“Arthur Farwell is probably the most neglected composer in our history.” This assessment, by the late composer/critic A. Walter Kramer in 1973, rings ever louder today; Farwell has been deemed untouchable. Hounded by the watchdogs of “cultural appropriation,” he has fallen prey to dictates of political rectitude. – Joseph Horowitz
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Not Such A Little List
Sir Jonathan Miller’s direction of The Mikado — his staging, dating all the way back to 1986, is now back — is the source of the treasure-hoard that has allowed English National Opera’s survival for most of my opera-going life. – Paul Levy
At 92, Lee Konitz Has A New Album
The alto saxophonist has long found that the nine-piece-ensemble format stimulates his creativity, and over the years, he has made several nonet albums. – Doug Ramsey
The twenty-five record albums that changed my life (15)
My father had no knowledge of or interest in classical music himself, but he brought home a record for me whenever he passed through Memphis on business. This is the one I remember best. – Terry Teachout
Why We Need To Rethink The Nonprofit Model
The nonprofit sector started out as a vehicle for voluntary civic engagement. Nonprofit organizations are organized to advance the public, rather than private, good. But as the sector grew and professionalized, the focus quickly shifted from the people, or civil society, to the organizations themselves as the key constituents of the sector. So, when we talk about infrastructure for the sector, is the infrastructure there to support civic engagement, or nonprofit and philanthropic organizations? This tension has been there from the beginning. – NonProfit Quarterly
Charming: When 12-Year-Old Timmy Page Was A Movie-Maker (Back In The 60s)
Like a pint-sized Cecil B. DeMille, we see Page in his family’s suburban Connecticut neighborhood as he wrangles his actors, gauges camera angles and shouts, “Action!” In cut-away interviews, the young Page expounds on French new wave directors and silent film stars with the intellect of the Pulitzer-Prize winning critic he’d become. – Los Angeles Times
Figurative Art Is Hot Right Now. Is It Any Good?
Barry Schwabsky: “To my eye, the dependence on the academic method (now perhaps even unconscious, in any case not definitively marked) remains just as inhibiting a factor for contemporary painting as it was when artists like Matisse and Picasso, de Kooning and Dubuffet were finding far different ways of expressing their feelings toward the figure than classicism ever could have envisioned.” – The Nation
Longtime Boston Children’s Theatre Director Accused Of Misconduct By 17 Former Students; He Resigns
An anonymous e-mail, titled “The Threat of Burgess Clark,” described what it said were the experiences of 17 former students who made a range of allegations against Clark, including three who said they were kissed or inappropriately touched by him during private lessons or at his second home in Walden, Vt. The alleged conduct occurred when most of the students were 14 to 18 years old. The e-mail was signed, “The concerned students and parents of Boston Children’s Theatre.” – Boston Globe
How Theatre Helped Bring Down The Berlin Wall 30 Years Ago Today
What is intriguing is that the collapse of East Germany was, in many ways, a piece of theatre. The Alexanderplatz demonstration, one of the largest in GDR history, had been planned by actors and directors from leading East German theatres. They invited playwrights and actors to address the crowds, alongside dissidents and politicians. They even had a baddie: the former deputy head of the Stasi secret police spoke – and was booed. – The Guardian
Dallas Symphony And Opera Make A Major Push For Women Conductors
“I won’t say women are discriminated against as much as not given the same pathways as men. mostly because there is a male dominance in terms of personnel in the business. It’s been generations of music schools having faculty members who were renowned male soloists or conductors. The system was created that way, so it takes a lot of time to get women in those roles and as mentors to other talented women.” – Dallas Morning News