From singing at recent New York street protests to protests over the Metropolitan Opera’s production of John Adams’ “The Death of Klinghoffer,” music and protest seem to be in the air…
Tag: 09.30.14
Another Gifted Female Conductor Cracks The Glass Ceiling
Susanna Mälkki: “I was very aware that the tradition of the profession is extremely masculine. I knew that if I wanted to do this, I have to be particularly good at it. … Maybe one day we will have reached a point where we won’t have to discuss the gender issue at all.”
Avant-Garde Yodeling Gets Some Dirndls In A Twist
“Christine Lauterburg, a musician from Bern, has layered yodeling over techno beats, and that simply isn’t done. She wears a miniskirt and heels on stage, rather than the Alpine peasant dresses worn by performers sanctioned by the Swiss Yodeling Association, the keeper of the flame. The outfit, called a dirndl, isn’t optional. Ms. Lauterburg isn’t alone in her heresy.”
Atlanta Symphony Musicians Say Departed CEO Wasn’t The Problem
When he resigned this week, Stanley Romanstein wrote that his continued presence would be “an impediment” to ending the lockout. But, says the leader of the musicians’ union, “Stanley was never empowered to negotiate an agreement with the Musicians of the ASO; neither this negotiation nor in 2012.”
Perfectionism Can Be Really, Really Bad For You
“Perfectionism is a trait many of us cop to coyly, maybe even a little proudly. … But real perfectionism can be devastatingly destructive, leading to crippling anxiety or depression, and it may even be an overlooked risk factor for suicide, argues a new paper.”
One Architect’s Lifelong Struggle Against The Tyranny Of Straight Lines
The story of Austrian designer Friedensreich Regentag Dunkelbunt Hundertwasser (which means “Realm-of-Peace Rainy-Day Dark-Colored Hundred-Waters”), né Friedrich Stowasser. (includes podcast)
What Does It Mean That We Seem To Want To Document Everything Now?
“What if the omnipresence of cameras and the act of recording helps some people to be more firmly in the moment than if they weren’t documenting it? Maybe it isn’t so much about the result of that documentation – the arguably inflationary numbers of selfies, time-lapses and photos – but about the mere act of consciously documenting?”
Netflix To Release Movie In Theatres And Online At Same Time (How Significant Is This?)
“Certainly a high-profile movie that would go into theaters and online at the same time is noteworthy. But is it a game-changer – something that, in success, will hint at and even hasten a very different future? Here are a number of questions that inform that answer.”
Gunther Schuller Talks About Composing
“The thing about composing, nobody can tell — even Beethoven couldn’t tell until he had composed quite a bit of music and it got better and better — the degree of talent. You can’t get up one day [and say], ‘I’m going to be talented today and write a great piece.’ The only thing you can do is start composing and work your buns off working on it and studying the great music of the past and learning from it and then try to create sort of your own language.”
Jessye Norman On How To Deal With Critics
“Oh, they might write it, but, darling, I don’t read it. I don’t need it. I know whether or not I have done onstage what I intended to do that night. … And if it doesn’t suit somebody who is sitting there, not having paid for their ticket to be there, and they find it not to their liking – what does it matter? Who are they?” (video)