Johnny Cash, who died in 2003, will become the latest musical legend to have his material tried out on theatre’s biggest stage when a show featuring his music moves to Broadway next year. “More than 35 of the country star’s songs will performed in Ring of Fire, although no actor will actually portray Johnny Cash. The show, directed by Tony winner Richard Maltby, has received favourable reviews during its short preview run in Buffalo, New York… Cash had given his approval for the musical before his death, having previously rejected several projects.”
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Is Music Good For The Heart?
“Musical training might be good for the heart, suggests a small study, which shows that it is musical tempo, rather than style, that is the greatest stress buster… Half of those taking part were trained musicians, who had been playing instruments for at least seven years. The remainder had had no musical training… Faster music, and more complex rhythms, speeded up breathing and circulation, irrespective of style, with fast classical and techno music having the same impact. But the faster the music, the greater was the degree of physiological arousal… This effect occurred, irrespective of the musical style or preferences of the listener, but was stronger among the musicians, who are trained to synchronise their breathing with musical phrases.”
Should LA Phil Go Casual?
When architect Frank Gehry designed the L.A. Philharmonic’s dazzling new concert hall, he promised to make it “a living room for the city,” and if the comfort level of the patrons is any indication, he succeeded. Whereas a concertgoer in anything less than a shirt and tie might have been well out of place in the Phil’s ultraformal old concert hall, the modern slopes and inviting facade of Disney Hall seem to have convinced many to shed the three-piece suits in favor of more comfortable attire. So why is the Philharmonic persisting in wearing those hopelessly over-formal tuxedos?
Radio City Musicians Threaten A Strike
Musicians at New York’s famed Radio City Music Hall are threatening to strike over the issue of overtime pay for the venue’s popular Christmas Spectacular. (Yeah, that’s the one with the Rockettes.) A strike could jeopardize the show, which draws huge numbers of tourists and is a New York institution, but Cablevision, which owns Radio City, has issued a statement saying that it “fully expects” to reach an agreement with the musicians before the show opens for the year.
Less Money, Less Music In Milwaukee
The musicians of the Milwaukee Symphony have ratified a new contract which will reduce their annual salaries by 9%, eliminate two full-time positions in the orchestra, and cut the ensemble’s season by four weeks. “A player making the minimum will see his or her salary fall from $59,125 to $53,625. Paid vacation drops from six weeks to five, and the players’ contribution to health insurance is likely to rise under a formula linking it to insurance costs.” Despite the concessions, the musicians ratified the deal willingly if not happily, which may have something to do with an unusual provision requiring members of the orchestra’s upper management team to take the same 9% wage cut as the players.
New Offer In CBC Talks Swiftly Rejected
The management of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has presented a new contract offer to its locked-out workers, attempting a compromise on the issue of so-called “contract workers,” who work on a part-time basis and do not receive benefits. But the union representing the locked-out employees is sticking with its position that any increase in contract workers is too big, and they add that their solidarity on the picket line is not wavering a bit, even after seven weeks out of work.
LA Schools: Building Arts Education A Percent At A Time
The ten-year program is designed to “help the 80 Los Angeles County school districts develop plans for putting arts into the curricula for all students and to encourage school boards to work toward committing 5% of their operating budgets to arts education. It is a modest program, at least in terms of making up for years of diminished funding for the arts. Many of the county’s 1,800 public schools provide a spotty arts program at best. And, the emphasis on standardized testing coupled with district budget shortages in recent years have left arts educators wondering whether their subjects will ever be a school priority.”
Brain Scan: The Ultimate Lie Detector
Researchers have discovered that MRI scans can detect when people are lying. “The MRI images show that more blood flows to parts of the brain associated with anxiety and impulse control when people lie. More blood also flows to the part of the brain handling multitasking because it is hard for people to keep track of lies they have told.”
How Much Of NPR’s Reporting Should Come From Local Stations?
“In 1997, only 5 percent of the reports on NPR came from reporters who were based at the member stations. Over the next few years, that rose to 25 percent due to a deliberate collaborative effort of NPR and member station reporters. But In the period from Aug. 30, 2004 to Aug. 30, 2005, NPR aired a total of 18,486 reports on the newsmagazine programs. Only 960 — or 5.19 percent – of all reports came from member-station reporters over the past year.”
Leonardo Inspires New Heart Surgery
A heart surgeon has devised a new heart procedure after studying drawings of the heart made by Leonardo da Vinci. “The drawings allowed him to work out how to restore normal opening and closing function of the mitral valve, one of the four valves in the heart. Until now, surgeons have repaired a floppy valve by narrowing its diameter. However, this can restrict the blood flow further when the individual is exercising and working their heart to the maximum. It’s a complete rethink of the way we do the mitral valve operation.”