This morning, Baltimore woke to the disconcerting news that the staff of its local Sun was being slashed. Cruel. However, I recently learned on the internet that news people have a talent for song, and as our local opera company has now filed for bankruptcy and is in the process of selling off its assets, is there an opportunity here? Hey, what nature hasn't granted, it seems auto-tune will provide! (T-Pain could not be reached for comment, but Couric is clearly rockin' this format.) … [Read more...]

Okay, I'm no Sherlock, but I have surmised that the whole "case of the amazing shrinking modern attention span" is bunk. Like Steven Johnson, I am comfortable arguing that contemporary pop culture actually expects more and more of our brain power, not less. And I still basically am, but still: along with this morning's coffee, I discovered that there are now :50 "official trailers" for 3:19-long songs. That's what you get, indeed.Elsewhere, the million and six plot twists of Lost slap us back … [Read more...]

Perennial MTG topic of interest, this documentary explores "issues of copyright in the information age." Walking the walk, you pay what you want to download the film. Inspired to try your hand? Remix it and post your project here. … [Read more...]

Stephen takes issue with the Pultizer committee's selections. … [Read more...]

Reportedly shot all in one take with live music and with a $2,000 grant from NYU. Judgment on the net: "this > the original." … [Read more...]

So, like the car crash we just can't peel our eyes from, The Palin Family Feud was the opera we'd most like to see. I think it works. So many plot lines, so many potential wacky duet pairings. Any takers, composer-readers? I was thinking more about opera this week, and specifically what keeps me from really embracing it. At root, I think it mostly has to do with how over-the-top the delivery is (awesome, in-and-of itself), yet how slow and plodding the action is often paced. I'm not sure even … [Read more...]

As I mentioned once before, somehow watching M*A*S*H as a child defined my sense of humor in a rather serious way. As an adult, mass media has continued to shape my cultural perspective--particularly fueled by late nights reading Gawker and watching loads of trash TV. I confess all this to help explain how it is that my contribution to Adaptistration's Take a Friend To the Orchestra project ended up sounding like I was coming off a Gossip Girl bender. (Ahem.) I'm no Corey Dargel when it comes … [Read more...]

On Thursday, I've been invited to sit on a panel to chat about the intersection of opera, pop culture, and mass media, so I thought we'd get the ball rolling here on MTG. This week's survey question: What recent event would you most like to see turned into an opera? ( online polls) If you have wild card answers, please drop those in the "other" category. If you would like to suggest which composers you expect to see attached to these projects, please drop those in the comments below. … [Read more...]

And the survey said: I have no need for your micro news. I hope the cat gets it. 46% Stand in awe: I am master of the 140 character haiku. 35% As soon as I start a Facebook page and figure out what Tumblr is, I'll get around to doing this. 7% The "Other" category accounted for 12% of the vote. Answers ranged around the field, but this option was mostly used to further express great distaste for the service--pretty much summed up by this one: "More to feed the obsessive-compulsive loop? … [Read more...]

Two years ago when I still lived in New York, I purchased a ticket to see a production at the Metropolitan Opera. Ever since then, I have received a steady stream of promotional emails, and though I've never purchased anything else, I have enjoyed looking at the pictures. Then a couple weeks ago, they sent this to me in Baltimore: The package struck me for a number of reasons. It was exceptionally heavy, had traveled far (considering what it was selling), and emitted that intoxicating fresh ink … [Read more...]