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Paul Ganson, Who Saved Detroit’s Orchestra Hall, Dead At 79

The Detroit Symphony's assistant principal bassoonist from 1969-2004, he had been with the orchestra one year when he launched the Save Orchestra Hall campaign, which rescued from the wrecking ball the venue that the DSO had left in 1939 and ended up returning to in 1989. A memorial statement from the orchestra said, "Paul's extraordinary impact on the DSO...

Jorge Morel, Classical Guitarist And Composer, Dead At 89

" added a vast repertoire to his instrument and performed to packed concerts around the world. … In between classical concerts, Mr. Morel paid his bills by performing nightly at the New York jazz nightclub the Village Gate. At various times, he shared stages with pianist Erroll Garner, trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and even country guitarist Chet Atkins." - The...

Johnny Pacheco, Giant Of Latin Jazz And Salsa, Dead At 85

"Pacheco, a Juilliard-trained multi-instrumentalist who'd found success recording with his band, Pacheco y Su Charanga, sparked a musical revolution when, in 1964, he met Jerry Masucci and together, they founded Fania Records. The two started the label with $5,000, selling albums in Spanish Harlem from the trunks of their cars. Fania soon became known as the Latin Motown, home...

Rauschenberg, Twombly And Johns – A Great Art Love Triangle

Rauschenberg and Twombly were both southerners. Rauschenberg, who was quarter Cherokee, came from Texas, Twombly from the heart of the old Confederacy in Lexington, Virginia. The passion of their relationship is beautifully preserved in black and white photographs that Rauschenberg took on a visit to Rome in 1952. - The Guardian

Rupert Neve, ‘The Man Who Made The Recording Console,’ 94

The Grammy-winning architect of modern music "is best known for designing and producing microphone preamplifiers, equalizers, compressors and mixing consoles that are sought after in the industry. His designs are staples everywhere from large production facilities to home studios, and have even been reproduced as computer plug-ins to become more accessible for all music lovers and creators." - Variety

Disneyland Artist And ‘Master Illustrator’ Charles Boyer, 86

Boyer signed on with Disney as a sketch artist in 1960 - and never left. "Boyer was made a Disney Legend in 2005, the equivalent of membership in the company’s Hall of Fame, with a window on Main Street in his name. Not bad for someone who put himself through Chouinard Art Institute as a janitor on a 'working...

Teresa Burga, Groundbreaking Peruvian Conceptual Artist, 85

Burga's best-known work, 1981's Perfil de la mujer Peruana, confused many people in its day. She and a psychotherapist friend "interviewed 290 middle-class women between the ages of 25 and 29 in Lima to obtain statistics on their political leanings, their bodies, and their identities. The presentation of their findings took the form of drawings and diagrams, as well...

Legendary Casting Director Lynn Stalmaster Has Died At 93

You know his work even if you don't know of the man. "Stalmaster’s accomplishments are too numerous to list exhaustively, but among them: He became the first casting director to receive an honorary Oscar in 2016; he was the first casting director to receive a solo title card in a film’s credits, for The Thomas Crown Affair (1968); he...

What The ‘To All The Boys’ Trilogy Has Meant For Its Star

Lana Condor on the To All the Boys I've Loved Before trilogy author Jenny Han: "When we first were talking years ago, she said, 'I just want you as Lana and as a young Asian-American girl to have the same opportunities that Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss would have or Kristen Stewart as Bella from Twilight.' And that was before...

Brenda Ballin, Longtime And Well Loved Guide At The Met, 91

Ballin started volunteering as a docent in the 1970s. "Whatever lucky group she had in tow was pretty much guaranteed a good show. Along with an extensive knowledge of the artworks, she contributed sharp opinions and a wicked sense of humor to the proceedings, making a walk through the American Wing or a 'highlights of the museum' tour a...

Getting Behind The Real Tom Stoppard

Sir Tom occasionally shades into Saint Tom, thanks to a notably ample collection of friends who remark on his generosity and kindness. He remembers birthdays, he lends money when others are in need, his wit always beguiles. He is an unstoppable correspondent, keeping in touch with everyone, including long-ago landladies, and for 50 years he wrote once or twice...

Whatever Became Of Shelley Duvall? This.

A sting of Robert Altman films in the 1970s made her into a major movie star with a Best Actress win at Cannes. Then came Kubrick's The Shining, a physically and emotionally grueling film shoot leading to a performance that strikes viewers as either brilliant or grotesque. She spent the '80s and early '90s producing children's television with marquee...

Jazz Pianist Chick Corea, 79

"Since the 1960s, Mr. Corea had been a prolific and dynamic force in music, building on his early training in classical music, Latin jazz and traditional jazz to build an original style that freely crossed musical boundaries. During a six-decade career, he won 23 Grammy Awards, more than any other jazz performer." - The Washington Post

Robert L. Herbert. Who Changed The Way We Look At Impressionism, Dead At 91

"When Professor Herbert began delving into Impressionism, the field was threatened by a kind of anemic gentility, arid formalism and French literary theory. His method, by contrast, was to locate works of art within a matrix of social and biographic details, while being careful not to reduce them to the politics of their day, or of ours." - The...

When Keith Urban And Nicole Kidman Went To The Opera (The Police Were Called)

It started with a standing ovation. "At this point, allegedly, the gentleman swatted Academy award-winning Kidman with his program, prompting Urban to accuse the man of assaulting his wife. Quick as a flash, Urban summoned his burly security to escort the couple and Kidman’s mum out of the audience, while Opera House security were sent in to retrieve the...

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