“When I’m still imagining the music in my mind before making notes is the most problematic. I try to imagine the music first: that’s very precious. The first idea includes the tempi, the orchestration, which are not difficult to imagine. But to reduce the possibilities for harmonic use and pitches, that is the most time consuming before starting the actual composition.”
Brain Science Suggests We Can Learn while We’re Asleep. Uh-oh.
“Almost a century ago, a fad for sleep-learning swept the industrialised world, ending only after neuroscientists determined it was physiologically impossible. Yet today, a growing body of research suggests they were wrong. Sleep-learning appears to be heading for a revival, on a far more solid scientific basis than its earlier incarnation.”
Arthur Miller: ‘My Legacy? Some Good Parts For Actors’
“This is not said speciously. I look at the plays that I’ve done, that is those plays that continue to have their life, and if you look hard enough you’re going to find that they’ve got pretty good parts for actors. … Actors and directors have got to decide to do these plays. They’re not deciding because the play has quote great moral importance. Even literary importance. They’re deciding because they’ve got a hell of an idea of how to do this part.”
The Church Of Scientology May Not Be Reacting Super Well To ‘Going Clear’
“As the film has won accolades and taken on a trajectory toward Oscar consideration, the animosity has ramped up, and there has been increased aggression at public events where Gibney and the subjects of Going Clear have spoken.”
When Pen Names Take On A Life Of Their Own
“The literary appeal of the pseudonym and of the reclusive genius tend to go hand in hand.”
What (If Anything) Should Composers Make Of Today’s Music Criticism?
“The unprecedented accessibility and apparent indelibility of reviews on the internet necessitate, I believe, a change in the way they are written and read. Foremost in my mind here are not the tender sensibilities of composers or even the damage a gratuitously negative review can do to a career, but rather the integrity and relevance of music criticism itself.”
How Does Creativity Help Solve Problems?
“At this year’s Aspen Ideas Festival, we asked a group of people who work in media, design, and the arts about how the creative process can lend itself to unlocking solutions. ‘Creativity is a problem-solving practice,’ says Anne Libera, director of comedy studies at Second City. ‘You have to risk, you have to fail – that’s how you know where the edge is.’ Other panelists include Tim Brown, Bran Ferren, JR, Maurice Ashley, Lil Buck, Kelly Leonard, and Jane Chu.” (video)
Huntington Theatre And Boston University Sever Relationship
“After 33 years, Boston University and the Huntington Theatre Company are parting ways, and the university is putting the BU Theatre up for sale, effective immediately. For the highly regarded Huntington, which just two years ago won a Tony Award for regional theater, the dissolution of the partnership with BU ushers in a period of uncertainty.”
Can A Good Poster Still Change The Zeitgeist? Definitely
“From Ben Shahn’s anti-H-Bomb design to the Guerrilla Girls’ campaign against gender inequality in art museums, posters have a long history of engaging and informing people through a mixture of artistry, wit, and economy. It would be easy to assume that posters have lost some of their impact in a hyper-connected landscape. But in many ways, the rise of social media has given protest and advocacy posters a bigger audience than ever before.”
Matthew Bourne: Traditional Ballet Is Evolving Into Something New
“There seems to be this cross-fertilisation going on that’s never happened before. The Royal Ballet and English National Ballet, our two biggest ballet companies, are commissioning contemporary choreographers more and more to work with them. Things are getting blurred in a way and and the dancers are having to be very versatile to take on those different movements.”
Does Today’s Great TV Rival The Best Novels Of Yesterday?
Like novels, box sets require an investment of time, attention and emotional energy. They are complex and subtle enough to repay rewatching – in the same way as good books repay re-reading. Also, some of them star Sean Bean in bearskins and leather, which is a plus even the greatest bookworm cannot deny.
“Owning” Music These Days Is Problematic. Even When You “Bought” It…
“Good luck working out if you still have a right to use the music if Apple goes out of business. I’d have a hard time working it out, and I’ve been a copyright lawyer specializing in high-tech issues for 25 years.”
Canada’s Governor General Awards Finalists Announced
The Governor-General’s Literary Awards, which have been handed out since 1937, announced finalists in seven categories in both official languages on Wednesday. The winners, who each receive $25,000, will be revealed on Oct. 28.
Handicapping Philip Roth’s Chances Of Winning A Nobel
“When will Philip Roth win?” has been the question since 1993, when Toni Morrison became the last American to win the prize. At this point, I doubt even Roth cares. (OK, he probably cares a little bit.) But his partisans care deeply, and they grumble loudly every year he’s overlooked.
