The list of the cities with the highest share of college grads overlaps considerably with the list of leading metros, with eight places showing up on both. – CityLab
Blog
Time Is Not A Fixed Idea
“Time, as it appears to us, is made of indivisible moments that are parts of succession… A single moment cannot have a duration. Something counts as a duration only if it is a temporal complex. We must perceive a change with respect to moments; otherwise we could not abstract the idea of time.” – Aeon
The Changing Face of Arts Engagement: My remarks at the Stratford Festival Forum
Earlier this month I had the privilege and pleasure to speak at the Meighan Forum at the Stratford Festival. Since the Q&A was not captured in the transcript, I thought I’d reflect on a couple of the questions here. – Diane Ragsdale
Harry Burleigh and Cultural Appropriation – Take Two
Zora Neale Hurston Hurston heard concert spirituals “squeezing all of the rich black juice out of the songs,” a “flight from blackness,” a “musical octoroon.” She listed Harry Burleigh among the offenders. But without Burleigh there would be no “Deep River” as sung by Marian Anderson. – Joe Horowitz
Lisa Rich: There Was A Delay
In the 1980s the singer Lisa Rich seemed on her way to a long and successful career, and she recorded Highwire in 1987. For reasons not disclosed by Tritone Records, the album was not released for 32 years — until now. – Doug Ramsey
Why All this Praise For Rich People?
“To criticise our praise for the wealthy and powerful as excessive inevitably raises the question of meritocracy. To what extent do we live in a meritocracy, and is that a good or a bad thing?” – Aeon
How Literature Was Deployed As Weapon In The Cold War
In the wake of the second world war, Russia and the West feared the domino effect of enfeebled countries like Albania falling into the clutches of imperialist capitalism or communism. Each side deployed literature as a frontline force in their struggle. – The Spectator
Two Artists Withdraw Their Work From The Shed
The latest withdrawal at the Shed highlights the increasing tension surrounding institutions accepting support from trustees whose sources of income are controversial. – artnet
When Everything Is A Competition, Most Of Us Lose (How Did This Happen?)
Today’s meritocrats still claim to get ahead through talent and effort, using means open to anyone. In practice, however, meritocracy now excludes everyone outside of a narrow elite. – The Atlantic
Ivo Pogorelich Releases His First Recording In 21 Years. So How Did It Go?
“With such a long hiatus — and Pogorelich’s track record — the release demands a certain critical wrestling to the ground, in terms of his once-lauded genius, and of broader questions, including where performers draw the line between artistic freedom and obligation to the composer.” – NPR