Police say they’re close to solving the theft of a Salvador Dali painting from New York’s Riker’s Island jail. The penal institution has enlisted the help of the artworl’d stolen art resources, putting it in the company of collectors and museums. “In terms of dollar value, art crime stands out among illicit industries, ranked just below narcotics and the illegal arms trade. Experts estimate that worldwide losses range from $2 billion to $6 billion a year.”
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Houston Symphony Musicians To Strike
Musicians of the Houston Symphony say they’ll go on strike after Saturday night’s concert, rejecting the orchestra’s imposition of unilateral cuts in pay. The musicians had offered a compromise pay cut Friday, but the orchestra rejected it. “Our decision is a stand for the principles that we continue to espouse: that Houston deserves a world-class orchestra. It has one now. It stands to lose that now.”
Houston Symphony Rejects Players’ Contract Offer
The Houston Symphony has rejected an 11th-hour counterproposal by the players and “stuck with its ‘best and final’ offer of pay reduction averaging 7.4 percent across the orchestra.” On Friday, “musicians in the 97-seat Houston Symphony Orchestra instead proposed a 4 percent payroll reduction achieved through a two-week unpaid furlough and an immediate one-week salary deferral to allow the society some breathing room as it approaches a $6 million debt ceiling imposed by major foundations that contribute annually.”
Opera As A Big Fun Show
“Whether or not the Broadway Bohème is an operatic success is almost beside the point. It is a marketing triumph that will likely allow Luhrmann and his investors to recoup the show’s $6.5 million investment – and then some. La Bohème’s success shows that it’s possible, if expensive, to sell opera to non-operagoers. There’s a lesson here for opera impresarios. It shouldn’t be that hard to persuade people who love the art form to attend performances by giving them a good reason for going. And if opera can go to Broadway, why can’t Broadway go to the opera?”
Indie Bookstores Weathering Downturn
The book business is suffering in the economic downturn, just like everything else. But there are signs that independent booksellers are weathering the downturn better than they have in the past. “Before stores might have had five employees and now they have three. People who leave aren’t being replaced.”
New Books – No Refunds, No Returns?
Borders chief Greg Josefowicz suggests that it is time to stop the practice of book stores being able to return books they haven’t sold to publishers. “This practice arose during the Great Depression when publishers needed a way to reduce the risk of buying books, so they gave retailers the opportunity to return unsold orders for a full refund. Today, nearly seven decades later, we’re still playing by the same rules. While this certainly offers obvious benefits to companies like Borders, I wonder if it is the best way to run the book business in 2003 and beyond…”
Pennsylvania Arts Funding Saved
Pennsylvania’s governor Ed Rendell has decided not to ask for cuts in his state’s arts spending. “Why, then, did Rendell stay committed to arts funding as he sought to make up a $2.4 billion shortfall? Arts supporters across Pennsylvania say it’s because he saw how Philadelphia arts initiatives benefited that city when he was mayor. Arts leaders also suggest the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts was spared because whittling its budget would not add much to the cuts Rendell needed to make. Its $14 million budget represents 0.07 percent of Pennsylvania’s general fund.”
Pope’s Poetry An Instant Bestseller In Poland
Pope John Paul II’s first book of poetry since he became Pope was published this week. In Poland the book has already become a best-seller. “Buyers have locked up orders for about 80 per cent of the initial printing of 300,000 copies – a publishing phenomenon in a country where literary works reach bestseller status at 50,000. ‘The Roman Triptych’ was written after John Paul’s emotional visit to his homeland last summer.”
The Rap On Rap Music Videos
A new US study says that “black teenage girls who view more rap videos are apparently more likely to get in trouble with the law, to take drugs or to become infected with sexually transmitted diseases. Only two factors other than rap-music viewing boosted the teens’ rates of promiscuity, substance abuse and violence: lack of employment and lack of parents who monitor teen activities.
Michigan Arts Funding To Be Cut 50 Percent
Michigan’s governor proposes cutting state arts funding by 50 percent. “The steep cuts, which left $11.8 million for arts grants, are a particularly bitter pill for arts groups because the bleak economy has already forced corporations and foundations to slash their arts giving. In addition, arts institutions have seen investment income from endowments plummet along with the stock market.”