Sales of “classical” music CDs were up last year in the UK. “Classical sales increased by one million copies to 14 million in 2003. New Zealand’s Hayley Westenra, 16, had the top-selling classical album of the year with her debut Pure, which has sold almost 600,000 copies in the UK. Welsh singer Bryn Terfel came in at number two, with Andrea Bocelli and Aled Jones also in the top 10.”
Tag: 03.08.04
Personal Music – Prime Choice
Why have portable music players become so popular? Yes, they’re cool. But there may be a deeper psychological reason. “Choice is the key factor. By choosing the music, you reclaim some of the world – it’s no longer dominated by messages pointed at you.”
Weak-Ankled David To Be Unveiled In May
The cleaning of Michelangelo’s David is more than half completed, and the scrubbed statue will be unveiled in May. “But tests will continue to explore one problem that emerged in the restoration – an apparent fragility of the statue’s ankles, which support more than six tons of dead weight.”
At Maastricht – High Expectations
This year’s European Fine Art Fair opens in Maastricht. It’s the world’s top bazaar for prized paintings. Expectations always run high because the dealers exhibiting here are among the best in the world. Experts consider the fair a barometer of the art market, and many visitors come for the sheer fun of enjoying beautiful art and objects.”
Pavarotti Lumbers Through Farewell
Luciano Pavarotti began his last set of performances at the Metropolitan Opera Saturday. How’d he do? “There is an honored protocol for opera buffs and critics to give great artists a pass for their farewells, and Mr. Pavarotti has been one of the greatest vocal artists of our time. Still, he has invited comment with his sadly prolonged and hapless exit.”
Spalding Gray, 62
The body of Spalding Gray, the monologuist who went missing a few months ago, has been found. “Mr. Gray’s body was pulled from the East River near Greenpoint, Brooklyn, on Sunday and was identified through dental records.”
Just How Big Is Maastricht?
“The scale of the event is astonishing. When it opened last Thursday, the art on show had been insured for more than $1 billion and included an estimated 70 per cent of the important Old Master paintings available for sale in the world. The stock of one leading jeweller is so valuable that when it arrived, security men sealed off the building until it was safely inside.”
The Instant Bestseller
The book, ‘The Glorious Appearing,’ by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, has already sold 1.9 million copies even before it goes on official sale March 30. That makes it one of the top-selling books of the year. “The advance sales indicate that as well as a major subject of discussion in church groups and in the news media. The series is based on Dr. LaHaye’s reading of the Book of Revelation in the Bible.”