Boston Ballet, which has been struggling both artistically and financially in recent years, got a major boost this week, when it was revealed that a so-far-unnamed donor had left the company a $3 million bequest. The gift will double the size of Boston Ballet’s endowment, and the company hopes that it will encourage other donors to be similarly generous.
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Cleaning Up The Red Tape
“The music industry announced a ‘one-stop’ international license for online radio broadcasters Tuesday, hoping the removal of red tape will encourage the rise of legitimate Web music services. Previously, online radio broadcasters, or webcasters, had to secure approval from an alphabet soup of national collection agencies… Webcasters have argued that until the number of licensing fees is reduced, the nascent broadcasting sector will never gain the critical commercial mass of its over-the-air cousins.”
A Productive Use For File-Sharing
While music fans and the recording industry continue to bicker and sue each other over the legality of file-swapping, America’s top non-classical music school is working to advance the idea that there is a place for the peer-to-peer network, and it doesn’t have to have anything to do with illegal downloads. “The Berklee Shares program at the Berklee College of Music offers 80 different online lessons for download — and sharing — on topics like writing music, producing, engineering, remixing and performing… Anyone can use and trade the material provided she or he agrees to the terms set by the school: Users may not alter or sell the material, and must credit the original source.”
A Whole New Way To Be Shallow
We’ve all heard about the way Apple’s iTunes music download service is revolutionizing the industry. But could it revolutionize our social interactions as well? “Thanks to the ability of Apple’s iTunes to share music collections over local networks, it is now possible to judge someone’s taste in music — or lack of it — in a way that previously required a certain level of intimacy. The ability to examine the music collections of co-workers, neighbors or fellow students is akin to peering into their souls: Someone who appears cool and interesting from the outside is revealed as a cultural nincompoop through the poor sap’s terrible taste in music.”
One Strad Sells, One Doesn’t
The Stradivarius violin which was up for auction at Sotheby’s in London this week has sold for nearly $1.3 million, but the Stradivarius cello which was also on the block failed to draw a high enough bid, and went unsold. Another Strad violin had failed to sell at another London auction earlier in the week. No word on who, exactly, purchased the fiddle that did sell.
The Big Get Bigger
Universal Music has announced plans to acquire Dreamworks Records, in yet another music industry consolidation seen to represent the desperation of many companies in the struggling recording business. “The music business is currently going through major changes as it struggles to counter falling sales and the impact of unofficial online music sales. Last week, Sony Music – the second-largest music company – said it was planning to merge with Bertelsmann. EMI and Warner Music have also been in talks about a possible merger.”
MTV’s Stolen Data
MTV’s Music Awards – televised from the UK – were a big success last week. But some of the shine was taken off the occasion after an MTV computer containing important data for the production was stolen. “Dozens of local firms who acted as suppliers for MTV face delays in being paid because e-mail records of what they are due have gone.”
Vonnegut: Careful Of Those Hermaphroditic Semi-Colons
Kurt Vonnegut has advice for the artist-afflicted: “I realize that some of you may have come in hopes of hearing tips on how to become a professional writer. I say to you, ‘If you really want to hurt your parents, and you don’t have the nerve to be a homosexual, the least you can do is go into the arts. But do not use semicolons. They are transvestite hermaphrodites, standing for absolutely nothing. All they do is show you’ve been to college’.”
Moonves: CBS Didn’t Cave On Reagan Pic
CBS chairman Les Moonves denies that his network caved in to political pressure when it canceled a Reagan bio-pic. “It was a moral decision, not an economic or political one. The series did not present a balanced view of former President Reagan and his wife Nancy, Mr Moonves stated.”
Tate’s Muslim Gaffe
The Tate has offended many Muslims with a Pre-Raphaelite painting in a current show. “First, the picture’s caption described it as depicting one of the wives of the prophet Mohammed. It was a concept that many Muslim visitors condemned as an act of blasphemy – since the Muslim faith prohibits human representations of the prophet, his wives or relatives.”