ARTnews Lives! (former parent company files for bankruptcy)
A lot of confusion ensued from this artnet post today, in which Brian Boucher reported: Artnews S.A., the Polish company that briefly published the New York-based ARTnews magazine and, even briefer still, Art in America, has filed for bankruptcy and liquidation of its assets, according to the Polish website Investments. … read more
AJBlog: CultureGrrl Published 2016-06-16
Singers — Revisited
Spotify, iTunes and other companies streaming music did not exist when the following Rifftides piece [first] appeared. If anything, there has been an escalation of the ability of singers, and of musicians in general, to make themselves ubiquitous. … read more
AJBlog: RiffTides Published 2016-06-17
Musical Films
With our newly released Redes DVD, PostClassical Ensemble completes its Naxos quartet of classic 1930s films with freshly recorded soundtracks. The scores for these four films – the others are The Plow that Broke the Plains, The River, and The City – are among the most distinguished ever composed for film … read more
AJBlog: Unanswered Question Published 2016-06-16
Recent Listening: Iris Bergcrantz
Iris Bergcrantz, Different Universe (Vanguard Music Boulevard). In an impressive display of her talent as a singer and songwriter, the daughter of prominent Swedish musicians Anders Bergcrantz and Anna-Lena Laurin debuts as a leader with her parents as members of the band. … read more
AJBlog: RiffTides Published 2016-06-16
[ssba_hide]
Tag: 06.16.16
Study: Taking Pictures During Concerts Enhances The Experience
The new study by a team of researchers from the University of Southern California, Yale University and the University of Pennsylvania, published in the June 6 edition of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, actually says taking time to snap photos of experiences like concerts and vacations helps us enjoy those experiences more.
The Orchestra World’s Existential Crisis
“How do we justify the continued existence of our [orchestras, newspapers, insert institution of your choice here]? How do we make these institutions relevant to an audience that is pulling away, finding other ways to get music and information? The scrutiny isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it’s shining a light on some unexpected baggage.”
Corcoran School Of Art Dumps Half Its Faculty
“Although it wasn’t a total surprise — the full-time faculty was expected to shrink in proportion to budget cuts, a shrinking student body, and as part of the school’s ongoing integration into George Washington University (GW) — no one expected this many beloved professors to lose their jobs. Of the school’s 19 full-time faculty who taught last semester, only 9 will be back to teach in the fall.”
An International Opera House Building Boom (Why?)
“Does China, with its own rich cultural history, need opera houses performing a Western repertoire? Does Oman need one? And what about Dubai, traditionally an Arab trading town? Performing opera in countries that are not part of the Western cultural history may be cultural imperialism initiated by the countries’ rulers rather than an enlightened offering to their residents.”
One Week After Exposé Of Abuse, Chicago’s Profiles Theatre Shuts Down And Answers Allegations
“[The] small off-Loop company that is the subject of published allegations of intimidation, sexual misconduct and unsafe stage combat is shutting down permanently.” Artistic director Darrell Cox, the alleged abuser, “declined to speak in person or on the phone but agreed through a spokesman to respond to a series of written questions.”
A New Museum Of The American Revolution In Philadelphia
“Visitors will traverse an arc of galleries that lead chronologically through the revolution, from its beginnings in disgruntled Boston to its conclusion on the fields of Yorktown and beyond, to the treaty of Paris and the writing of the U.S. Constitution in Philadelphia. The dramatic highlight of this presentation will be a full gallery for display of the museum’s most intriguing artifact – Washington’s field tent [from Valley Forge].”
For The First Time, Broadway Will Live-Stream A Show
“The Metropolitan Opera has been transmitting performances live for a decade. The National Theater in London jumped on board a few years later. But Broadway, facing both financial and philosophical obstacles, has been slow to join the trend. Now, after years of start-and-stop progress, Broadway is passing a milestone.”
Distraction – And Why We Drive Ourselves To It
“Ever since the Enlightenment, Western societies have been obsessed with autonomy, and in the past few hundred years we have put autonomy at the center of our lives, economically, politically, and technologically … Unfortunately, we’ve taken things too far: we’re now addicted to liberation, and we regard any situation – a movie, a conversation, a one-block walk down a city street – as a kind of prison. Distraction is a way of asserting control; it’s autonomy run amok.”