General director Keith Cerny: “We have observed no measurable cannibalization of single ticket sales from either simulcasts or HD broadcasts.” What’s more, “whereas around 75 percent of the Met’s American HD broadcast audience is age 65 or older, only around 20 percent of TDO’s simulcast audience is 65 or older.”
The World’s Most-Used Musical Sequence (It Has A Very Odd Name)
“What do Beethoven, David Bowie, Green Day, Mozart, *NSYNC, Pete Seeger, Michael Jackson, Ray Charles, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Duke Ellington, The Supremes, Rihanna, and many others all have in common? The Andalusian Cadence!” (a/k/a the Diatonic Phrygian Tetrachord). David Garland has assembled ore than 50 (short) examples as evidence. (audio)
It’s Not Easy To Be A Piano Teacher In Islamabad
J. Jerome has to deal with a shortage of instruments, an even greater shortage of tuners (he’s the only one in town), a near-total lack of spare parts – and, as a member of Pakistan’s small Christian minority, the threat of extreme Islamist militants who disapprove of music in general and Western music in particular. Yet he struggles on. (includes audio)
Can This Building Be Saved? (And, More To The Point, Should It Be?)
“Some Goshen officials say Rudolph’s complex, which features protruding cubes and a corrugated concrete facade resembling corduroy, isn’t worth preserving, that it should be sold and a new government center constructed elsewhere.”
Text-Based Video Games Are On The Rise (Again)
“Interactive fiction, which once went by the name ‘text adventure,’ is having a moment.”
Indie Music Labels (And Musicians) Take Streaming Into Their Own Hands
“Labels like Fool’s Gold, Jagjaguwar and Secretly Canadian have signed on with the two-year-old Drip.fm in an effort to attract fans with exclusive music, a sense of community and an intimate connection with bands and artists. Other younger, digitally savvy musicians are starting their own services to appeal directly to their fans.”
When A Town Fears Its Library Is Threatened, Patrons Check Out ALL Of The Books
“In their fight against feared closure, more than 300 residents, according to campaign group Save Braunton Library, borrowed several books each on Saturday.”
Top AJBlogs From 07.06.14
Taking on Amazon
AJBlog: CultureCrash | Published 2014-07-03
People watching
AJBlog: Performance Monkey | Published 2014-07-03
Creative Placemaking: A Conversation
AJBlog: Field Notes | Published 2014-07-07
‘This American Life’ And Its Risky Move To Self-Distribution
“Gone are a distributor’s financial guarantees, which in the case of This American Life, reached seven figures. Instead, Mr. Glass will now be responsible for the show’s marketing and distribution, as well as for finding corporate sponsors. It’s the equivalent of Radiohead’s releasing its own album … or Louis C. K.’s selling his own stand-up special – except all the time, for every show.”