“The British music industry has been granted a court order forcing internet service providers (ISPs) to reveal the names of illegal music swappers.” The ruling comes only days after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review a federal decision prohibiting the American recording industry from using the same practice.
Tag: 10.14.04
Will Safe Programming Be The Orchestral Death Knell?
Orchestras seem to be pulling away from adventurous programming as a knee-jerk reaction to short-term fiscal problems. But Norman Lebrecht fears that such decisions will only hasten the demise of orchestral relevance. “While a programme of family favourites may stabilise finances and reassure creditors, it casts into acute doubt the survival of the symphony orchestra in the modern world. Who, after all, needs so many orchestras if they all play the same music and none of it is new? It is a question that is starting to trouble hardcore supporters of live music.”
And Next Season, The Worst Orchestra Has To Burn Its Violins
A new reality TV show in the UK will ask viewers to help determine which hideous example of architecture gone awry is the country’s “worst building.” Viewer nominations will be accepted, and then a panel of experts will decide on the winning – or is that losing? – structure. The building will then be demolished on live TV. Somewhat surprisingly, the program is supported by the Royal Institute of British Architects.
Legacy Of A (Gay) Composer
Benjamin Britten’s homosexuality was either the most important factor in his life, or completely irrelevant to his career as a composer, depending on which historian is doing the talking. A new collection of Britten’s letters purports to say the latter, and to “rescue” Britten’s legacy from the clutches of historians bent on making him “the gay composer.” But when scholarship starts with an agenda, it usually winds up leaving out a fact or two…
Liz Taylor Sued Over Nazi-Looted Art
Actress Elizabeth Taylor is the defendant in a new lawsuit over the ownership of a Van Gogh painting seized by Nazis in World War II. “The South African and Canadian descendants of a Jewish woman who fled Germany in the late 1930s say the actress should have known when she bought the painting for $US257,600 in 1963 that it had been stolen by the Nazis.”
Sort Of Like The Auto Writer Who Won The Pulitzer
Baseball stadium designer Joseph E. Spear is a National Design Awards architecture nominee. “The other nominees are Rick Joy, Polshek Partnership and Rafael Viñoly. While Mr. Spear’s buildings are no doubt seen by more people than those of his rivals, his stadiums are far less celebrated in the architectural world, a fact that may change, given the exposure and respect generated by the nomination.”
Ashcroft Vows To Fight Intellectual Property Crime
“While the entertainment industry has had some recent setbacks in its fight against piracy in the courts and in Congress, it has a new ally in John Ashcroft, who recently pledged to make cracking down on copyright violators a top priority. On Tuesday, the attorney general released a report from the Department of Justice’s Intellectual Property Task Force that outlines plans to beef up enforcement of copyright violations.”
Out Of The Printer Tray, Into The Fire
“Best-selling children’s novelist, GP Taylor has accidentally burnt three of his original manuscripts while clearing his house before moving. Scarborough-based Graham Taylor was turning the embers on a bonfire when he noticed what was written on them.”
Carnegie International’s Friends Are Of Necessity
“When the 54th Carnegie International opened last Friday, the festivities served as a reunion for 57 people whose generosity funded nearly one quarter of the exhibit’s cost. Known as Friends of the 2004 Carnegie International, these 57 affluent donors contributed more than $700,000 to the $3 million exhibit once it became clear that no single local corporation would serve as lead sponsor.” It was the first time in recent history that a corporation failed to fill that role.
Lincoln Center Makes An Economic Case
“Lincoln Center — home to the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Ballet and the New York Philharmonic, among others — released a study Wednesday showing its significant economic contribution to the New York city, state and metropolitan area. Prepared by the Economic Development Research Group in association with Mt. Auburn Associates, the study finds Lincoln Center’s total economic contribution in 2003 to the greater metropolitan region was $1.52 billion of business sales, which in turn supported 15,200 workers with $635 million in benefits and wages.”