“If someone suggested to a room full of people that 100 years from now, half of all the world’s flora and fauna would no longer exist, it’s likely that at least a few of them would be worried enough to so do something. They might donate a few dollars to the World Wildlife Fund, or maybe go so far as to sit atop a redwood that was about to be cut down. But what would the reaction be if someone suggested that half the world’s cultures and languages would no longer exist?” Two someones are suggesting exactly that, and they’re convinced that they can do something about it, too.
Tag: 07.16.03
Gatenby Resignation Raises Questions
When Greg Gatenby abruptly resigned from the directorship of Toronto’s International Festival of Authors earlier this week, speculation raged about what bizarre set of behind-the-scenes circumstances could have led to the departure of such a popular figure from one of Canada’s most high-profile literary organizations. The full story still isn’t known, and may never be, but the often-frosty relationship between Gatenby and Harbourfront Centre chief William Boyle seems to be at the center of the story.
A Backstage Drama Worthy Of A Novel
“The dramatic parting of Harbourfront Centre and Greg Gatenby, announced Monday, was preceded by months of wrangling, intrigue and attempted fixes. Gatenby and Harbourfront officials are saying nothing, but based on the testimony of other players, the breakdown of the relationship emerges as a tale full of ultimatums, threats, end runs and cameo appearances by well-known personalities.”
Conlon: Americans Haven’t Learned How To Listen To Classical Music
James Conlon is the poster boy for the talented American conductor who has to go to Europe for his talent to be recognized. But with his appointment to the directorship of Ravinia, the summer festival of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Conlon is coming home at last, and sounds excited to be here. But he believes that there is much “missionary work” to be done before American audiences will be capable of digging their minds into a classical concert the way, say, German audiences do. “To them, music is not simply an entertainment or an aural sensation. They listen, they think, they feel, they question. I think we need several more generations of classical music lovers in America before we get to that point.”
Libeskind, Silverstein Agree To Team Up On Ground Zero Rebuild
Ground Zero will be rebuilt with oversight from an apparently tenuous partnership between architect Daniel Libeskind and developer Larry Silverstein. Still, for New York officials, any partnership is better than the uncertainty that has been dogging the project. “The agreement… came during an eight-hour negotiating session that stretched from Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday morning… The impasse centered on how much influence Mr. Libeskind would have on the design of the first office building to go up at the site, the 1,776-foot tower that will define the rebuilt trade center’s presence on the Lower Manhattan skyline.”
New York Phil Suddenly Unsure About Carnegie Merger
The New York Philharmonic’s merger with Carnegie Hall was supposed to be a done deal, with both sides thrilled with all aspects of the new partnership. But the Phil may be balking at the prospect of pooling its assets with Carnegie permanently, and orchestra officials are now openly talking about the possibility of merely becoming a tenant of Carnegie. “The very nature of this evaluation suggests that at least some board members have serious concerns about combining the two organizations. Indeed, the Philharmonic has been pulling back from its characterization of the merger ever since it was announced on June 1 as a fait accompli.”
Wait ‘Til the Musicians’ Union Hears About This!
An Australian opera singer claims to have invented a computerized orchestra which can follow a conductor’s beat, making it the perfect alternative to a live pit orchestra for ballets and operas. Critics and musicians are predictably dismissive of the cyber-orchestra, which basically involves one guy with a laptop following a conductor with his mouse, but small ballet and opera companies which can’t afford to hire full orchestras are excited to try it out.
Florida Phil Rescue Effort Sputtering
Musicians and supporters of the nearly-dead Florida Philharmonic have been scrambling to put together the funding necessary to save their orchestra or, at the very least, give it some financial breathing room until a more permanent fiscal plan can be realized. But after starting strong, the rescue mission has stalled badly, and its organizers admit that they’re running out of time. By the end of this week, the orchestra’s board, which many musicians have accused of running the organization into the ground, may decide to convert the company’s bankruptcy filing from Chapter 11 to Chapter 7, which would mean a final, permanent shutdown.
And Watch Where You Rub That Washcloth!
The cleaning of Michelangelo’s David is turning into quite the public event, and a fierce argument has developed over the proper way to free David from his layers of grime. “The row centres on whether the statue should be cleaned using water to restore it to its original state or by a dry cleaning method which would be less radical and only remove the worst grime, according to UK press reports on Wednesday. A petition has been signed by more than 39 international art experts to stop Florence’s Galleria dell’Accademia using their planned wet technique and demanding that an independent commission should decide on the best method.”
Is The Art Or Applause Dying?
Rupert Christiansen observes that audiences seem less enthusiastic with their applause these days. “Why should this be? As a culture, we are much less repressed than we used to be. Nobody any longer fights back the tears manfully – in fact, you can hardly switch the radio on without hearing some disaster victim collapsing into gut-churning sobs. We are repeatedly exposed to the sounds and images of extreme drama, both actual and fictional. This may mean that the excitement that live music stimulates is less intense and surprising – we hear it, after all, every day, reproduced with a fidelity that wasn’t possible in the pre-FM, pre-digital era. The passivity of television and a certain fed-on-a-plate laziness about our consumption of art also contribute to the fall in the clapometer.”