Shortest Orchestra Strike In History Started And Ended While We Weren’t Looking

“Less than three hours after the Grant Park Music Festival cancelled Wednesday’s opening concert, a tentative agreement has been reached between the festival and musicians. Tomorrow night’s season-opening program will take place as scheduled, with Carlos Kalmar leading the Grant Park Orchestra in music of Barber, Poulenc, and Mussorgsky.”

Five Join The Ranks Of NEA Jazz Masters

“The National Endowment for the Arts has named its 2017 NEA Jazz Masters: the musicians – Dee Dee Bridgewater, Dave Holland, Dr. Lonnie Smith and Dick Hyman – and the jazz historian Ira Gitler. Each will each receive $25,000 and be honored at a tribute concert at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington on April 3, 2017.”

Remember Microfiche?

Ernie Smith offers tidbits from the history of those little sheets and their coiled cousin, microfilm – from the invention of the process for making and reading them back in the mid-19th century to when carrier pigeons transported microfilmed documents across enemy lines to the adoption of microfilm and -fiche by libraries to the thing the medium is still well-suited for today.

Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre Abruptly Suspends Operations

“Rising rent costs, dwindling institutional support, and [company director Carmen Khan’s] personal battle with cancer last winter all contributed to the decision to temporarily cease performances. Until this morning, [the company’s] website was stuffed with programming through December, and when the Inquirer asked about the status of the theater last week, Khan insisted that nothing out of the ordinary was brewing.”