“Two South African scientists are about to embark on a series of forensic tests to prove a case that will blow smoke in the eyes of traditional Shakespearean scholarship. They believe that the man who bestrides the classical canon was not just a genius, but a very early pot head.” – The Independent (UK)
Tag: 11.05.00
BALLET FOLKLORICO FOUNDER DIES
“Amalia Hernandez, the founder of Mexico’s Ballet Folklórico and a pioneer in the revival of traditional Mexican dance styles over the last 50 years, died Saturday at the age of 83.” – Dallas Morning News (AP)
DISTANCE LEARNING
“In the past, masterclasses were held behind closed doors, which meant that embarrassments were mercifully limited to a small audience, composed mostly of peers. These days, however, things are different. Pinchas Zukerman’s three most recent masterclasses, held in cooperation with Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra, were webcast free to the public in an interactive distance-learning effort. With Zukerman on one continent, his students on another, and the audience potentially everywhere, the experiment became something more consequential than an open conservatory lesson. Something slightly scarier, as well.” – The New Republic
THE FIRST GREAT AMERICAN COMPOSER
“Copland was the first, the only and probably the last American classical composer upon whose greatness and importance everyone could agree. His 100th birthday is Nov. 14, and the celebration has taken on something of an iconic status. If we fall into the temptation to look back at the 20th century as the American century, Copland, born as it began, becomes a ready symbol for a nation coming of age.” – Los Angeles Times
OVERSIZED ‘AIDA”
“In an evening of not quite high culture and a few moments of low comedy, a cast of 2,200 performed the tale of doomed love between an Egyptian general and an Ethiopian slave girl as the centerpiece of this year’s China Shanghai International Festival of the Arts. And while the sound was remarkably good for such a huge venue, the theatrics stole the show.” – New York Times
FILLING IN THE SILENCE
Conductor/musicologist Gillian Anderson has “restored the original music for 25 films – she calls them ‘early’ films, pointing out that they ‘were never silent’ but were regularly played with live piano, organ or orchestral accompaniments. She has conducted this music during showings in Europe and North and South America – notably at the Louvre in Paris and the National Gallery of Art in Washington.” – Washington Post