In honor of Les Paul's birthday, Google created a playable guitar for its homepage on which you can record yourself! Mashable listed their favorite recordings from today, as if we needed further proof that no one actually works at their jobs: 1. Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi” is at the top of the heap, and not just because it’s Gaga. It’s a great rendition of a complicated song done by Leila Dossetto-Becker. 2. The Beatles’s “Hey Jude,” performed by Rosales. 3.Wanderchick brings us “Ode to Joy” in two parts: one and two. Serious … [Read more...]
Something to “like”
The English National Opera has released a trailer for Nico Muhly's upcoming opera, Two Boys. Unlike the unmitigated disaster that is the New York Phil's current The Cunning Little Vixen campaign (see previous blog post), the ENO's video is clever, teasing and actually meaningful. And I'll be damned: they're actually playing the composer's music in it! Now let's check in with Vix. Did I ever think the New York Philharmonic would send me a video with bras in it? No I did not. … [Read more...]
The un-cunning little marketing campaign
I should start by saying how thrilled I am that the New York Philharmonic is presenting Janáček's The Cunning Little Vixen at the end of this month. Go buy tickets. The opera is wonderful, and last year's Le Grand Macabre was a marvel; somehow, Awful Avery Fisher Hall was transformed into a Real Theater, and the performances--not just Eric's--were fantastic. And sure, I'm also obsessed with Fantastic Mr. Fox and woodland creatures in general. Today, the Philharmonic e mailed out the following to their list. It reads: Meet Vix. She’s … [Read more...]
Don’t stop believing
Alex Ross notes Die Walküre on the Glee season finale and expresses his hopes for next season: Happy happy kiddies, dancing in front of the big ol’ incest opera. … [Read more...]
Jeeves, Wooster and Sandow
Today at 2pm ET, you can watch ArtsJournal's own Greg Sandow debate with...wait for it...Stephen Fry! Why, I have no idea. How, I have no idea. But there it is, folks. Type of event: Debate When: Thu, 05/12/2011 - 19:00 Where The Cambridge Union Society In assocation with Vocal Futures. PROPOSITION: Kissy Sell Out - Kissy Sell Out is a DJ/Producer and Radio 1 Broadcaster. He has released one critically-acclaimed artist album "Youth" and his sophomore offering "Wild Romance' follows in May 2011. He has toured the globe both as a DJ … [Read more...]
A pitch for “A Pitch…”
My client David Lang wrote this article, "A Pitch for New Music"", for some newspaper that I think is called "The New York Times"? Something like that. Anyway. The Times has been running a series called The Score on the Opinionator blog, described as, "The Score features the writings of composers on their work and the issues involved in creating music in the 21st century, as the traditional notion of 'classical' continues to be reconsidered, revised and reimagined." Spurred by the Anthony Tommasini Top Ten Composers List of Destiny, David … [Read more...]
Personally
Time and time again, we read that the key to social media "success" is to be more personal. Whether or not that success can be defined remains up for debate, but we do know that readers want to hear from real people on social media. Here are two recent posts on the topic: The first is from MediaBistro, and details an experiment conducted by a professor. Will students enjoy her course more if they feel they "know" her from her Twitter account? Kirsten A. Johnson, an assistant professor at Elizabethtown College, was curious about how her … [Read more...]
Pick-a-little Talk-a-little
Today at noon ET, we have the second of our Spring for Music live chats, this time, with composer Steven Stucky. Here is his launch statement, pegged to his piece 'August 4, 1964' which will be performed with the Dallas Symphony:"How does a composer write a work about a failed President (Johnson) and a probable war criminal (McNamarra) without lapsing into propaganda? Does he have to check his personal opinions at the door? If a middle-class white composer writes music about the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, does he risk being … [Read more...]
Happy talky talky happy talk
Today at noon, Melinda Wagner, one of the Orpheus New Brandenburgs composers, will host a chat on behalf of Spring for Music, a festival I'm working on this year. Oh actually: this is double client-plugging (which somehow sounds dirty?), since I work for Orpheus, too. My shameless promoting does not mean you shouldn't join us for the chat, though! if you want to embed in your own blog, here's the information:<iframe src="http://www.coveritlive.com/index2.php/option=com_altcaster/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=b8e8b85b0c/height=550/width=570" … [Read more...]
You heard it here first: creativity is dead.
I was watching some Family Guy on Hulu last night after the tragically disappointing New York City Opera Stephen Schwartz concert thing (if Raúl Esparza bores me--me, who has Loved Him Forever--everyone's in trouble), and saw a preview for this Friends With Benefits movie. Didn't I see this movie this summer? Possibly kind of tipsy? As a joke for a friend's 30th birthday? Oh wait, yes I did. Were Natalie and Mila both just like, maybe this would be cute? Like wearing matching outfits to middle school?Anyway, just wanted to let you know about … [Read more...]
I might have gone with “Best,” but…
Available for the bargain price of $4.50 on Etsy: … [Read more...]
A voice at the end of the line
The New York Times reports that good old group sales still reign supreme on the Great White Way:If Facebooking Broadway is all the rage for shows, the real economic engine remains the sales agents wearing old-fashioned headsets and tapping through decades-old databases to pitch group buyers working with churches and synagogues, schools and businesses, and the "theater ladies" who have kept the Wednesday matinee in business since before Steve Jobs founded Apple....Take Group Sales Box Office, founded in 1960 and today one of the most profitable … [Read more...]
“…else the Sondheim people will want their money…”
#OperaPlot 2011 continues. … [Read more...]
Horror picture show
It struck me as odd, when I was walking through that annoying passageway between Port Authority and Times Square, that the revised La Cage Aux Folles posters were billing the show as "It's The Birdcage...on Broadway!" OK, sure, kind of, but it was a play, and then a movie, and then a musical, and then The Birdcage, and then two revivals, so this logic is kind of like when I told Jeffrey Kahane that he "looked just like" (his son) Gabriel Kahane when he played the piano. Well yes, but one came first. I was distracted, however, from this La Cage … [Read more...]