“According to the Renew Our Music Fund – one of a number of charities helping musicians get back on their feet – of the 5,000 full-time, professional musicians who lived in the city before Katrina, about 3,000 are still displaced.”
Tag: 08.28.07
Canada’s Largest CD Retailer Cuts Prices
“Effective immediately, prices will drop an average of 20 per cent, with some titles reduced as much as 33 per cent, HMV reported in a press release.”
Surviving As A Musician In New Orleans
Two years after Katrina, it isn’t easy. “Historically, musicians have been taken for granted here because it’s so common and pervasive. It’s such an intrinsic part of our culture that, when we hear a brass band it’s just another day.” And yet, New Orleans’ musicians are suffering…
Your Favorite Composer? (So Predictable)
“I’d venture a guess that most people, if asked who their favorite author is, would probably name a living author, if they have a favorite. Same goes for favorite baseball player, favorite singer, favorite movie star, etc. Yet ask someone to name their favorite composer and I’d also guess that those who don’t give you that baffled ‘what’s-a-composer’ look will more often than not mention someone both long-dead and from another country.”
Why You Should Trust Those Gut Instincts
“Research indicates that gut feelings are based on simple rules of thumb, what we psychologists term ‘heuristics.’ These take advantage of certain capacities of the brain that have come down to us through time, experience and evolution. Gut instincts often rely on simple cues in the environment. In most situations, when people use their instincts, they are heeding these cues and ignoring other unnecessary information.”
Low Numbers, Yes, But Arts TV Can Be High-Impact
“British television is not sure what to do about culture and its bosses seem to agree on only one thing: not many people watch it. … But viewing figures that can seem small when set against programmes that reach millions are still worth having. An audience of a few hundred thousand may be off the radar of ratings-chasing producers but it is far more than can ever see a performance at, say, the Royal Opera House….”
Disneyland Paris: No Longer A Shameful Acting Credit
The cast of the stage version of “High School Musical” rehearses through the night at Disneyland Paris. “This kind of show might once have been seen as the kind of embarrassing first step that singers and dancers go quiet about when they make it to the West End. While most of these young performers, living in student-dorm style accommodation with the rest of the 12,200 staff, are keen to move on to bigger stages and full-length shows, many are increasingly proud of working at the resort….”
With Soap Spoof, Philly Fringe Leaps Into Podcasting
“Philadelphia’s Fringe Festival has long been an event spanning many venues – theaters, studios, churches, streets, and even audience members’ living rooms (check out this year’s Kamerdans). Its latest frontier? The iPod. That’s right – the Fringe … is branching out into a new aural medium by offering its first-ever podcast, The Many Men of Martha Manning. The first of its six episodes is already available online.”
City Opera Actively Courts The Black Audience
“There are relatively few operas that explore the African-American experience…. Perhaps partly as a result, opera is not a common entertainment choice among African-Americans. Even at City Opera, known as ‘the people’s opera’ because of its relatively low prices and focus on contemporary work, the audience is overwhelmingly white. City Opera, however, is making a three-pronged effort to change that.”
Enough With The “Icon” Already: Let’s Ditch The Word
“Memo to architects and your enablers: It’s time to put ‘icon’ to rest. The word should be banished from the world of design, and with it the notion that the worth of new buildings is measured by how much they stick out – vertically, stylistically, you name it. This doesn’t mean tall buildings are bad, or that startling looks are to be shunned in favor of architectural deja vu. But the idea that you grab attention by making people gawk? It is so 2002.”