When Min Jong Shon’s $46,000 viola was stolen from her practice room at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, she didn’t sit back and wait for the police to recover it. Instead, she banded together with some friends, and used a network of phones and e-mail communications to try to prevent the thief from fencing the instrument. Shon tracked the thief’s movements to various instrument dealers, and eventually recovered the instrument and fingered the culprit on her own. Police were stunned and thrilled, and expect to have the suspect in custody shortly.
Blog
Cheating The Arts In KC?
Plans for Kansas City’s huge new performing arts complex stalled recently after the city manager proposed moving the center’s parking garage one block east. The center’s backers claim that the new location, which is down a steep hill from the entrance, will be a major inconvenience for patrons, and several outside experts are now claiming that the move wouldn’t actually save the city any money, either. “Some arts leaders are feeling like the poor cousins of downtown development: Making the garage more convenient to sports and entertainment and less convenient to the arts, they say, points to the city’s relative lack of interest in the role of the arts in downtown’s resurrection.”
Stern Family Battling Over Estate
The former executor of the estate of violinist Isaac Stern paid himself outlandish fees, sold off assets without authorization, and effectively cut the Stern family out of the estate, according to a $2.25 million lawsuit filed by the late performer’s children. The suit further claims that the executor worked in collaboration with Stern’s third wife to deprive the family of their rightful inheritance. “The court documents open a window into the troubled affairs of a man known largely for his musical achievements.”
National Archives Robbed Many Times Over
“Hundreds of letters and photographs are missing from the National Archives and its regional offices, including one presidential library. Many are suspected stolen. The extent of the losses is detailed in a series of reports from the organization’s investigative office, but the value of the items is difficult to determine because that is largely measured by historic importance and rarity.”
The Scout
Leila Getz is that rarest of classical concert promoters – a true lover of music whose practiced eye for spotting developing talent frequently trumps the conventional wisdom that audiences only want big names. Audiences in Getz’s home city of Vancouver have learned to trust her judgment over the years, so when she replaces a cancelled star with a 12-year-old prodigy, very few ticketholders come looking for refunds.
Bringing Black Theatre Into The Mainstream
Lately, it’s become fashionable to say that there is a “renaissance of black theatre” underway in the UK. Certainly, black playwrights are having an easier time getting their work produced, thanks in part to the renewed emphasis placed on diversity by the UK Arts Council. But one good year may not a renaissance make, and there is still a palpable sense within the industry that minority works represent a risk for companies choosing to produce them.
OH-VER-RATE-ED!! (clap-clap-clapclapclap)
“Ever felt you’re missing the point with some of our biggest cultural heroes? Admit it – everyone can name at least one hip, wildly praised band, album, film, TV show or author that they’ve never really rated.” Critics have their own lists of overrated stars, too: could James Brown’s legendary performances be nothing more than “brass-driven aerobics workouts, over which he barks claims of his own magnificence”? Is Neil Young’s famously distinctive voice really “the exact timbre of a continental dial tone”? Is U2 an overrated trio of self-important rockers whose greatest talent is in the thieving of other bands’ ideas? (Okay, that last one isn’t exactly a secret.)
Fame And Fortune Down, One Big Ring To Go
Antonio Pappano has always been viewed as something of a wunderkind among conductors, but lately, as music director of London’s premiere opera company, the challenges have been coming fast and furious. So far, Pappano has passed every test, impressing musicians and critics alike with his “striking candour and clarity about his comments”, but the greatest challenge of his career may be just around the corner, as Covent Garden prepares for its upcoming Ring cycle.
Famous Just Because
Western society is overwhelmed with celebrities these days, and the obsession with fame has given rise to an odd sub-category of celebs: people who are famous more for just being famous than for any actual accomplishment. But this celebrity for its own sake isn’t really a new concept. In fact, one of history’s greatest painters may have originated the concept.
Europe’s Operatic Trinity
Jossi Wieler, Sergio Morabito and Anna Viebrock are not household names, even among opera fanatics. But inside the European industry, they are known as “the trinity,” a team of directors driven by a passion for the operatic form and a willingness to collaborate to achieve greater results. “Together, the three have made a trademark of obsessively researched direction in rigorously conceived modern translations. Their symbiosis extends to a kind of collective innocence, an intense, shared excitement about the task in hand.”