Daily Beast
A Lost Frank Lloyd Wright House Is Found
The house Linda McQuillen bought for $100,000 was part of Wright’s effort to develop and market well-designed homes at a more affordable level — his first effort to reach a broader audience. Only 16 were ever built, and only 14 still standing.
He Was The Only Man To Win The Pillsbury Bake-Off. So They Produced A Play About Him But Forgot To Tell Him
Imagine taking a call that goes something like this: Hello, sir. Did you know that here on the other side of the country, a theater is staging an entire musical based loosely on one particularly exciting day in your life that happened nearly 20 years ago?
Pressure’s On: Boston’s MFA Expecting Very Big Things From Its New Director
The MFA expects Matthew Teitelbaum to lead the charge in ambitious programming, acquisition, preservation, scholarship, and fundraising. And, after meeting him at a community breakfast in September and listening to his list of priorities — compiled after he had spent less than 100 days on the job — it is clear that the governing MFA board also expects him to shake the place up a bit, too.
Chicago Art Institute Director To Step Down
Douglas Druick, who first joined the Art Institute as a curator in 1984, was serving as acting president when he was appointed to succeed James Cuno as director of the institution in 2011.
Artnet
‘It’s Long Past Time’ For James Levine To Retire From Met Opera, Says New York Times Classical Editor
Zachary Woolfe: “It’s time – long past time – for Mr. Levine to make a transition to an emeritus role. Maybe then, with a fresh perspective to set alongside that of Peter Gelb, the Met’s general manager, the company can reverse the ‘artistic retrenchment’ that Alex Ross rightly observes this season.”
Dennis Russell Davies Injured On Podium Half An Hour Before Concert
“According to a statement by the [Bruckner Orchestra Linz in Austria], the 71-year-old conductor was rushed to the hospital after making an awkward turn on the podium, tearing his patellar tendon, which connects the kneecap to the shinbone. He underwent successful surgery.”
Why These Sitcom Kisses Were Revolutionary Acts
“Sitcom parents have engaged in public displays of affection on primetime for as long as there have been family sitcoms, after all. But for those of us who grew up with parents born and raised in Asia – and, based on a 2012 Pew survey, that’s a growing number of us – these [particular] lip-lock moments are mind-blowing. Because not only have we rarely seen Asian American parents kiss on TV, many of us have never seen them do it in real life either.”
English National Ballet Executive Director To Step Down
Caroline Thomson, who was a deputy director general and chief operating officer at the BBC before coming to ENB in 2013, will depart next April “to focus on her non-executive work with other organisations.”
Top Posts From AJBlogs 10.07.15
Inside Out vs. Outside In
There are two schools of thought when it comes to eating a cinnamon roll. … These differing styles are a fair comparison to how organizations approach arts marketing. …read more
AJBlog: Engaging Matters Published 2015-10-06
Identifying Skills
Trying to determine what your strengths and weakness are as you assess the next step or new step in your career? When making a change to this degree, we can often take for granted our most powerful skills. … read more
AJBlog: Field Notes Published 2015-10-07
Finding Your Career Strategy
Matthew May urges us to consider a new definition of career planning. In fact, he tells us to throw away the word “planning” all together. … read more
AJBlog: Field Notes Published 2015-10-07
Fastest Route from Point A to Point B, Not Always a Straight Line
Ok. Let’s say you’ve done some soul searching, consulted your family and your most trusted advisors. You can now safely say that you know: ① where you are and ② where you want to be. Now what? … read more
AJBlog: Field Notes Published 2015-10-07
ISIS Crisis: AAMD’s Risky “Safe Haven” Initiative for Endangered Archaeological Material
Understandably distressed by the inability of the international cultural community to prevent the continued decimation of world heritage by ISIS, members of Association of Art Museum Directors could be putting their own institutions at risk by implementing … read more
AJBlog: CultureGrrl Published 2015-10-07
What Happened
If you find yourself in the middle of Virginia this Saturday night, check out the Garth Newel Piano Quartet concert: they are playing a piece of mine from 2004 called What Happened. … read more
AJBlog: Infinite Curves Published 2015-10-07
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Bizarre: Playwright Apologizes After Accusing Theatre Of Stealing His Work
“I thank Echo for allowing me the time to fully understand my situation and consider this difficult admission,” the playwright said. “I am sorry that the public had to be involved at all.”
Pandora Buys Ticket Service To Compete With Ticketmaster
“The acquisition marks a big change for Pandora, which has previously generated revenue almost entirely from advertising and subscriptions to its online radio stations, which count roughly 80 million listeners a month. Ticketfly last year sold 16 million passes to more than 90,000 live events, generating more than $500 million in sales, the companies said.”