Has New York lost its ability to plan and execute large-scale development properly? Three current major projects in Manhattan point up the “overblown scale and reliance on tired urban planning formulas [that] should force a serious reappraisal of the public-private partnerships that shape development in the city today.”
Tag: 03.27.08
The Alvin Ailey Barbie Doll?
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is turning 50 this year, and the company’s namesake will be getting his name on a Manhattan street as part of the celebration. In all, the company will spend 18 months commemorating the anniversary, with “performances, a video installation and even the release of a Barbie doll.”
Dodging Bombs, Bullets On The Way To Rehearsal
For Iraq’s National Symphony Orchestra, keeping its concerts free of terrorist attacks (accomplished by not telling very many people about them) is only one of many challenges. Even finding a venue the ensemble can perform in, and once such a place is secured, some musicians may not make it if getting there means having to travel through unsafe areas of Baghdad.
England’s Revitalizing Composer
Harrison Birtwhistle is one of the UK’s most influential and underappreciated composers, says Norman Lebrecht. “Birtwistle has a knack, almost unique among composers, of retuning our ears to the world… Not that everyone appreciates his onslaughts.”
Consultants Told Shreveport To Slash Musician Costs
Talks are continuing between the musicians of Louisiana’s Shreveport Symphony and their management, which wants to slash salaries 75% and convert the musicians to part-time per-service players. Meanwhile, it has emerged that the symphony’s board decided the cuts were necessary after hearing reports from two industry consultants who considered the orchestra’s current model unsustainable.
Hamburg Concert Hall Facing Cost Overruns
“Hamburg’s spectacular new philharmonic concert hall will reportedly cost up to €20 million than previously planned. The project – which is intended to give Hamburg a world-famous landmark like Sydney’s Opera House – apparently has run into trouble trying to cool the glass structure to be perched atop a massive brick shipping warehouse right on the Elbe [River].”
It’s Not The Orchestra’s Fault; It’s The Audience
Florida Orchestra music director Stefan Sanderling likes contemporary music. So do many of his musicians. Sadly, the orchestra’s core audience appears to hate it, to the extent that angry letters are received whenever Sanderling programs something new or complex. What’s a forward-thinking orchestra to do?
Earliest Voice Recording Discovered
“For more than a century, since he captured the spoken words “Mary had a little lamb” on a sheet of tinfoil, Thomas Edison has been considered the father of recorded sound. But researchers say they have unearthed a recording of the human voice, made by a little-known Frenchman, that predates Edison’s invention of the phonograph by nearly two decades.”