“In the era when it is proposed that computers translating machines will soon be able to perform most translating tasks, what we call literary translation perpetuates the traditional sense of what translation entails. The new view is that translation is the finding of equivalents; or, to vary the metaphor, that a translation is a problem, for which solutions can be devised. In contrast, the old understanding is that translation is the making of choices, conscious choices, choices not simply between the stark dichotomies of good and bad, correct and incorrect, but among a more complex dispersion of alternatives, such as good versus better and better versus best, not to mention such impure alternatives as old-fashioned versus trendy, vulgar versus pretentious, and abbreviated versus wordy.”
Tag: 06.12.03
Is Theatre Inherently Political?
If playwrights speak to the human condition, can their work be anything less than political? Do we inherently trust playwrights who are overtly political? A group of prominent playwrights gathers to discuss the issue.
Glennon: Is Rock Music Dying?
“Though it gives me no joy whatsoever to say it, I’ve become certain that rock is in its last days. And I’ve started to believe that the subgenre that appears on the surface to offer rock its best hope for a full recovery is actually nothing more than a sign that death is nearer than anyone had thought. I’ve begun to believe that the far-reaching and seemingly endlessly expansive subgenre of rock-based experimental music is simply a function of the sickly old art form examining its life, noting the many things it might have been (in addition and, often, in opposition to the many things it actually has been), exploring each of them to the extent it’s capable, sighing at the thought of some missed opportunities, perhaps even registering slight pangs of regret for what it did instead (prog-rock, perhaps, or death metal, and, of course, Steely Dan).”
Oakland Mayor Backs Off Artist Evictions
“Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown has dropped plans to evict artists from the popular downtown Alice Arts Center to make room for the expansion of his arts charter school.” The artists had been protesting the possible eviction. The center served 50,000 people a year through classes and performances.
The Greatest, Whatever, Uh-huh
What is it with critics pronouncing this or that artist the “greatest” of a generation? Laziness, that’s what, writes Peter Plagens. “A critic’s pronouncing somebody ‘the greatest/most-important sculptor/bassoonist/director/novelist/cheesemaker/whatever of his generation’ says much more about the critic than the anointed artist. It says that the critic has reached a state of fatigue and impatience with taking forward-looking, right-now judgmental chances on quirky 25-year-olds who probably won’t pan out over the long haul, making the critic look misguided. It says that the critic is more comfortable looking backward. It says the critic has reached a plateau of self-importance on which he wants to go around conferring cultural knighthoods on artist-commoners who’ve managed to rise above their making-clever-baubles-for-the-rich stations to become, almost, big thinkers. And it says that the critic wants to get the authoritative-sounding but actually sonorously empty words ‘greatest’ and ‘generation’ together in the same sentence.”
Broad Donates Money For New Contemporary Art Museum
Philanthropist Eli Broad has agreed to fund a new building for contemporary art for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. “In a memorandum of understanding with museum leaders, Broad has laid out plans to pay for ‘every penny’ of a new, 70,000-square-foot building, said LACMA board Chairman Wally Weisman. The new building, tentatively dubbed the Broad Contemporary Art Museum at LACMA and projected to cost roughly $50 million, would stand along Wilshire Boulevard just east of the former May Co. building now known as LACMA West.”
Baghdad Orchestra Fights For Its Life
The Baghdad Symphony Orchestra doesn’t expect its future to be the first priority of the new Iraqi government, or of the occupying force of American and British troops currently running the country. But The BSO is beginning to run out of time to stabilize its organization, which has been in chaos since the war in Iraq began. The orchestra’s musicians have not been paid in months, and last week, an Italian cultural attache charged with overseeing Iraq’s cultural life failed to show up for a meeting with the orchestra’s management. To make matters worse, the orchestra is fearful that whatever new government eventually emerges in Iraq may not be supportive of classical music at all.
San Antonio Makes It Official
The San Antonio Symphony has officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after a vote by the orchestra’s board. The SAS struggled with its finances all season, and laid off half its office staff last week in anticipation of the bankruptcy filing. The orchestra does not intend on shutting down completely – at least, not yet – but there is no firm timetable for a return to a normal concert schedule, and the summer months may not provide enough time for the SAS to organize a 2003-04 season.
San Jose Ballet Narrows Its Search To 7
“Ballet San Jose Silicon Valley has identified seven potential candidates for its top management slot and hopes to fill the position by September, according to Eileen Nelson, a board member in charge of the ballet’s executive search committee… The top requirement for the new CEO will be to craft a viable survival strategy for the financially troubled ballet, which has wobbled in recent months because of the tough economy, slow ticket sales and a decrease in grants.”
A Manifesto, A Commitment, Amd A Darkhorse Candidate
Board members of the embattled Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra are being asked to sign a “Commitment To Excellence” manifesto which states that “the board will ‘not compromise the artistic future of the Pittsburgh Symphony,’ and ‘will not accept anything less than the establishment of permanent financial stability. …'” News of the manifesto came as rumors began to circulate that the PSO is looking seriously at hiring Douglas Gerhart, known as something of a turnaround specialist in the orchestra world, as its next managing director.