“[P]ut Simon Rattle in front of a period instrument band like the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and it’s like having one’s ears syringed. There wasn’t a single moment in either Schumann’s 2nd or 4th symphonies where one felt it was down to the conductor’s sleight of hand to ensure the clarity of inner voices. The revelations weren’t just in textural but harmonic transparency. You listened differently, more attentively, you finally heard what Schumann was about.”
Tag: 12.09.08
So Why Shouldn’t Joe The Plumber Publish A Book?
In a much-noted New York Times essay last Sunday, Timothy Egan grandly harrumphing about the likes of Sarah Palin and campaign celebrity Samuel Wurzelbacher (“Joe the Plumber”) landing book contracts while so many talented and trained writers languish unpublished. And yet, Michael Pastore points out, if the writing of books was permitted only to trained professionals, consider whose works would never have seen print: Benjamin Franklin, Walt Whitman, the Bronte sisters, Getrude Stein, W.E.B. DuBois…
Time To Rehabilitate Paul Rudolph?
In 1963, Modernist architect Paul Rudolph had such a success with his Art and Architecture building at Yale that no less than Time magazine pronounced him a boy wonder of his profession. Within a couple of decades, his style was considered outmoded; his buildings, deemed obsolete due to the requirements of ever-advancing technology, began succumbing to the wrecking ball. Is it time for a museum retrospective to revive Rudolph’s reputation?
Buying British Vs. The Universality Of Theatre
“Unlike McDonald’s hamburgers…, plays from different cultures don’t appear in identical form when they are produced in another country.” But the abundance of American plays on London stages has some Brits riled up. “When it comes to theatre paid for at least in part by the UK taxpayer, does there remain an onus on artistic directors and producers to ‘buy British’?”
Genius Book! Full Disclosure: The Author & I Are ThisClose
“In this season of lists and holiday recommendations, I had planned to submit my books of the year to the blogosphere today,” Robert McCrum writes. “But I’ve bumped into one or two inhibitions.” The charge of logrolling, for example. So: “For full transparency, I will … score my relationship with each author on a 10-point scale.”
Architects At Play: What Might Presidio Museum Look Like?
“The saga of Donald Fisher’s quest to build a museum in the Presidio took quite a turn last week: Park officials said they want the museum to be reduced in size and moved a block from Fisher’s desired site, and the Gap founder indicated he’s willing to give it a try. … Ten of our most creative architectural firms are displaying their own schemes for the Contemporary Art Museum at the Presidio that the Fisher family wants to build and endow.”
Good News In Bad Economy: Canadian Book Sales Are Up
“While not immune to fears of a general economic downturn, publishers and retailers in the Canadian book business are cautiously optimistic at the start of this year’s crucial holiday selling season, heaving a collective sigh of relief that 2007’s toxic climate has lifted.”
Marc Mayer Named Director Of National Gallery of Canada
“The long-rumoured appointment of Marc Mayer as director of Ottawa’s National Gallery of Canada has been officially approved by the Department of Heritage and the Prime Minister’s Office, according to NGC board member Donald Sobey.”
Which Part Of TMI Don’t You Understand?
“Oversharing, of course, is the default setting in modern American letters.” But even if writers feel the need to publish the most intimate details of their lives, exposing others along the way, do we really need to know these things?
Baltimore Opera Company Filing For Bankruptcy Protection
“After 58 years and more than 200 productions, the Baltimore Opera Company will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy-law protection today amid dwindling ticket sales and contributions. The remaining two productions of the 2008-2009 season, Rossini’s The Barber of Seville and Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, have been canceled. Ticket-holders will not receive refunds.”