The scandal over the “Joyce Hatto” piano recordings that turned out to have been copies of other artists’ work begs some interesting questions. “Whether you are a master teacher, an opera buff, a concertgoer or a critic, knowing something of the background of the artist you are hearing will inevitably affect your perceptions.” So, when the artist you think you’re listening to turns out to be someone else entirely, your impressions of the entire performance can turn on a dime.
Author: sbergman
Still Waiting
The paintings of abstract expressionist Clyfford Still, long hidden away from public view in a warehouse awaiting a permanent home that would meet the strict terms of the artist’s will, will soon have a home at a new museum in Denver. The Still archive, which few scholars have even had the chance to peruse, is, in a word, massive, and at least 10% of the works have significant conservation problems.
Digital Hollywood
We are fast approaching the day when consumers will be able to download, view, and archive movies, TV shows, and any number of other digital entertainments at will, and watch them in any number of different ways. Some observers are suggesting that, far beyond transforming consumer choice, the new technology will transform the process and ease of film archiving, as well as cinema as a whole.
The Show Won’t Go On, But We’ll Keep The Cash
A Baltimore-based theatrical booking company is being investigated by law enforcement officials after reneging on agreements to present various shows in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. theatres and failing to offer refunds to advance ticketbuyers.
Why Shouldn’t God Have A Morning Zoo, Too?
To judge by its ratings in city after city, Christian radio can no longer be considered a niche format. But even as its audience has grown, faith-based broadcasting has been taking a page from the secular radio world, leaning away from direct preaching and towards shows that skew Christian, but put entertainment first.
Another Museum Expansion Gets Off The Ground
“After a yearlong search, trustees of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History have chosen Fentress Bradburn Architects of Denver, a firm known for its highly memorable airports and museums, to design its expansion and renovation.” No timetable has yet been set for construction, but the museum has asked the firm to present a proposal within six months.
Conviction, Prison Time In Hermitage Theft
“The husband of a late curator at Russia’s most famous museum was convicted Thursday in the theft of dozens of art objects and sentenced to five years in prison. Nikolai Zavadsky also was ordered by Dzerzhinsky District Court to pay $283,000 (U.S.) in damages to the Hermitage… [The] museum announced last July that 221 items, including jewellery, religious icons, silverware and richly enameled objects worth about $5-million had been stolen.”
Fort Worth Reconsiders Slimmed-Down Symphonies
The Fort Worth Symphony thought that it was being innovative when it announced a plan to make some of its 2007-08 concerts more accessible (and shorter) by shaving movements out of larger symphonies. Then the complaints started rolling in, and the orchestra had to make a quick course correction. But the effort to create a less formal and rigid concert experience without offending longtime fans is one faced by orchestras across the country.
LACMA’s Sudden Interest In Real Estate
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is embarking on an ambitious and unprecedented plan “to collect significant pieces of midcentury residential architecture, including houses by Rudolf M. Schindler, Richard Neutra, Frank Lloyd Wright and his son Lloyd Wright, and to treat them as both museum objects and as residences for curators… The idea has already started to generate chatter in the architecture community.”
The Musical Of 1,000 Creators
Bringing a musical to Broadway is always an uphill battle, but for the first new Kander & Ebb musical in years, it’s been a theatrical melodrama of epic proportions. The death of lyricist Fred Ebb in 2004 threw the production into uncertainty, and the eventual completion of the work was thanks to an almost unprecedented level of collaboration.