“The Symphony of Southeast Texas violinist Yu Zhao Gu, 60, died of a heart attack that struck during the symphony’s Saturday evening performance while sitting beside his wife and stand partner, Ying Zhao, at the Julie Rogers Theatre in Beaumont.” – Beaumont (Tex.) Enterprise
Tag: 04.08.19
‘Relevance Is Becoming The New Litmus Test’: England’s Arts Funder Will No Longer Give Grants Based Solely On Excellence
“Arts Council England has revealed it will now decide what to fund based principally on how ‘relevant’ it is to audiences – and it will ‘no longer be enough’ to produce high-quality work alone. This was one of 11 points … [that] will be the driving factors for the funding body’s next 10-year strategy.” – The Stage
Why Printed Books Are Better For Teaching Kids To Read Than E-Books
Electronic books are becoming increasingly popular for storytime, but the researchers found the bells and whistles, such as sound effects and animation, can sometimes distract young children. – CBC
TV Viewers Are Skipping Ads. So Networks Are Changing Formats
How? Like micro-blocks – short ad breaks that are short enough -15-60 seconds that the networks hope viewers won’t fast forward through them. – Variety
The Shed Is A Huge Experiment: Let’s See What Happens
So far the Shed has raised an astonishing $500m. As is traditional in the US, where public funding for the arts is minimal and institutions rely on philanthropy, the names of the biggest donors are prominently displayed in the foyer. These include companies such as Coach and Google, who have neighbouring offices and stores. “We’ve got [wealth] right there in our face,” says Alex Poots, “and as long as they keep being generous, this kind of ecology is a transformer for arts. Call the Shed the Robin Hood, but let’s see if it works.” – The Guardian
The Sad Death Of A Scholar Trapped In The Role Of An Adjunct
“To be a perennial adjunct professor is to hear the constant tone of higher education’s death knell. The story is well known—the long hours, the heavy workload, the insufficient pay—as academia relies on adjunct professors, non-tenured faculty members, who are often paid pennies on the dollar to do the same work required of their tenured colleagues.” – The Atlantic
Mind’s eye
It struck me a couple of months ago that Mrs. T’s recent travails had made her even more deserving than usual of a just-because-I-love-you present. It took a bit of thinking and even more looking, but I finally succeeded in tracking down a copy of an etching, John Marin’s The Lobster Fisherman, that filled the bill to perfection. – Terry Teachout
The New Jazz Heroes
The Jazz Journalists Association has announced its slate of 2019 Jazz Heroes, people who have made significant contributions to the health, well-being and exposure of jazz in their cities and towns. – Doug Ramsey
Authors In The UK Ask For Government Help Against Ebook Piracy
Author Philip Pullman says, “Online piracy of books, music, and other expressions of the human spirit needs to be properly understood: it’s an offence against moral justice. … It’s the very opposite of freedom of speech, because it acts to prevent those who create beauty, knowledge, consolation or delight from earning even a modest living from their efforts.” – The Guardian (UK)
The Marathon-Running Opera Singer Who Just Won The Richard Tucker Award
Lisette Oropesa “is one of the few opera singers who have been featured in both Opera News and Runner’s World.” – The New York Times