“Classical musicians of African descent have existed on the margins of obscurity for centuries — in the classroom, the concert hall, the record industry, and on the radio,” says Terrance McKnight, evening host at New York classical radio station WQXR. In this radio special for Juneteenth, he talks to Wynton Marsalis, Martina Arroyo (one of the great operatic sopranos of the 1960s and ’70s), composers Alvin Singleton and Leslie Dunner, Nashville Symphony principal oboist Titus Underwood, and other guests as well as listeners about working as an African-American in the classical music industry. (audio) – WQXR (New York City)
Tag: 06.20.20
Paolo Giorgio Ferri, Hero In Fight Against Trade In Looted Antiquities, Dead At 72
“Colleagues say his legacy includes dismantling multinational looting and trafficking rings; recovering tens of thousands of Greco-Roman artifacts from secret storehouses; and compelling what is sometimes called ‘the great giveback,’ a period that began in 2006 and continues to this day, during which American museums have returned at least 120 ill-gotten antiquities valued at more than $1 billion to the Greek and Italian authorities.” – The New York Times
As America’s Orchestras Remain Closed, In Other Countries They’re Getting Back To Work
From Taiwan to Germany to Spain to Quebec, lockdowns are lifting and orchestras are figuring out ways to make music again. David Patrick Stearns looks into what they’re trying, from Yannick Nézet-Séguin’s Beethoven symphony cycle with the (carefully spaced) Orchestre Métropolitain in a largely empty Montreal hall to Prague’s Collegium 1704 performing Baroque music with masks on (even the woodwinds and singers) to an opera in Salzburg where the characters all hate each other so much that they stay socially distanced anyway. – The Philadelphia Inquirer
We Have To Rethink Arts Funding
Gone are the days of monolithic support. The philanthropic field is diverse, dispersed, and interconnected. As such, funders must collaborate in order to move forward. These alliances should also include partnerships between for-profit and not-for-profit businesses. They have the same stakeholders; why not bring them to the table? – Artsy
Two Men Get Home Sentences After Massive, Decades Long Thefts From Carnegie Library
The judge noted that without the pandemic, their sentences would be significantly more severe. “The stolen items included a 1787 first-edition book signed by Thomas Jefferson, a rare copy of “The Journal of Major George Washington” and a version of Isaac Newton’s “Principia,” among the most influential books in science, said to be worth $900,000, the authorities said.” – The New York Times
Singing In Groups Is Dangerous Now
So here’s how choirs are reinventing themselves. – CBC
As Juniper Serra Statue Goes Down, Activists Want The Site To Tell A More Truthful History
For one thing, it’s really time to change the name of “Father Serra Park” in Los Angeles. But taking down the statues to the architect of the mission system, which brutalized thousands of Native adults and children, is a first step. And “organizers of the action (a loose group of unnamed artists and activists) say they see the toppling as a beginning, not an end.” – Los Angeles Times
Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Author Of The Shadow Of The Wind, 55
Zafón, who had been dealing with colon cancer for two years, wrote The Shadow of the Wind after a visit to a book warehouse in Los Angeles. It became the second-best-selling Spanish book of all time … second only to Don Quixote. – The New York Times
The Music Of The Revolutions
Music that unites protestors is not new, and it wasn’t new in the 1960s either. “Music at protests reminds dissenters of their humanity, even when the powers-that-be attempt to strip away their personhood. It gives strength. It takes the mind away from a place of fear and pain, and focuses the body to resist. And at times, the music is the only way the message can be shared.” – OPB (Portland)
Some California Museums Are, Cautiously, Reopening
But the smaller museums may not be interested in risking everything. The Underground Museum, “in L.A.’s Arlington Heights neighborhood, sounded a voice of caution about a pandemic that has hit Black and Latino populations disproportionately hard: ‘We are prioritizing the care of our community over calls to restart our economy. … Please stay safe, and if you can, stay home.'” – Los Angeles Times