"Today, we as a church will begin the practice of collecting ‘royalties’ ... for the spirituals we sing and worship. Whenever we sing Negro spirituals. we will collect an offering that will support the development of Black musicians.” - WGBH
The roots of raqs sharqi go back centuries, but its practitioners are treated more like sex workers than artists. (Parents will happily hire a belly dancer for their son's wedding, but they won't let their daughter become one.) Amie Sultan is trying to change that. - The Guardian
The glass floor of the bridge is slippery, and locals have learned to be careful. Warning signs posted by the city didn't help. So now the walkway will be replaced... - The New York Times
He had a difficult personality, an unseemly personal life, and a late-life plunge in the quality of his work, writes editor Robert Gottlieb, but at his best — the 1920s novels that earned him a Nobel Prize — he captured what made the U.S. tick. - The New York Times
In the hope that improved aesthetics will lead to wider adoption, solar technology companies and their designers are creating panels with decorative patterns, various colors and shapes that can be installed on building façades, and even solar-energy-generating textiles. - Fast Company
She and her husband were driving home to Philadelphia from their honeymoon, stopped in New Orleans, heard traditional jazz, and basically never left. Their venue became a jazz mecca, and they helped turn the house band into stars who've toured the world. - AP
"Throughout the crisis, the industry has begun to construct a new narrative shaped to accommodate great artistic expression for everyone. As we rebuild our society and our economy, I'm convinced, more than ever, that participation in music is part of the solution for national recovery." - The Guardian
The Under the Radar Festival (theater), Prototype (opera), and Exponential Festival (multiple genres) — much-anticipated events in what was once a barren January calendar — have called off this year's live performances due to the staffing and logistical problems caused by the Omicron variant. - The New York Times
In prior years, the Göteborg Film Festival, in Sweden's second city, has put viewers in coffins and kept one lucky attendee alone in an island lighthouse. For 2022, at three gala evenings, a professional hypnotist will attempt to mesmerize the entire room before the screenings. - The Hollywood Reporter
The fast-food behemoth had originally obtained the city's permission to build the outlet on the site of a former garden center near the baths. Public outrage changed the city council's mind, and McDonald's (which already has 54 locations in Rome) has lost every appeal since. - Smithsonian Magazine
Although the notion that group solidarity leads inevitably to prejudice, animosity, and conflict is common, it is also incorrect and potentially dangerous. - The Atlantic
The deal, for more than 400 songs, also includes soundtrack music; the material for Bowie’s short-lived band Tin Machine from the late 1980s and early ’90s; and other works. - The New York Times
The Ukrainian conductor Oksana Lyniv said she was surprised to learn she was making history after receiving the offer from the Teatro Comunale opera house in Bologna. The 43-year-old begins the three-year posting as musical director on 22 January. - The Guardian
A lesser-known part of his legacy—one that’s arguably just as enduring as his political feats—is his campaign to preserve Nevada land that is host to a famed Michael Heizer Land artwork. - ARTnews
