“A Manhattan company that makes a so-called virtual orchestra machine, an advanced synthesizer used to mimic the sound of live musicians, has filed an unfair labor practice claim accusing the Broadway musicians’ union of unfairly preventing theater and music companies from using its product.”
Blog
The Changing Face Of The Fabulous Nederlanders
For over a quarter century, Nederlands Dans Theater has been shaped by Czech choreographer Jiri Kylian, long its artistic advisor and still chief provider of its repertory. But, judging by its opening program of a two-week New York run, Tobi Tobias writes that “the choreographer has abandoned the rooted-in-the soil-eyes-on-the-stars mode in which he forged his reputation for the sex-cruelty-and-angst-as-gorgeous-visuals realm that we know best from high-end fashion photography of the last decade.”
Cultural Capital? Us? We’re Honored… But No…
A day after an international group announced that the Canadian province of Saskatchewan would be the “2005 American Capital of Culture” governmental officials turned down the honor. “It turns out the Spanish-based organization of the same name wanted $500,000 US to pay for an international promotional package to extol the virtues of Saskatchewan’s ‘great cultural tradition in the editorial and audiovisual sectors, as well as in folk art and visual arts’.”
Is Gay The New Black?
“It’s never been more fashionable or popular to be gay or lesbian than now, if television coverage is anything to go by. If they’re not building or renovating homes, they’re winning Oscars and thanking their boyfriends, getting married in San Francisco, or “zhushing” straight guys. Does this mean queer is the new black?”
Virtual Orchestra Wins West End Les Miz Job
The British Musicians’ Union concedes that it can’t stop producer Cameron Mackintosh from using a virtual orchestra for Les Misérables. The virtual music box Sinfonia, “widely used in US touring productions, needs only one operator who can synchronise its output with that of any real instruments left in an orchestra and with the voices of singers on stage.”
Groups Sue Over DVD Copy-Protection Law
Last year America’s FCC decided that DVD players would have to incorporate copy-limiting technology. Now a coalition of consumer advocacy groups is suing over the new law. “What is at stake is what kind of rights we have when most media is digital. We want to make sure that rights aren’t taken away because the material is in a different format. We want this technology to be the best it can be, not the second- or third-best.”
Creating A Marketplace of Ideas: But First, The Bill
Do we get the culture we deserve? William Osborne takes a look at the way America and Europe promote their cultures. There is, he reports, an obvious reason why Europe has more orchestras, operas, and dance companies and why the citizenry seem more culturally literate.
Will How We Consume Music Change The Music Itself?
“Although there has been plenty of debate about the legalities of downloading, one important question has so far gone unasked: will downloading affect how pop music sounds in the future? In other words, will the way that people access music have an effect on the content of that music?”
Reinventing The TV Book Clubs
“Television book clubs have scaled back from their headiest days a couple of years ago, but even brief on-air segments now have flourishing afterlives online. The “Oprah” site is by far the richest, but “Today” and “Good Morning America” also have online extensions of their book clubs, where readers can find substantial excerpts from books along with interviews and online chats with authors. These sites create an endless loop between television and the Web.”
Kimmelman: This Whitney Biennale Is A Winner
That this year’s Whitney Biennale is “the best in years,” writes Michael Kimmelman, won’t stop the usual carping and complaining. The Biennale’s three curators “overcame the inevitable strains and nicely capitalized on their differences in taste, coming up with the most cogent and layered biennial in years.”