A New Artistic Director For A Formerly Modest Company In The Midst Of Transformation

“Smith is now two days away from the opening of the first show of his first season at the Flea, Thomas Bradshaw’s ‘Fulfillment,’ a comic drama about New York strivers and a supposedly perfect downtown apartment. The season also happens to be one of the last before the Flea — founded in 1996 by Mr. Simpson and others, to raise ‘joyful hell in a small space’ — itself trades up to a new $21 million home. It’s tempting to spot a sly metaphor.”

Women Are Everywhere In Ballet. Except This One Thing…

“Boston’s was one of eight ballet companies started in cities across the U.S. — including Philadelphia, Houston and Washington D.C. — that were launched with a $7.7 million Ford Foundation grant in 1963. Created and nurtured by strong female artistic directors, these companies grew in size and stature, and all are thriving today. But the women leaders are gone; all of these troupes are headed by men.”

Marin Alsop To Step Down From Cabrillo Festival

“Alsop first came to the Cabrillo Festival in the summer of 1992, following in the job famed composer John Adams who served on an interim basis for one year after the 17-year stint of Dennis Russell Davies. In her time at Cabrillo, the festival has become one of the most high-profile summer new music festivals in the world. She has brought a couple of generations of composers, musicians and conductors into Santa Cruz every summer that would have been her otherwise.”

Can Science Of The Brain Explain How Our Music Works?

“The cerebellum helps to understand rhythm, while the center part of the brain knows the difference between a piano and a flute. There isn’t a simple science to the particular genre you like—pop, opera, classical or jazz. “It’s a combination of cultural background, and then looking at musical attributes, like melody, instrumentation, timbre, and text.”