“For some ancient Greeks and Romans, history was a downhill slide. … Nowadays some optimists think that history slants in the opposite direction. Some techno-utopians argue that technological progress is following an exponential curve, a J that is bending upward toward the vertical. … At the other extreme are today’s gloomy Malthusians. They view history as a spike, in which industrial and population growth overshoot the limits to sustainability, followed by a sharp crash likely to involve the collapse of industrial civilization … There is a third alternative: The shape of things to come may be a logistic curve or S-curve.”
Month: October 2015
Flood Of Antiquities Returned To India As Investigation Into Dealer Continues
“What began as a trickle has now become a flood as more institutions around the world return works of art that were bought from Manhattan antiquities dealer Subhash Kapoor, who ran the now defunct gallery Art of the Past for over three decades. Kapoor is awaiting trial in India on charges of smuggling looted artefacts worth more than $100m.”
A Lost Merce Cunningham Dance Solo, Found – On Film And In The Flesh
“[Merce] was by all accounts at his most personal and driven in a series of three extraordinary 1950s solos he made to music by Christian Wolff.” One of those solo’s Changeling, was rediscovered in a 1958 German TV film. Now visitors to Boston can see both the film itself and a live performance of the reconstructed dance by Silas Riener.
‘Choreographic Objects’ – William Forsythe’s Art Installations
In 1997, “he made his first foray into installation work at the Roundhouse in London with White Bouncy Castle, which had spectators bounding and falling in a giant rubber courtyard. He described it at the time as ‘a choreography that is incapable of being false.’ It’s a description that fits a subsequent substantial body of work that generates movement in spectators – by navigating between the swinging pendulums …, clambering through 200 gymnastic rings without touching the floor …, [or] moving extremely slowly in order not to disturb a whirlpool of fog.”
Kenneth Branagh Brings His Star-Studded Rep Company To The West End
“For slightly more than a year, Mr. Branagh, 54, will wear the multiple hats of leading actor, director and company manager alongside the stars Judi Dench, Derek Jacobi, Richard Madden, Lily James and Zoë Wanamaker, as well as actors straight out of drama school.”
Pandora And Big Labels Settle Suit For $90 Million
“The settlement, which follows a similar deal in June for $210 million between the labels and Sirius XM, resolves one aspect of a dispute over an obscure legal point: Federal copyright protection applies only to recordings made after 1972, with a patchwork of state laws applying to earlier recordings.”
Why Are Music Scholars Ignoring The Growing Evidence For Musical Universals?
Ted Gioia: “The evidence that different cultures share fundamental approaches to music-making is mounting, yet the scholars who specialize in world music prefer to pretend it doesn’t exist. What’s going on?”
Film Directors Aren’t So Different From Scientists
“In his latest film, director Michael Almereyda draws comparisons between Stanley Milgram and cinematic auteurs. There’s some research to back this analogy.”
Disney To Launch Subscription Streaming In Great Britain
“The service, DisneyLife, will make available a wide range of titles, including the complete Pixar catalog, which includes the Toy Story franchise, and classics such as Snow White, Lady and the Tramp and The Jungle Book … DisneyLife will cost £9.99 ($15.43) a month.”
The Business Of Broadway: An Infographic
“Using data provided by the Broadway League, the industry’s trade association, The Wall Street Journal examines the business side of show business, from hits and flops to cyclical realities.”