{"id":725,"date":"2016-01-31T11:03:49","date_gmt":"2016-01-31T19:03:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/?p=725"},"modified":"2016-02-02T11:48:48","modified_gmt":"2016-02-02T19:48:48","slug":"editorselect-the-weeks-top-arts-and-culture-stories-01-31-16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/2016\/01\/editorselect-the-weeks-top-arts-and-culture-stories-01-31-16.html","title":{"rendered":"@AJDoug’s Top Arts and Culture Stories of the Week for 01.31.16"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"1oBqYR16\"<\/a>It’s the week before the American primary season gets real with voting in Iowa on Monday and I’m sure you’ve all checked out the candidates’ positions on arts and culture, right? If so, let me know – I went looking this week and found… nothing.<\/p>\n

But here here are some highlights from the 172 stories we did find:<\/p>\n

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    1. The New York Philharmonic Chooses a New Music Director and the Reaction is…
      \n<\/strong>He’s\u00a0      Jaap van Zweden<\/a>, 55, a Dutch conductor currently music director of the Dallas Symphony. New York Times music critic Anthony Tommasini called the choice\u00a0“safe” but “feisty<\/a>.” Anne Midgette in the Washington Post\u00a0wrote<\/a>: “What the New York Philharmonic more urgently lacked under Gilbert was a dynamic, charismatic figure able to galvanize excitement around the orchestra\u2019s concerts. It\u2019s not clear that van Zweden fully offers that.\u201d\u00a0Alex Ross was also conflicted<\/a>: “Bernstein aside, the players\u00a0have preferred terse, to-the-point types. This prejudice rules out more than a few significant figures. From the limited ranks of the available, the willing, the tolerated, and the marketable, van Zweden has emerged the victor.” Meanwhile, the\u00a0Dallas Morning News notes<\/a>\u00a0that van Zweden hugely elevated the playing of the Dallas Symphony in his time there.
      \n<\/span>In other major appointments this week:<\/strong>      The Art Institute of Chicago<\/a>\u00a0chooses a new director, as does the\u00a0<\/span>Art Gallery of Ontario<\/a><\/li>\n
    2. This Week in “What Do Audiences Want”?
      \n<\/strong>      For the first time, old recordings outsold new releases in 2015<\/a><\/strong>.\u00a0This despite the massive popularity of Adele’s new album late in the year. When all of recorded music is available on demand anywhere, it’s not surprising that the back catalogue becomes more valuable.
      \n<\/span>–\u00a0<\/span>      The audience will not be taken for granted by an algorithm<\/a><\/strong>. In 2004\u00a0Ryan Kavanaugh took Hollywood by storm by\u00a0coming up with a way to predict audience taste with\u00a0math. It didn’t turn out so well.
      \n<\/span>–\u00a0<\/span>      Why Isn\u2019t Jazz More Popular? Could It Be The Jazz Police?<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0Trying to make this music fit into a neat little box just can\u2019t happen. And that\u2019s tough for some people. We crave definitions for our art, and when we can\u2019t describe or compare it, many get frustrated. Hence, the Jazz Police.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
    3. So You Want To Be Creative. Here’s What We Know So Far
      \n<\/strong>–\u00a0      Here are the absolute must-haves:<\/a><\/strong> \u201cCreative individuals suffer, and there are myriad problems to be solved. Unless my observational skills are severely lacking, I don\u2019t know a single individual who would say that living a productive and happy life is easy.\u201d
      \n<\/span>–\u00a0      Here’s how they trick us to try to be creative at work:<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cYou can charge for delivering happiness only if you can measure it.\u201d
      \n<\/span>–\u00a0      Collaboration hugely overrated:<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0If you don\u2019t collaborate on work, you\u2019re old-fashioned. But a backlash is developing as research finds that workers may produce lower quality work.
      \n<\/span>–\u00a0      Our share-all world is taking its toll on teachers:<\/a><\/strong> \u201cA few studies suggest that introverted teachers\u2014especially those who may have falsely envisioned teaching as a career involving calm lectures, one-on-one interactions, and grading papers quietly with a cup of tea\u2014are at risk of burning out.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
    4. Some Things We’re Figuring Out About Reading and Writing
      \n<\/strong>–\u00a0      Our love of great first sentences is a recent phenomenon. <\/a><\/strong>\u201cThe beloved first sentence is the product of dramatic changes one hundred and fifty years into the novel\u2019s history.
      \n<\/span>–\u00a0      Computer Analysis Of Bestselling Books Reveal What Works.<\/a><\/strong> So can computers show you how to write a bestseller?
      \n<\/span>–\u00a0<\/span>      Scientists looked at great literature and found fractals.<\/strong> <\/a>\u201cStatistical analysis carried out at the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences reveal that\u00a0a type of narrative turns out to be multifractal. That is, fractals of fractals are created.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
    5. This Week in Diversity
      \n<\/strong>–\u00a0      Surprise! (Maybe Not)<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0It turns out New York’s arts community isn’t nearly so diverse as the city itself.
      \n<\/span>–\u00a0      Diversity of Income:<\/a><\/strong> It’s very difficult to say whether artists are doing better economically than they were doing 15 years ago. There are more artists and many are making a living. But incomes are more unstable, and it’s frustrating trying to make sense of the data.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/ol>\n

      JUST FOR FUN<\/strong><\/p>\n