“To put it simply, I make dances because I can’t help it. Working on dances has become a way of life, an addiction that at times resembles a fatal disease. Even so, I’ve no intention of kicking the habit.”
Tag: 02.27.08
When Music Means Nothing
“The glory of the iPod is lost on those who suffer from a rare condition known as amusia – a complete inability to comprehend or take pleasure from music. Where once these people would have been dismissed as “tone deaf”, there is a growing recognition that amusia is a neurological condition, inherited through families.”
Study: Online Music Consolidation Ahead
“In a global sector that has more than 498 digital-download services operating in more than 40 markets, digital music services with robust business models are expected to survive by being acquired by the major digital music players while the weak ones collapse.”
Minnesota Picks Robert Bly As First Poet Laureate
Bly, 81, has written more than 30 books of poetry. He is best known nationally, however, for his 1990 prose exploration of mythology, “Iron John: A Book About Men.” Recently, he translated Henrik Ibsen’s epic play “Peer Gynt” for the Guthrie Theater.
The Oscars Need A Major Makeover
“Like the evening news broadcasts, the Oscar is a relic, a cobwebby holdover from a bygone media age when Big Events earned Big Audiences. Those days are going, going, gone. The Grammys’ ratings were down, the Emmys were down, the Golden Globes would’ve been down even if it hadn’t been eviscerated by the strike.”
Dr. Seuss Goes Digital
Digital versions of the books–with extras such as voiceovers, sound effects and music–will roll out on kidthing.com starting in March, along with digital games based on the characters.
Why We Like Babies
“The urge to cuddle and coo when presented with a baby turns out to be an innate response prompted, at least in part, by the structure of an infant’s face, according to new research that actually shows how this baby love process works in adult brains.”
Rethinking Holocaust Art
“Up to now, if a museum or other owner of Holocaust art could show a credible chain of ownership (provenance), its title was presumed to be good and unassailable. Adding a new twist to Holocaust-looted art cases, the ‘forced sale’ issue casts doubt on this long-held presumption.”
National Gallery Director Says No More Blockbusters
“Nicholas Penny, the new director of the National Gallery, said yesterday that the 184-year-old institution had a duty to display art with which the public is unfamiliar rather than yet another parade of a famous artist’s greatest hits.”
The CS Lewis You Don’t Know In His Writing
A handwriting expert analyzes Lewis’ handwriting. “At first glance this small, neat script appears to trot unprepossessingly across the page. His exceedingly small personal pronoun does indeed suggest that this man is a modest individual; but being modest does not mean ineffectual.”