So the UK is holdings its arts budget steady for a couple of years. And the US is increasing its arts spending. Woo hoo US! Except when you see how far behind in spending on the arts the US, the situation is pretty bleak. “Divide by population, and it comes out that, in England, the government spends a little less than $16 for every man, woman and child on the arts. In the United States, per-capita federal spending on the arts works out to a measly 54 cents.”
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A Singular History Of Classical Music
The new six-volume “Oxford History of Western Music” was 13 years in the making. Despite its bulk, it may seem to pale in comparison with, say, the 29-volume second edition of The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, of 2001, but that represented the work of more than 2,500 writers. This is the work of one, Richard Taruskin, a music historian at the University of California at Berkeley, who has been an occasional contributor to Arts & Leisure and other publications.
Boston Pops, Recording Mogul
When RCA decided to end its contract with the Boston Pops, the orchestra decided to go into the recording business itself. “That means there’s no big record company to pick up the tab for studio time, promotion, and even pressing new CDs. Instead, the Pops have gone into the recording business, laying out money normally provided by a label. This is the new business model, and it’s risky. It’s why conductor Keith Lockhart is being trotted out for 18 signings this holiday season.”
Workers Damage Old Master Painting
“Construction workers accidentally drilled a hole through a 17th-century painting worth €250,000 ($420,000 Canadian) while renovating the Dutch upper house of parliament, officials said Friday.”
Buy Updike’s Library
John Updike’s basement was full of books. So he called up a book store dealer and had him haul them away. The cache has turned out to be valuable. “In some of the books’ margins are handwritten questions and analogies from the novelist and essayist — writings that Updike called his “scribblings.” Those editions will go for between $200 and $1,000 (U.S.).”
What The Barnes Decision Is Missing
A judge allowed the Barnes Foundation to move to Philadelphia. But not all of the foundation’s requests were granted. “Not granted specifically, lawyers said yesterday, were changes to the indenture that would allow the Barnes to hold fund-raising events or special exhibitions at its proposed site on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, to be open any days and times it chooses, or to sell any of the artwork that it has in storage. It was unclear whether the judge left those requested changes out of his decree intentionally or unintentionally.”
Is Pittsburgh’s Hahn Headed To San Francisco?
“Even after a contract extension, Pittsburgh Opera artistic director Christopher Hahn continues to be talked about as a top candidate to succeed Pamela Rosenberg as general director of the San Francisco Opera.” Neither Hahn nor the San Francisco company are talking publicly about the rumors, but with Chicago Lyric Opera also now seeking a new artistic director, SFO may want to move quickly to secure Hahn’s services.
Liberty Park Gets A Boost – Literally
A park facing the new towers set to rise at the Ground Zero site could wind up being more topographically interesting than planned if a new proposal for the towers’ parking garages goes ahead as scheduled. “The ramps, which will lead to underground parking and loading docks for the giant complex, will have to accommodate the headroom needed for buses and trucks. And because the land drops as it approaches the Hudson River, the west end of the park may end up as a berm 25 to 30 feet above street level.”
Minnesota’s Jazzdance To Fold
“Jazzdance, one of the best-known, longest-running dance companies in the Twin Cities, will take its last steps in a farewell concert in April, then cease operations. Founder Danny Buraczeski is closing his nine-member company after 25 years. Buraczeski, who began as a dancer in New York, formed Jazzdance in New York in 1979 and moved to the Twin Cities in 1989… At its height, in 1999, Jazzdance had an annual budget of about $550,000, Buraczeski said. This year the figure is about $175,000.”
Because Public Radio Likes To Rock, Too
When Minnesota Public Radio announced that it was buying independent Twin Cities classical music broadcaster WCAL, music aficonados throughout the North Star State protested the move, viewing it as just more evidence of MPR’s secret plan for global domination. MPR took the criticism in stride, and promised to use the frequency to create a new type of non-classical music station (the network already maintains a round-the-clock classical service on another frequency) aimed at younger listeners. This week, the new format was revealed to be what MPR is calling “the antiformat”: progressive rock with an “adult” lean, drawing on a library of 500,000 albums.