Who Said That? Artistic Inspirations
I happened to be in Florida recently, where I visited the Norton Museum of Art, where there’s a lot going on. Just now I want to mention one delightful little touch. Along the staircases between … read more
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts Published 2016-02-25
Black History Month (3) — “And They Lynched Him on a Tree”
An oratorio about lynching! About one of the great horrors of American history. Premiered by the New York Philharmonic in 1940. And now, as far as I can see, largely forgotten, though there’s a … read more
AJBlog: Sandow Published 2016-02-25
Javon Jackson On Coltrane At PDX
With the 2016 Portland Jazz Festival built around the legacy of John Coltrane (1926-1967), Javon Jackson’s appearances were reminders of his tenor saxophone hero’s lasting impact on the music. In a Winningstad Theatre concert, Jackson … read more
AJBlog: RiffTides Published 2016-02-25
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Tag: 02.25.16
West End Theatre Box Office Grew Slightly In 2015
“In total, there were 14.7 million attendees to West End theatres, roughly the same as in the slightly longer period counted in 2014.”
‘The Shining’ Is Becoming An Opera
First of all, composer Paul Moravec and librettist Mark Campbell are basing their work on Stephen King’s novel rather than Stanley Kubrick’s film, so there will be no “Here’s Johnny!” moment (a Kubrick invention). (We’d rather know what they’re doing with “red rum.”)
We Are Hopelessly Hooked On Our Smartphones
Jacob Weisberg: “Our transformation into device people has happened with unprecedented suddenness. The first touchscreen-operated iPhones went on sale in June 2007, followed by the first Android-powered phones the following year. Smartphones went from 10 percent to 40 percent market penetration faster than any other consumer technology in history.”
Mindlessly Engaged? What Happens To Culture When We’re Addicted To Our Devices
“What does it mean to shift overnight from a society in which people walk down the street looking around to one in which people walk down the street looking at machines? We wouldn’t be always clutching smartphones if we didn’t believe they made us safer, more productive, less bored, and were useful in all of the ways that a computer in your pocket can be useful.”
Our Phone Addiction And What It Really Means (Or Does It?)
“If so much of what we do on the Internet is harmful to us, and harmful to one another, perhaps we should do less of it. But that turns out to be not so simple. There’s no clear boundary between a hard-to-quit behavior and a compulsive one.”