In its capacity to unite a nation across generational boundaries, broadcast live music, freed from the trappings of stardom and commerce, had proved its worth. DR had fulfilled its responsibility to deliver not what it thinks we want more of – as social media does – but what we didn’t yet know was good for us. - The Guardian
The government says it is cancelling the VAT on books, one of the highest in the world, — despite the estimated loss of €44 million ($51.5 million) in tax revenue — to combat a growing “reading crisis.” Literacy statistics from the OECD indicate that one-quarter of Danish 15-year-olds cannot read and understand a simple text. - Euronews
The machinery of ordinalisation attends carefully to individuals rather than coarse classes or groups. By doing so, it appears to liberate people from the constraints of social affiliations and to judge them for their distinctive qualities and contributions. - Aeon
Notably, the researchers found that the ongoing debate about copyright in AI-generated music is one of the major reasons why some artists are creating datasets from their own music for AI to play with. - Music Business Worldwide
An exodus appears to be under way of Ph.D.s and faculty generally, who are leaving academia in the face of political, financial and enrollment crises. It’s a trend federal data and other sources show began even before Trump returned to the White House. - Hechinger Report
Michael Andor Brodeur: “Self-reflection on the matter leads me to believe that my allergy to concert-hall disruption is a direct product of my own anxieties, and the lengths I’ve gone to manage them in service of etiquette. … (Increasingly) I find my frustration sharing an armrest with an unlikely companion, compassion.” - The Washington Post (MSN)
A will that has been lost for more than 150 years and was at the centre of a bitter legal battle by William Shakespeare’s family over who owned the playwright’s final home has been unearthed in an unlabelled box at the National Archives. - The Guardian
This is not simply a disagreement over museum curation; it’s a dangerous and calculated attempt to whitewash our history, silence uncomfortable truths, and undermine the very institutions we trust to preserve and interpret our collective past. - The Contrarian
The 38-year-old native of Verona is currently chief conductor of the Tokyo Philharmonic and, as of the start of 2025, music director of Turin’s Teatro Regio. He will keep those jobs as he spends three months each season in Sydney and Melbourne starting in 2026. - Moto Perpetuo
Managing director Raphael Picciarelli: “We weren’t chasing hype for its own sake. We were trying to spark the feeling that draws people to Burning Man or the World Cup: the thrill of witnessing something unrepeatable. … We fell short on revenue, but we doubled our audience. Forty percent were first-timers.” - The New York Times
“The president's office announced that it has begun the process of ending the current contracts connected to the cathedral and will launch a further ‘forensic audit’ that may lead to the project being halted entirely. … Around $58 million ... has already been spent on the $400 million cathedral despite construction not starting.” - Dezeen
“An angry article on the White House website, headlined 'President Trump Is Right About the Smithsonian,’ lists a series of perceived offenses from museums in the capital, ranging from flying the Progress Pride flag alongside the Stars and Stripes to showing a stop-motion animation of Dr. Anthony Fauci.” - The Daily Beast
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), whose stated mission is the defense of free speech rights, made its bones as a leading voice against what it considered leftist political correctness on campus. Now FIRE is suing the Trump administration and pushing back on conservative overreach. - The New York Times
“The layoffs leave unclear the future of the performance genre, which is a subscription driver for the arts venue. … Notably, the dance package no longer includes the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, a reliable crowd-pleaser of past seasons.” - The Washington Post (MSN)
