There’s never an easy solution when a soloist cancels on an orchestra, and for the Oregon Symphony last weekend, a sudden hand injury to pianist Louis Lortie only hours before showtime left a major void in their concert where Rachmaninoff’s 3rd should have been. On one half-hour’s notice, the orchestra’s musicians agreed to sight-read Tchaikovsky’s ultra-familiar 4th symphony as a replacement, and won a standing ovation for their efforts. Even more amazingly, with one concert still to be performed the next night, the symphony managed to convince an award-winning soloist to board a plane from Alabama to the Pacific Northwest and perform the original concerto with no rehearsals.
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Preserving A Landmark, And Living In It
Aficionados lust after houses designed by famous architects, but owning one isn’t an easy task. The 1929 Lovell House, a Richard Neutra masterpiece, needs expensive renovations, and its elderly owner wants to do them. But she says Neutra’s son is pressuring her to forbid alterations by future owners.
So What If It’s Ugly? It’s New
Elbowing postmodern architecture aside, modernism has come back in vogue. As Caltrans’ hulking new district headquarters in downtown Los Angeles suggests, this may mean a return to the days when architects and officials pretty much ignored city residents’ vigorous opposition to the unfriendly designs they would have to live with.
Where’s The Truth In Web-Traffic Numbers?
“The commercial web is 10 years old, yet the online publishing industry still hasn’t figured out how to measure accurately the number of people visiting each site. What’s at stake? More than $8 billion a year.”
There’s A Downside To Winning A Nobel?
“Winning the Nobel prize turns writers into icons and takes best sellers far beyond their own culture, but there is a price to pay for often reclusive people whose work requires solitude; the media spotlight. Thursday, a writer somewhere who may be unknown to most of the planet or almost a household name will get a call from the Swedish Academy which has awarded the top accolade in the world of letters since 1901. The phone will not stop ringing.”
Republicans To Moore: No Underwear For Votes
“Republicans are calling for film-maker Michael Moore to be prosecuted for offering prizes of noodles and underwear to encourage voting. The Michigan Republican Party accuses the director of bribery on his speaking tour to encourage students to vote.”
Where Is This Generation’s “Guernica”?
Among artists and intellectuals onstage at last weekend’s New Yorker Festival, “questions were repeatedly raised about the political potential of art and the role of intellectuals to be socially responsible. There was an urgency to the question that reflected the reality of time and place, of a presidential election four weeks away and of the inescapable reminders of Sept. 11.” But the answers remained debatable.
Arab World In Spotlight At Frankfurt Book Fair
“Many popular Arab authors remain unknown in the West. That may change as the Frankfurt Book Fair invites the Arab League as guest of honor this year. But the nagging issue of censorship (in the Arab world) might not be touched upon at all.”
Arab World Is Focus Of Frankfurt Book Fair
“This year’s Frankfurt Book Fair is focusing on the Arab world amid worries that the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq and war on terrorism have warped Western perceptions of Arab culture.” Accordingly, the “guests of honor” at the world’s largest book fair will be a 200-strong delegation of Arab writers and cultural representatives.
Art Rises On Taiwan-China Battlegrounds
What with having to persuade the Taiwan military and get approval from China’s Culture Ministry, an artist’s vision for an exhibition that examines the legacy of war between Taiwan and mainland China took 13 years to be realized. But now, in the abandoned bunkers and minefields of Quemoy, Taiwan, the show has finally taken shape.