Sixty-eight galleries, 800 Australian and international artists and 20,000 people expected for this year’s Melbourne Biennial Art Fair. – The Age (Melbourne)
Author: Douglas McLennan
NEWS ON COMMISSION
“The worst-paid journalists on earth live in Nigeria. Because of this, Nigerian journalists do on a daily basis what would constitute a firing offence in Canada – they accept money from the people they write about. These payments, called ‘commissions’, are paid by companies, individuals, organizations and governments when journalists come to call.” – The Globe and Mail (Canada)
OPERA’S OTHER HALF
Glyndebourne’s touring opera, founded in 1968, has not only helped dispel the more famous summer festival’s reputation as an elitist playground; it has also launched some notable talents – Pavarotti, Roberto Alagna, and Simon Rattle’s conducting debut. “This is the other side of Glyndebourne. This is a world of low ticket prices, orchestras in improvised pits (or no pit at all), box offices that have to juggle selling opera seats with marketing their own Christmas pantomimes, and distraught divas.” – The Independent (UK)
THE NY PHIL SWEEPSTAKES
The name-the-next-New-York-Philharmonic-music-director game continues. Peter G. Davis takes a look at the contenders. “I wouldn’t count out anything in this latest crazy round of musical chairs. When I left Barenboim’s hotel suite, who should be ushered in, with a hungry look in his eye, but Zarin Mehta?” – New York Magazine
RESOURCEFULNESS MAKES THE OPERA
The Welsh National Opera has almost no money. So the company has found other ways to dress up its productions and make them a critical success. – The Guardian
NEW TAKE ON YEHUDI
Yehudi Menuhin had a turbulent life, the result, claims a new biography, of a tortured childhood as a child prodigy. “Yehudi was barred from all games to preserve his hands. He was not allowed a bicycle, and did not cross the road unaccompanied until he was 18. He had only one day at school, and was tutored at home along with his brilliant younger sisters, Hephzibah and Yaltah. It could not have been a more abnormal childhood.” – The Scotsman
BETTER TO PIRATE THAN KEEP SINGING ABOUT MAO?
Despite ongoing government surveillance, new music is flowing more freely in China due in large part to the internet. Piracy is rampant, but some say illegal copies are the only way around decades of censorship. “Even today, anyone who records a CD has to submit its lyrics on paper to state censors for their approval. ‘If the government wants to dictate what we should listen to, we have no choice but to rely on pirated stuff.’” – Newsweek (International Edition)
HOW CANADA GOT ITS OWN THEATRE
Back in the 1960s Canada’s regional theatres didn’t produce Canadian plays because they said there weren’t good Canadian plays. And maybe it was true. But a Trudeau government program helped feed a lot of actors and soon enough there were Canadian plays worth watching. – The Globe and Mail (Canada)
PLAYING TO THE CROWDS AT THE EXPENSE OF SCHOLARSHIP
The US’s National Endowment for the Humanities has been supporting popular traveling exhibitions in an attempt to reach out to audiences. “To many scholars, the idea that the endowment supports barn photography with enthusiasm while it considers cutting scholarly projects represents a terrible shift in priorities. And to these scholars, the shift couldn’t come at a worse time, since the agency is already short on cash, with a budget of only $115-million.” – Chronicle of Higher Education 10/02/00
PIERRE TRUDEAU AND THE ARTS
Artists reflect on Trudeau’s arts legacy. “Although he was not responsible for the initial commitment of the federal government to fund Canadian artists, he certainly made sure they were well supported during his years in office.” – CBC 10/02/00