Tan Dun is one of the most successful composers of his generation, and recently, he has become one of the most controversial as well. “Some hear the sound of the future in the mingling of East and West and high art and popular culture in his work. Others hear pretentiousness, vulgarity, and cultural opportunism.” The reaction may be somewhat akin to the backlash that greeted singer Paul Simon when he began appropriating African melodies for use in his own American-style folk-rock tunes. The debate is over where the line is drawn between sampling of artistic influences and outright theft of culture.
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The Case Of The Disappearing Diva
Sopranos are famous for their temperamental nature, of course, and these days, few are surprised when a big star storms off in a huff or refuses to take the stage until some detail or other is attended to. But soprano Sumi Jo managed to shock even the hardened pros at Opera Australia this week, when she left not only the company, but the continent, in the middle of a run of performances of Lucia di Lammermoor. The singer, who is pregnant, reportedly returned home to Rome on doctor’s orders, but did so without informing the company, the director, or even her own manager. Opera Australia execs found out when Sumi Jo’s hotel phoned up to tell them she’d checked out.
Melbourne May Lose Fair
The 15-year-old Melbourne Art Fair, one of Australia’s largest and most successful showcases of contemporary art, is in danger of being cancelled due to lack of funds. The problem is partly one of perception: the fair’s wild success over the past decade is seen as proof by many that it no longer requires public funding, but the truth is that the fair’s budget is quite tight, and disruptions to regular revenue streams could prove deadly. Such a disruption is currently underway in the form of an impasse on the city council, which has chosen not to make its usual contribution to the event.
Words And Writing – Now In 3D!
“For a decade, scientists and engineers have used virtual reality and other so-called ‘immersive technologies’ to help them visualize complex designs and natural phenomena. A project underway at Brown University is taking that concept a step further by exploring how these 3-D computerized environments could expand our understanding of the written word.” The man in charge of the project is Robert Coover, who began his examination of what he calls ‘The Cave’ of virtual environments years ago, with actions as simple and revolutionary as imbedding hyperlinks in his text. Now, the experiment has expanded to include audio, virtual reality, and other innovations so far afield from traditional ‘writing’ as to seem more like a video game than a novel.
Scrapping Over Hector
“The 200th anniversary of the birth of arguably France’s greatest composer Hector Berlioz has sparked a row over his final resting place. His devotees are divided over whether his remains should be moved to the Pantheon in Paris. The committee organising a year of celebrations and concerts to mark the bicentenary wants the highpoint to be the transfer of his body in a state ceremony on 21 June – France’s annual Fete de la Musique, or Music Day. But it is met with unexpectedly harsh opposition from many of the composer’s own fans, as well as from critics who say Berlioz was a right-winger with no place in France’s Republican Valhalla.”
Decision Time At Ground Zero
“The time has come to make a fateful choice about the future of the devastated place in Lower Manhattan where the World Trade Center towers used to stand.” So says Benjamin Forgey, in making his official endorsement of Daniel Libeskind’s haunting yet elegant proposal. The New York authorities won’t issue their final decision for a few weeks yet, but Forgey says that while both finalists have created worthy (if flawed) designs, the Libeskind proposal “opens a path. It foresees meaningful public spaces shaped by moving architecture.”
Nouveau Riche or Never Better?
Surprisingly, the Metropolitan Opera still holds a lowly position in the minds of many old-school European opera fans, who look at the New York institution as little more than a plaything for ultrarich Manhattanites. But if such views were once at least founded in truth, they have little to do with what the Met has become in modern times. True, money is still a big factor in its success, as it is for any opera company not subsidized by a government (as all those old-school European operations are,) but fiscal largesse aside, many critics now believe that the Met offers the best, most consistent operatic product to be found anywhere in the world.
Writers On Writing, For Writers
There has never been any shortage of writers willing to hold forth about what good writing is, and how one might go about it. Two new installments in the writers-on-writing genre have recently appeared, penned by Norman Mailer and Pierre Berton. The advice they give, and the style in which it is presented, has Philip Marchand wondering why it is that so many writers seem to disagree on nearly every facet of the subject. Is writing a science or an art? Is it work or play? And do we write for ourselves, or for our readers? Great minds think nothing alike.
Who’s Afraid Of (Hollywood’s) Virginia Woolf?
The Hours, Hollywood’s adaptation of Michael Cunningham’s novel about Virginia Woolf, is drawing criticism from literary historians who feel the Oscar-nominated film, starring a nearly unrecognizable Nicole Kidman, unfairly portrays Woolf as an ugly, suicidal misfit. Oh, and that nose, according to these offended experts, is just way off.
Ararat Cleans Up At Genies
Atom Egoyan’s controversial film about Turkish genocide in the early 20th century scored big at the Genie Awards, Canada’s answer to the Oscars. Ararat, which was praised by critics and well-received by the public, took home five Genies, including best picture. Best director went to David Cronenberg for his latest creepy drama, Spider.