National Public Radio is flying high these days as ratings soar and NPR expands. “But NPR’s ambition has stirred anxiety within the public radio system over how to preserve the character and financial viability of local stations in the ever larger shadow of the national production service they created more than 30 years ago as a modest support operation.”
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Treaty Would Give Broadcasters Control Of Signals
“An international treaty to give broadcasters the right to control who may record, transmit, or distribute their signals is reaching a crucial stage of negotiation by the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva.”
The ‘Ol Bump ‘n Grind Makes A Comeback
“You thought burlesque was a thing of the past? It ain’t so. That old bump-and-grind — tasseled pasties, unsubtle comedy and all — has made a comeback in the past few years. A growing number of restaurants and bars in downtown Manhattan and Brooklyn regularly feature late-night performers reviving and reinventing the genre, which had its heyday in the 1930s and ’40s. A new generation of audiences, from 20- something singles to couples marking their two-digit anniversaries, are discovering its comic and risque appeal.”
Political Charge – Chicago Theatre Gets Active
Chicago stages are filling up with political commentary. “Not since the Vietnam War has the local artistic community been able to galvanize its forces to produce such a wide array of politically charged programming. In the decades that followed Vietnam, much of the local theater community was slow in creating memorable responses to current events. Now it seems things have reached a political boiling point once again, with playwrights and theaters intent on sending a message.”
Comcast Joins The Digital Recorder Revolution
American cable-TV giant Comcast is offering a new digital video recorder. “About 5 percent of US households now own digital video recording systems, a figure that is expected to rise to 22 percent by 2008. Even though the numbers are small, industry executives expect growing DVR usage to roil the $58 billion US television advertising market, as increasing numbers of consumers, particularly the most affluent who are most likely to rent the devices, get the power to program their own television viewing, and ignore the traditional 30-second television spot.”
The World’s A Clown
Slava Polunin is one of the world’s busiest clowns, although, he protests, ‘There are no competitors among clowns’.”
Stereo-Type
Once, designing new typefaces was a difficult proposition. But “computer programs like FontLab and Fontographer have allowed neophytes, as well as veterans, to create a new generation of digital type. During the ensuing digital typographic revolution of the 90’s, a slew of designers and illustrators who had never designed an alphabet before flooded Internet sites with bizarrely named, peculiarly styled and sometimes illegible faces. Typeface design became something of an expressive art.”
The Violin Scandals
Two high-profile scandals in high-end violin appraisals and dealing reveal a shadowy world in which little is as it seems. “Authentication is slippery, essential and a near-contact sport among dealers, who regard one another like Yankees and Red Sox and certify the authenticity of their products themselves. And as both of the current dramas demonstrate, pricing tends to the notional, with no instrument quite like any other. Brokers and consultants flourish in the interstices.”
“Hearing” A Building Before It’s Built
“Acoustics, in particular, are a crucial part of the experience of a building — concert halls and corporate offices alike. But as the long, sad history of acoustical missteps proves, perfecting a sound aesthetic is easier said than heard. Most architects are forced either to make an educated guess about the play of sound or begrudgingly consult acousticians, who have technical expertise but few practical ways to demonstrate their ideas.” Now, a way to find out what a building will sound like before it’s built…
Klezmer’s German Inroads
Klezmer has become a phenomenon in Germany. “National interest in this genre, broadly defined as Eastern European Jewish folk music, has surged, with experts counting more than 100 klezmer bands across the country. Record sales are strong, and festivals and workshops have multiplied. One label director called Germany the strongest klezmer market in the world. But with few exceptions, the klezmer scene in Germany is a non-Jewish phenomenon, a renaissance of Jewish culture without Jews, prompting a wide range of reactions here and abroad, from bewilderment and cautious approval to cynicism and reproach.”