Tag: 11.27.05

Polishing That Musical Backstory (Does It Matter If It’s True?)

“Record labels in recent years have made a point of introducing new, little-known acts as protégés of established stars. In some cases the two musicians might have grown up on the same block. Or perhaps they had shared the struggle of performing in the same unknown group. Either way, it’s a rich backstory that can be woven into any future marketing effort. But what if the new singer doesn’t have any long-lost pals who’ve gone platinum? For an increasingly desperate industry, that is but a minor obstacle. These days, label executives routinely shop their new prospects around from one star to another, trying to convince them to act as a mentor.”

The Louvre Goes To Atlanta

The Louvre is sending some of its art to Atlanta. “It will mark the first time in the Louvre’s 212-year history that the museum has agreed to share entire collections with another museum for an extended period. The arrangement breaks new ground in the international arts world and scores a diplomatic success among tense Franco-American relations.”

In France: The Walls Of Unrest

“Over the last few weeks of civil unrest in France, life at times has felt as if it was becoming art. The government declared a state of emergency and imposed curfews nightly in areas where cars were torched by the hundreds. There was even talk of shutting down Paris proper in the evening to prevent any treachery. Although a physical wall around Paris was torn down centuries ago, over the last decades, walls of distinctions dividing people by race, ethnicity, religion and neighborhood have become increasingly apparent. Successful French artists, writers and performers of African and Arab descent have been straddling them for years.”

Changing Values – Is It Right To Exorcise The Offensive?

“If we consider it reasonable to apply a modern evaluation of what is offensive or prejudiced to a script written nearly 40 years ago, why is it so complex to apply it to a text written 400 years ago? Should we allow contemporary revivals of Shakespeare and Marlowe to repeat attitudes and language considered acceptable at the time of writing, but untenable now, or should we attempt more culturally sensitive rereadings?

Detroit Symphony Experiments With Giant Video

The orchestra mounted two large video screens in its hall for a performance. “The concert was the first in the ‘Classics Unmasked’ series that marks a departure from the DSO’s traditional format. The new style aims to attract a generation weaned on television and stimulated by music videos and the Internet. For the first time, audience members in the farthest seats could see the angle of a violin bow as it hit a string or even the veins of a musician’s hands.”