“The Merce Cunningham Trust, established in 1990 to further the choreographer’s legacy, has announced an award of $250,000 to the Baryshnikov Arts Center and of $375,000 to the Foundation for Contemporary Arts. … [A trustee] said that this was the first time the trust had awarded cash grants, and that it was unlikely to happen again.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Is The Ulster Orchestra Saved? (Not Yet)
“One of the Ulster Orchestra’s executives is optimistic that 2015 will see a deal reached to save it – but there is no sign yet of what it may be. Trevor Green, who has managed 13 orchestras during his career, arrived in November on a six-month contract to aid in its quest for survival.”
Even Sting Can’t Keep This Broadway Show Going
“The Broadway musical The Last Ship will close on Jan. 24 despite an unusual attempt by Sting, its composer, to try to increase ticket sales and spread word about the show by joining its cast last month.”
New Orleans At War With Itself Over All The Music (Hey, It’s Loud!)
A strange combination of old zoning laws and local tradition makes live musical performance in the birthplace of jazz a more complicated matter than you’d expect. As the city continues to recover from Katrina, the conflicting forces of gentrification, preservation, amplification and tourism are leading to some ferocious political battles.
How Horton Foote Lasted Through 30 Years Of Obscurity To Become Acknowledged As A Great American Playwright
He had his first successes in made-for-TV plays, but once shows like Playhouse 90 ended, he was unable for decades to get theaters to consider his plays. Even his lauded screenplays for To Kill a Mockingbird and Tender Mercies didn’t help his theater career. How did he find the strength to keep at it?
From Babe The Pig To Chuckie The Rugrat – The Many Voices Of (The Late) Christine Cavanaugh
“If you’re a young adult of a certain age, Christine Cavanaugh’s distinct voice probably plays a role in the pop culture memories from your childhood … Cavanaugh died last month at the age of 51, and in tribute to her work we’ve highlighted some of her best turns as both a voice actor and as a character actor.” (video)
This Organ Performance Will Last Longer Than You Will (Or Your Children Or Grandchildren)
A look in on the German project that’s taking John Cage’s piece As SLow aS Possible very, very seriously.
Top Posts From AJBlogs 01.05.15
Did Worcester Museum’s “Rethinking” Work? A FollowUp
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts Published 2015-01-05
Postmodernism and the Human Condition
AJBlog: CultureCrash Published 2015-01-05
Mis-Communications? Exodus of Guggenheim’s Top PR Officials
AJBlog: CultureGrrl Published 2015-01-05
Monday Recommendation: Nat Hentoff
AJBlog: RiffTides Published 2015-01-05
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The Minnesota Orchestra’s Tumultuous Year: A Look Back
“In recent days at Orchestra Hall, I’ve repeatedly heard the word ‘optimistic’. The Orchestra is playing well, and musicians are clearly happy to be working with music director Osmo Vänskä again. … After two years of being held up as the example of the way not to do things, there is apparently great interest in the Minnesota Orchestra elsewhere.”
Discord Over Paris’s New Concert Hall
Despite the decades of complaints about the French capital lacking a decent venue for symphonic music, there’s a lot of hand-wringing about the soon-to-open Philharmonie de Paris – over everything from its location at the edge of the city to budget overruns and missed deadlines to planned programming.