Archives for March 2010

I've been getting a lot of SPAM on this blawg recently, and what really entertains me is how these spammers stroke your ego. Here's an example: In general I dont make comments... but..I wanted to say that this post really forced me to do so because I agree with it so strongly.  Thank you. I'll be on the 1 train or wherever reading my comments, and will think Yes. I Spurred Someone to Action today! Classical Music Publicity Matters. And then it's all, "Buy GPS Cell Phones Nowz."So anyway, thank you, spammers, for making me feel good for … [Read more...]

Perhaps you, too, have been washing dishes in the kitchen and heard what would seem to be the Big Red gum commercial in the other room. You wipe your hands on your dish towel and walk over to the TV muttering "Creativity, here she lied, no one knew her worth" etc., expecting Big Red to simply be using their old jingle, only to to see a Verizon v. AT&T commercial. If you listen closely, you then realize that they've changed the lyrics, but if you look closely, you realize many of the commercials' tableaus are nearly indistinguishable. Big … [Read more...]

...you're being overcharged. In today's New York Times, we learned that less than $8,000 from Lang Lang and Wyclef Jean's fundraiser for Haiti at Carnegie Hall this Sunday will actually go to disaster relief, and not just because some of it will go to Wyclef's mistress. Even if the event's nearly $200,000 worth of tickets sell out, less than $8,000 from the sales will go to the cause. The concert, though, is expected to raise some money, thanks mainly to a $50,000 subsidy by the Montblanc company and $10,000 by CAMI Music, the … [Read more...]

This comes via fellow publicist Christina Jensen's Twitter feed, via the website it's a sickness, and is...the best thing:From the website: obsession is everything at itsasickness. it's what makes you interesting. every box you see is someone's sickness. what's YOUR sickness?I'd never thought about "interesting" that way, that it's a person's obsessions that make them interesting, but I suppose there's some validity to it. Of course that means that your (super)interests are what make you yourself interesting, which creates a kind of ((boom)) … [Read more...]

WARNING: This post contains spoilers.POSSIBLE SELLING POINT: This post contains spoilers.I'm going to embarrass my sister now. There was one year she desperately wanted to know what her "big Christmas" present was. She knew our parents were hiding ("  ") it in our dad's workshop (not to be confused with Santa's Workshop, but, as it turns out, the same thing) in the basement, so she ran downstairs one day and looked. She saw it--I think "it" was a new bike?--came upstairs, and immediately burst into tears. Now she knew what her gift was, … [Read more...]

I love the Metropolitan Opera's website, and I'm glad Renée Fleming now has a website, but must their homepages look *exactly* the same? I mean...down to the placement of the news ticker. For more Imitation Is the Sincerest Form of Flattery, Metropolitan Opera Edition, go here. … [Read more...]

I think all marketing copy should read like the e mail my friend (and Strings Magazine coverboy!) Rob Moose sent to his list this morning:admit it- you like bach.  i can feel it.  and you also like drinking.  that much is obvious.  soi'm not a mathematician, but i'm willing to wager that if you like the two elements separately, an additive process will only heighten your overall appreciation.behold, then:Bach Reformed (folky, danceable duo arrangements of Bach's unaccompanied string music) + Barbes (lovely room, nice beer, … [Read more...]

Don't you love when bloggers refer to their own blog entries? I sure do. My self-annoyance at self-quoting, however, is surpassed by my would-be (will-be?) self-annoyance at becoming one of those people who just writes the same blog entry over and over with different opening paragraphs. So travel back with me now to Christmas Time 2008, when I was being the Awesome New York Gal that I am, sitting on the couch at my dad's house in Connecticut watching Batman with the fam:On Christmas, my dad, sister and I were watching The Dark Knight. I was … [Read more...]

Blogger's Note: A few of my past blog entries were deleted, so I'm going to repost them this week. If you already read them, apologies for the tedious sameness. This lost post was e mailed back to me by a Valiant Reader, who had cut and pasted it and sent it to a friend last week!____________________________ I was thinking about trying two things that might be Huge Mistakes. Lemme know your thoughts.First, I received an e mail from a too-cool-for-school-indie-rock-publicist last week and quite enjoyed her auto signature:NameTitleAddressE … [Read more...]

File Under: Completely Insane But Maybe Awesome, my sister reports that a Gap store in Vancouver has been completely flipped upside-down to promote their new "Sprize" customer loyalty program, the logic (?) being that Sprize's motto is "shopping turned on its head."Via Jezebel: The good news is that it's finally time to feature this video, which Aliza and I would try to recreate as kids. Quite Unsuccessfully, I might add. And by "as kids" I actually mean "last night." … [Read more...]

There's a list of the top 30 things that Won't Save Classical Music over on the blog Proper Discord. While the idea of "saving" anything (from itself, basically) is of course ridiculous (hence the list), I have to disagree with the naming of specific writers and artists. That said, composer Lowell Liebermann, whose music I don't know, is at the top of the list, and I'm glad for this since I'm now totally obsessed with his homepage. The rest of the site is pretty basic, but I love that nice lemon background and cut-out photo (with shadows) right … [Read more...]

Anyone who works in marketing has had to deal with print deadlines. Inevitably, some overworked publicist like myself will forget to send an updated bio when you're trying to print a program, or your executive director will loose the ad she was supposed to approve two weeks ago under a pile of coffee-stained papers. Thank goodness, then, for YouSendIt, rush fees, and overnight delivery. Not since Gutenberg invented the printing press in 1440, however, has there been a greater Materials Miracle than the one found in this new venture from US … [Read more...]

In addition to the Lady Gaga comparisons over at OperaChic, here are a few of my own thoughts on Angela Gheorghi's new press photos.The Elvira:The Mamma Mia:The Bjork: The Anna Wintour:And last but not least, The Chocolate Factory:Most commenters over at OperaChic are Not Pleased, adding thoughts like, "Nobody is teaching these donnas how to age gracefully and with dignity," "Good God, whatever was the poor woman THINKING of?" and "Sometimes after a breakup women go through a phase of trying too hard!" to the post.  Others were thrilled, … [Read more...]

My Entourage is corrupted, and since I Am My Own Geek Squad, I am --->freaking out<---. The only logical thing to do while the database rebuilds is Google Image Mad Men. Fortunately, I have an actual reason to be doing this, not that only having a perceived reason has stopped me in the past. This just came in, from that place everyone knows how to get to on 57th street:Carnegie Hall will host a vintage attire contest for ticket holders of the Max Raabe and the Palast Orchester concert on Thursday, March 4 at 8:00 p.m. Elegance is back, so … [Read more...]