Tag: 08.25.20

Why Don’t Orchestras Improvise?

“There’s a language there, and the language comes out of so many years of study. And the idea that the orchestra can’t move a couple of paces in a certain direction toward what they would do, even as they move many paces to use orchestral notation — to try to codify things in a language that these players appreciate and are familiar with — I find that dynamic odd. Because this is the music of today.” – The New York Times

DC Fan Dome Sets The Gold Standard (So Far) For Virtual Events

Virtual conventions are long. People are watching at home, in their rooms, instead of in giant ballrooms packed with other excited fans. Trying to bring some of that convention energy to people digitally is immensely difficult, but what FanDome proved is that figuring out pacing and giving audiences something to actually look at in place of Zoom call screens they’re already exhausted by goes a long way. – The Verge

Online Learning Is Changing Our Brains. We Need To Understand How

“To skim to inform” is the new norm for reading. What goes missing are deep reading processes which require a quality of attention increasingly at risk in a culture and on a medium in which constant distraction bifurcates our attention. These processes include connecting background knowledge to new information, making analogies, drawing inferences, examining truth value, passing over into the perspectives of others (expanding empathy and knowledge), and integrating everything into critical analysis. Deep reading is our species’ bridge to insight and novel thought. – The Guardian

How To Bring L.A. Back From Disease, Dissension, And Unrest? Build Concert Halls, Says Mark Swed

“On the surface, that no doubt sounds idiotic — economically, socially and in just about every other way,” writes the L.A. Times classical music critic. “It’s not. It is the simplest, surest, most affordable means of turning this town around. Better still, we’re already nearly there. So please, bear with me.” – Los Angeles Times

‘Manipulative, Offensive, And Cheap’: Whitney Museum Cancels Show Of Black Artists’ Work After Artists Cry Foul

“The Whitney Museum of American Art on Tuesday canceled an upcoming exhibition after artists of color objected to the institution’s having obtained their work through discounted sales largely meant to benefit racial justice charities. They have accused the museum of trying to capitalize on their work without properly compensating them.” – The New York Times