“A Senate committee is expected to support legislation that would authorize regulators to enforce a nearly zero-tolerance policy on the broadcast of certain expletives that was struck down last month. The bill would give the Federal Communications Commission explicit authority to make ‘a single word or image’ indecent.”
Tag: 07.19.07
Will Harry’s Power Extend Beyond His Own World?
“Did Harry Potter really change the world? …Plenty of claims have been made. Among them: Harry got kids to read, especially boys, and he revitalized the sleepy universe of children’s publishing. Talk to informed observers of that universe, however, and you’ll find that nearly every claim made for Harry is open to interpretation, if not dispute.”
Guthrie’s WorldStage Series Struggling
Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theater is considering suspending a series devoted to diverse productions from around the world, if it cannot find a dedicated funding source for the presentations. “Since moving into [its] new three-stage complex last year, the theater has presented only one event under the program,” and the director of the series has just been moved out of his full time position and into a consultant role.
Sopranos Dominates Emmy Nominations
The Primetime Emmy nominations were announced this morning in Hollywood, and as expected, HBO’s just-wrapped mob drama The Sopranos led the pack, with 15 noms, including best drama, best actor, and best actress. Other prominent nominees include the Fox medical drama, House, NBC’s Heroes, and workplace comedies The Office and Ugly Betty.
Lyric Opera To Stick With Radio
Lyric Opera of Chicago will remain a national on-air presence after raising enough money to keep its new radio series on the air through the 2011-12 season. “After a four-year hiatus, Lyric returned to the air Oct. 21 as a result of a new contract with its principal unions and a $2 million grant [which] required an equal amount be raised from others. The Lyric now says that it has completed the match.”
A Dark And Uncertain Harry
You won’t be able to buy the new Harry Potter book until tomorrow at midnight, but you can read the first professional review now. (Don’t worry – the review contains no spoilers.) “While Ms. Rowling’s astonishingly limber voice still moves effortlessly between Ron’s adolescent sarcasm and Harry’s growing solemnity, from youthful exuberance to more philosophical gravity, ‘Deathly Hallows’ is, for the most part, a somber book that marks Harry’s final initiation into the complexities and sadnesses of adulthood… No wonder then that Harry often seems overwhelmed with disillusionment and doubt in the final installment of this seven-volume bildungsroman.”
A Critic Gets His Wish Granted
New York Times chief music critic Anthony Tommassini has been beating the Alan Gilbert drum for quite some time now, and he freely admits that he expected to be disappointed in the end, and is thrilled to have been proven wrong. “Mr. Gilbert is an unpretentious musician with no whiff of the formidable maestro about him. And that is just what makes him such a refreshing choice for the Philharmonic… Mr. Gilbert presents himself simply as a solid, utterly professional conductor who will try to instill a collegial atmosphere within the ranks of the players rather than be their teacher.”
A Modest, Soft-Spoken Podium Presence
The evidence that is available suggests that Alan Gilbert will be a departure from the standard-issue personality of past New York Philharmonic music directors. “He is certainly not a galvanic personality-driven ego, unlike previous hotshot young maestros hired by the Philharmonic as music director in past decades, such as John Barbirolli or Leonard Bernstein… Yet how good is Mr. Gilbert’s musicmaking? The evidence available on CD is sparse, [but] his experience with orchestras has been abundant.”
Gilbert Appointment Pleases NY Phil Musicians
The announcement of native New Yorker (and son of two NY Phil musicians) Alan Gilbert as the next music director of the New York Philharmonic was made first to the orchestra’s musicians as they prepared for an outdoor concert in Central Park. Reaction within the ensemble appeared to be immediate and positive, and Gilbert himself put in a surprise appearance to watch the concert.
Professor To Create “Internet Choir”
“A senior lecturer in The School of Computer Science at The University of Manchester, is seeking to combine his academic expertise in communications, networks and digital signal processing with his love of choral singing. He is looking for funding to drive forward a project that will bring together amateur and semi-professional singers across Europe for seamless and polished live performances” over the internet.