“The Greek theater of Epidaurus has long been considered a marvel of acoustics. Over the years, people have come up with a number of explanations as to why those who sit in the back of the semicircular theater, built in the 4th century B.C., can hear performers on the stage with such clarity. … Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology this month showed that the secret is in . . . the seats.” (second item)
Tag: 04.09.07
Rehabilitating Sibelius
“Sibelius was once the world’s favourite composer but, thanks to German fascist admirers, his star waned after his death.” In recent years, the Finnish composer’s reputation has had much of its luster restored, thanks largely to a series of Nordic conductors specializing in his work, but Sibelius is still rarely placed alongside masters like Beethoven and Mozart in the musical canon. Some believe it’s time for that to change.
London’s Pale, Skinny, Bendy New Dance Star
The 30-year-old, self-described “ginger freak” Edward Watson “has been all over the Royal Ballet cast lists this season.” He’s still not 100% comfortable with his role as a rising star in London’s dance scene, but then, that’s part of his undeniable appeal.
The Police Are Expected To Submit A Hefty Bid
The anonymous and always controversial UK graffiti artist known as Banksey is putting a self-portrait up for auction this month. If past experience is any indication, the winning bidder should probably be prepared to endure some abuse from the artist, who has said that he can’t believe anyone would pay money for his work.
Good Is Always Better Than Trendy, Anyway
The Netherlands isn’t really interested in what you think of its eye-popping but decidedly non-trendy architecture. It’s too busy making more. “This idea of unmodern architecture has been fiercely debated in the Netherlands in recent years. Since the mid-1990s, an increasing number of Dutch architects and other Europeans with commissions in the country have been struggling, with occasional success, to find a new voice for Dutch buildings – an antidote to the safe, flat neo-modernism that steals all those pages in the magazines.”
The Forgotten Modernist
The name of Maurice Denis (and that of the Nabis, the 19th-century art movement in which he was a key player) may not quicken the pulse of many art lovers these days, but Sarah Milroy says that the largely overlooked Denis is more than deserving of a slice of the attention lavished on others of his era.
LA Phil Musicians Shocked But Pleased
The announcement that Esa-Pekka Salonen will leave the LA Philharmonic in 2009, to be replaced by 26-year-old Venezuelan wunderkind Gustavo Dudamel, caught the vast majority of the orchestra by complete surprise. But after taking a few hours to process the new information, many musicians were quick to praise Dudamel’s energy and skill on the podium, and expressed relief at the unusual double announcement: “The future of the orchestra is secure. We’re not going to flail around with our hat in hand like every other orchestra, saying, ‘Will you please come?'”
Is Ohio Sacrificing Art At The Altar Of The 3 ‘R’s’?
“With new academic requirements emphasizing math and science, education advocates worry that arts classes may be pushed out of school curricula or disregarded by harried students who can’t fit them into their heavy course loads… The new Ohio Core curriculum, championed by former Gov. Bob Taft, takes effect in the fall of 2010 and increases the math requirement for high school students from three to four years. Most fine arts classes are not required or can be taken in middle school.”
Sol LeWitt, 78
“Sol LeWitt, whose deceptively simple geometric sculptures and drawings and ecstatically colored and jazzy wall paintings established him as a lodestar of modern American art, died yesterday in New York… LeWitt helped establish Conceptualism and Minimalism as dominant movements of the postwar era. A patron and friend of colleagues young and old, he was the opposite of the artist as celebrity.”
The (Type)Writing Life
“Historians estimate that the typewriter was invented at least fifty-two times, as one tinkerer after another groped toward a usable design. One early writing mechanism looks like a birthday cake, another like a pinball machine. Until about the eighteen-thirties, all typewriters lacked a keyboard, and when they got one it was usually modelled on that of the piano.”