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Beloved Conductor Bramwell Tovey Dead At 69

Artistic leader of the Rhode Island Philharmonic, BBC Concert Orchestra, and, as of the coming season, the Sarasota Orchestra, Tovey spent widely admired tenures at the Winnipeg and Vancouver Symphonies and was a regular visitor to the top American orchestras, known especially for his rapport with audiences. - CBC

A Census Of Every Single Dance Worker In New York City

The project by the nonprofit Dance/NYC "seeks to understand who makes up the dance work force and the social and financial hardships that these workers face. The data will help identify economic gaps and opportunities for fair wage standards and other policies across the sector." - The New York Times

Kevin Spacey Pleads Not Guilty To Sexual Assault In London; Trial Date Set

"(The actor) appeared at the U.K.'s historic Old Bailey criminal court on Thursday morning, where he pleaded not guilty to all five counts of sexual assault. His U.K. trial will begin on June 6, 2023, and is expected to last for three to four weeks." - Variety

Spotify Bought Heardle, But Some Fans Aren’t On Board

Is this a little like The New York Times buying Wordle? Yes, and the outrage is not dissimilar. For instance: "I lost my game history, and the link to get it back only exists for a microsecond. Also the skip function is now super glitchy, making the game unplayable." - BBC

The Basketball Superstars Who Learned Ballet And Tap To Better Protect Their Flexibility And Ankles

People described Michael Jordan's basketball moves as "balletic," and sometimes said Kobe Bryant "tap-danced" his way to the net - but those were metaphors. Or were they? - The Sports Rush

Emmy Nominees Tell Us We’re Truly Not OK

Perhaps that's not such a surprise, well into our third year of a global pandemic, but the drama nominees show "it is easy to feel trapped by forces beyond our control. Easy to feel like pawns in a game or part of an experiment." - Los Angeles Times

Artificial Intelligence Can’t Make Art Without Humans To Provide The Spark

At least, not for now. People using the program DALL-E, which takes human words and makes images in response, "have found that it elevates human creativity rather than making it obsolete." - Wired

The Refugee Orchestra Of Glasgow

In a heavily refugee and immigrant area of Glasgow, "Musicians in Exile a way of helping to give musician asylum seekers and refugees in the area a chance to gather every Tuesday evening to sing, play and share their talents, experiences, stories and songs." - Time Out

The Six Lines And Five Colors That Changed The Course Of Western Art

Deborah Nicholls-Lee offers a consideration of Piet Monrdian's Composition with Blue, Yellow, Red, Black and Grey (1922). - BBC

Just Say What It Was, Texas

Obviously, "involuntary location" is a nonstarter, but also, "describing someone as a slave does nothing to diminish their humanity. Enslaving someone diminishes their humanity, which is why one should not do it." Texas and liberals alike can use their words - correctly. - The Atlantic

Some Mexican Artists Are Using A New Medium: Piñatas

"A growing number of Latino artists are working to broaden and elevate how Americans view piñatas and (their) history. Some are carving out a place for piñatas in the arts world, while others use the object to make pointed social and political commentary." - The Guardian

In The Maw Of The Reality Show Beast: America’s Next Great Author

Will there be a montage of typing fingers? A poetry read-off in Iowa City? A "who navigated the workshop the best" scene in LA? Well: "The six finalists, locked together for a month, will face 'live-wire' challenges as they attempt to write an entire novel." - The Guardian (UK)

At What Point Should We Consider Animals, Or Even AI, “Persons” In A Moral Sense?

If an AI-powered robot exhibited intelligence and capacity to suffer, we might consider granting it moral personhood even though it's not alive.  Tapeworms and pubic lice are alive but clearly not person-equivalent, whereas dolphins or bonobos might be. Tim Sommers considers some criteria. - 3 Quarks Daily

Music Students Who Fled Afghanistan Remake Their School In Portugal

The school's leader, before the Taliban and now in exile: "We can show the world a different Afghanistan. ... We will show how we can raise the voices of our people. We will show where we stand." - The New York Times

The Waggle-Dancing Of Bees Has Inspired A New Means Of Robot Communication

"This pattern of movements can be used by one forager bee to tell other bees where a food source is located. ... An international team of researchers set out to see if a similar system could be used by robots and humans in locations ... where wireless networks aren't available." - New Atlas

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