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Trial For Attempted Murder Of Salman Rushdie Postponed Again

"The attempted murder trial of (Hadi Matar,) the man charged with severely injuring author Salman Rushdie in a 2022 knife attack was put on hold Friday while judges consider a request to move it to another county. Jury selection had been scheduled to start on Tuesday." - AP

Gael Garcia Bernal Didn’t Want To Become An Actor

But he finally realized there was no avoiding it. "There is this moment of incredible tension and excitement before going on stage, you know, before appearing. And then when you're there, everything is amazing. Everything is just incredible. So I think I'm the best version of myself." - NPR

David Garrard Lowe, Historian And Defender Of Neoclassical Architecture, Has Died At 91

Lowe’s "passion for historic preservation — and in particular for the Beaux-Arts mansions, museums and towers of the Gilded Age — helped stem the tide of urban renewal that was leveling large swaths of American cities in the decades after World War II.” - The New York Times

That Time Al Pacino Almost Got Fired From The Godfather

“Paramount didn’t want me to play Michael Corleone. They wanted Jack Nicholson. They wanted Robert Redford. They wanted Warren Beatty or Ryan O’Neal.” - The Guardian (UK)

Kerri Dick, Weaver Of Wonders, Has Died At 41

Dick was a master Chilkat weaver "(Kwakwaka’wakw, Haida, Tlingit, Kootenay), whose artistry fused traditional carving, weaving, and beading practices that she learned from family members and shared with her local Haida Gwaii community.” - Hyperallergic

Met Chief Slams New York Times Chief Music Critic

On Monday night, Met director Peter Gelb returned fire, strafing the Gray Lady — and its chief classical critic, Zachary Woolfe — and claiming there was “an agenda” behind the brutal review. - New York Post

Beloved Classical Record Producer Adam Abeshouse Dead At 63

"Over a career that lasted more than 30 years, Abeshouse made hundreds of records with some of classical music’s biggest stars," many of whom gathered at his home last month for a goodbye concert. "He won two Grammy awards, including Classical Producer of the Year in 1999." - NPR

Leif Segerstam, Admired Conductor And Astoundingly Prolific Composer, Is Dead At 80

The Finnish eccentric, known for his long white hair and beard, rotund figure and quirky personality, composed 371 symphonies, most single-movement works with colorful titles. While he guest-conducted widely when younger, in later years he kept most of his work on the podium within Finland but attracted devoted followers via recordings. - Gramophone

Remembering Lewis Lapham, My First Boss

"It’s a strange thing to have a walk-on role in the fifth act of a great man’s life. Lewis was exactly fifty years and one month older than I was. Twenty-two when I first entered the small Irving Place office." - Literary Hub

Author Lore Segal Dead At 96

"An esteemed Viennese-American author and translator, (her) gift for words helped her family escape from the Nazis and … later drew upon her experiences as a Jewish refugee and immigrant for such fiction as Other People’s Houses and Her First American." - AP

Robert Coover, Postmodernist Author Of Great Invention, Dead At 92

Michiko Kakutani called him “probably the funniest and most malicious” of all the postmodernist novelists. - The New York Times

James Magee, Mysterious Artist, Has Died At 79

Magee was “an enigmatic and idiosyncratic artist and poet who spent four decades building a starkly beautiful monument of stone and steel in the West Texas desert that may be the most significant artwork most people have never heard of.” Then there was his alter ego. - The New York Times

King Charles’ Master Of The King’s Music Has Plans

She will soon meet with King Charles, a classical music fan who studied the cello, piano and trumpet, to outline her ideas. She is contemplating a flash musical event in which the rooms at Buckingham Palace are briefly occupied by composers or performers. - The New York Times

Paul Simon, Despite Hearing Loss, Hopes To Return To Live Performance

The singer, now 82, gave up touring in 2018, and he lost most hearing in his let ear while recording last year's album Seven Psalms. Now, he says, "I’m hoping to eventually be able to do a full-length concert. I’m optimistic. Six months ago I was pessimistic.” - The Guardian

Star Cast Of Classical Musicians Convene At Beloved Dying Producer’s Home To Say Goodbye

Over the course of the concert, nearly a dozen musicians played for Adam Abeshouse. Each one embraced him after performing. At least for one afternoon, joy supplanted pain. - NPR

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