Venezuela Is In Systemic, Grinding Crisis, But Its Orchestra Is At Carnegie Hall

“For all the good El Sistema does, its closeness to the government has made many wonder whether it and the Bolívars are inextricable from — or even function as a kind of propaganda mission for — a regime that has dragged its people to disaster. And concertgoers might even ask how they should approach listening to this orchestra at this particular fraught moment.”

We’re Fundamentally Rethinking The Nature Of Knowledge, But All We Get For It Is Complaints About Common Core Math

“It’s not surprising that ambitious changes like these would be hard to implement. After all, teaching kids to adopt a scientific mindset is a subtler and more complex task than having them memorize the parts of a cell. For one thing, it requires teachers who inhabit that mindset themselves, and they’re harder to find.”

The Composer Who Sees David Bowie As A Muse

“Mr. Branca first crossed paths with Bowie in 1981, when they were working on projects at the same Manhattan studio, the Power Station, and would pass each other in the hallway. Bowie was aware of Mr. Branca’s work. On the title song of the album ‘Tin Machine,’ Bowie refers to the composer: ‘Fractured words and Branca-sonic/Anger trapped behind locked doors/And right between the eyes.'”

Looks Like Publishing Powerhouse Gannett Is About To Buy The LA Times And Chicago Tribune

“Confidential sources have told POLITICO that asset purchase agreement drafts have been exchanged by Gannett, the country’s second-largest newspaper chain and publisher of USA Today, and Tronc, formerly known as Tribune Publishing and the publisher of such broadsheet mainstays as The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune and The Baltimore Sun. The announcement of a deal could come as soon as business opens on the fourth quarter of the year, as early as Monday morning.”