on the coronavirus crisis all quote the same line, it reflects something between an intellectual consensus and a lack of imagination. Still, in the authors’ telling, the crisis didn’t just compress decades of history into 2020; it was also decades in the making.” – Washington Post
Claim: We’re In A Literary Drought
Joseph Epstein: “Rich literary periods are often followed by stagnant ones. We in the United States, but not we alone, are now going through such a stagnant period. What is the last novel you can think of that caused a genuine stir?” – National Review
Church Music Directors Aren’t Having The Easiest Time At Christmas During This Pandemic Year
Indeed: “If the normal year presents the challenge of deciding between ‘Joy to the World’ and the Hallelujah chorus, this season the question is how to celebrate the birth of Christ without creating a potential superspreader event.” – The New York Times
Stimulus Bill Includes $15 Billion Rescue For Performing Arts Venues
The long-awaited second stimulus package, which still needs to be passed, designates $900 billion of direct payments and jobless aid to Americans crushed by the continuing scourge of Covid-19. It also incorporates the Save Our Stages Act and with it the establishment of a $15 billion SPA grant program for indie establishments. – Forbes
Pixar Finally Has A Black Director For A Film
The legendarily white dude company also finally has a Black writer for a Pixar film: The same person as the director, playwright Kemp Powers, for the movie Soul, out on Christmas Day (on Disney Plus, of course). Powers was hired to help make the main character work. But he’s not exactly proud of his “first” status: “It’s an embarrassing mantle. … Why did it take so damned long?” – Washington Post
How Are Dancers Doing?
Life for dancers is not great right now, not great at all. A 25-year-old ballerina: “It’s absolutely heartbreaking. Dealing with the changes emotionally has been the hardest part for me. You have to stay motivated without any promise of anything coming up. It takes a lot of mental strength. It’s very isolating.”- San Diego Union-Tribune
Not That He’ll Have Time, But Writers Tell The 46th President What To Read
Apparently, all of the writers, activists, and columnists think the president-elect should read Extremely Serious Books (especially if they’re by men). Can’t someone toss Joe a novel or two? – The New York Times
The Academy Disqualifies Canada’s International Oscar Submission For Too Much English
The film, Deepa Mehta’s Funny Boy about a young gay Sri Lankan man coming of age during the beginnings of a horrific civil war, has “too much English dialogue.” Last year, two films (the submissions from Austria and Nigeria) were disqualified for the same reason. – The Hollywood Reporter