Co-working spaces are the spatial expression of the casualisation we see in the labour market. In theory, they cater to the “digital nomad”, offering a place and a community as an antidote to the isolation and loneliness of most casual forms of work. In practice, they are not about co-working per se, but about constructing and profiting from a workplace culture that is essentially based on trepidation. – The Guardian
Author: Douglas McLennan
Countertenor David Daniels Indicted On Sexual Assault
A grand jury indicted Daniels in Harris County District Court on July 25. Also indicted on the same charge is Daniels’ husband, William Walters, who goes by the name Scott. In Texas, sexual assault of an adult is a Class 2 felony; if convicted, Daniels and Walter could face between two and 20 years in prison. – NPR
Why The Baltimore Symphony Is In Trouble
Carol Bogash: “One thing is clear to me: The root cause of the financial problems that the BSO has faced over these past five years is directly related to decisions made by the management and board. Budgets have been approved that were built on wishful thinking. Huge amounts of money were spent on guest artists and guest conductors with the hope of being recouped through ticket sales and donations. Major projects were undertaken without sufficient underwriting. They were artistically worthwhile but financially went into the red. These are the business practices that lead to serious systemic problems and debt.” – Washington Post
How Do We Measure What’s Popular In Music?
We used to be able to look to Billboard charts. But there are so many ways people are accessing music it’s become almost impossible to tell what the “top” music is by how many are listening. – The New York Times
How “Famous Birthdays” Became Wikipedia For Generation Z
Is it adult mainstream yet? No, but that doesn’t matter.” The site has 20 million unique visitors a month—more than a million more than Entertainment Weekly, and four times as many as Teen Vogue. – The Atlantic
How To Address Gender/Race Imbalances In Classical Music?
“From art to science and beyond, the work of historically marginalised groups is being gloriously shared. Except within classical music, that is. And to compound matters, the errors of the past are being repeated today.” – The Guardian
“World” Music? What Is That? (Time To Retire The Label)
Founders of the term provided vague justifications for lumping together anything that wasn’t deemed to be from a European or American tradition – “looking at what artists do rather than what they sound like”, as editor of fRoots magazine Ian Anderson said. The World of Music, Arts and Dance Festival, AKA Womad, which was founded seven years before the term gained prominence, similarly used it as a catch-all for its roster of international artists. – The Guardian
Research: How You Watch TV Shapes How You Think
The harm seems to come not so much from the content itself but from the fact that it replaces more enlightening ways of spending time. – The New York Times
Same Old Blah – Why We Need To Reinvigorate Arts Criticism (Get Some New Voices!)
Can anyone argue that our largely white critical contingent in Boston is interested in generating hard hitting debate, controversy, and unconventional ideas? In the hands of these white critics and their editors, arts coverage is shrinking into terminal boredom — in the Globe, ARTery, and elsewhere — as critics embrace the role of diplomat/consumer guides, dispensers of ad-copy happy talk. Reviews that market to the lowest common denominator may sell tickets, and that reassures the powers-that-be. But so what? We need criticism to become critical again. – Arts Fuse
Art Protest Changed This Week – The Whitney Resignation Changes All
When people scrutinize this moment as an era-defining case study, it will be worth assessing: What was it about this intervention that enabled it to so dramatically achieve its aims? – Artnet