“Contemplative in some moments and mind-bending in others, the music is steeped in things elemental, with no place for superficial prettiness or irony. And after decades of Russian domination (1945-90), nobody tells them what to do.”
Tag: 08.22.10
Proposed Chamber Orchestra Has Charleston Symphony Worried
With the Charleston Symphony in limbo after running out of cash in March, conductor Lorenzo Muti (no relation) and former Spoleto USA impresario Charles Wadsworth are trying to launch a small orchestra/chamber ensemble in the Lowcountry. They insist that they pose no threat to a revival of the CSO, though many local musicians aren’t so sure.
How About the Funniest Movie Ever? Celebrating Airplane! at 30
“Before Airplane!, jokes in comedies came along reliably though intermittently – but watching Airplane! was like being strafed with a joke-howitzer. There was no time to stop laughing before another dozen jokes came at you.” The movie’s creators tell their story.
How Tivo Is Changing The Way Hollywood Advertises Movies
“While no one predicts the end of film ads on TV — strong visuals still attract attention on the small screen — time-shifting is one reason why film-marketing dollars have increasingly flown to the Internet in search of real “engagement” in a fragmented media world. “
Ancient Cave Paintings In Jordan Stun Experts
“Experts from the Courtauld Institute in London have now removed the black grime, uncovering paintings whose “exceptional” artistic quality and sheer beauty are said to be superior even to some of the better Roman paintings at Herculaneum that were inspired by Hellenistic art.”
How The Ruling Against Bookseller of Kabul Author Changes Publishing
“What, when writing about foreign cultures, is true, and what can be considered accurate? Here, the idea of accuracy must mean something more than an adherence to the mere facts. It must mean giving, as far as possible, an accurate reflection of the conditions under which the facts appear.”
Online Dating – What We’re Learning About Human Nature
“Research presented last week at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association found that 22 percent of heterosexual couples surveyed met online, and researchers believe the Web could soon eclipse friends as the primary means of finding mates.”
What Culture Hath The Baby Boomers Wrought
“To a degree I have some sympathy with the resentment, marshalled in a cluster of recent anti-boomer books. Individually, we may not have been the authors of today’s flux, uncertainty and lack of social and cultural anchors, but we were at the scene of the crime.”
E-Books – Making Reading A Better Community Experience?
“Social mores surrounding the act of reading alone in public may be changing along with increased popularity. Suddenly, the lone, unapproachable reader at the corner table seems less alone. Given that some e-readers can display books while connecting online, there’s a chance the erstwhile bookworm is already plugged into a conversation somewhere.”
The New Fact-Checking (Is There Any?)
“In short, fact-checking has assumed radically new forms in the past 15 years. Only fact-checkers from legacy media probably miss the quaint old procedures. But if the Web has changed what qualifies as fact-checking, has it also changed what qualifies as a fact? I suspect that facts on the Web are now more rhetorical devices than identifiable objects. But I can’t verify that.”