Sotheby's Rules The Canadian Auction Roost "Sotheby's Canada returned to the top of the heap in 2003 as the country's premiere live auctioneer of fine Canadian art, grossing a total of almost $11-million from sales it held in May and November in Toronto. In recent years the company, which has run a Canadian operation for more than 30 years, has ceded its pre-eminence to the other two big players in the fine-art resale market, Toronto's Joyner Waddington's Auctioneers and Appraisers and Vancouver-based Heffel Fine Art... Sotheby's return to form flows out of the decision by its New York parent in early 2001 to bring two high-powered Canadians into its Toronto office." The Globe & Mail (Canada) 01/02/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 6:26 am
May Auld Mismanagement Be Forgot... The San Antonio Symphony hasn't performed in eight months, and despite plans to regroup in fall 2004, some observers aren't sure that it will ever perform again. But if the SAS doesn't make it back from the brink, it clearly won't be for lack of effort: on New Year's Eve, the orchestra's musicians, music director, and audience reunited for a special benefit concert designed to provide some financial relief for the musicians, who won't be paid again until September. The concert was a success, but more than 20 SAS musicians have moved on to other cities and other jobs since the shutdown, which doesn't bode well for the future. San Antonio Express-News 01/02/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 5:43 am
Lebrecht: The Sky Is Falling, And I Mean It This Time Norman Lebrecht has been proclaiming the death of classical music for more than a decade, and now, he is confidently predicting that 2004 will be the last year of the classical recording industry's existence as a distinctive branch of the music business. Classical records have become a niche market, says Lebrecht, and haven't even begun to utilize the new technologies available to them. Worse yet, the labels themselves have abandoned any effort to invest in new talent for more than a paltry few albums, thus making it impossible for emerging musicians to develop an international following. La Scena Musicale 12/31/03
Posted: 01/02/2004 5:30 am
Critics Are Not Cheerleaders "If patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels, boosterism is the first refuge of the second-rate." So says Cleveland arts critic John Kappes, who is getting more than a little sick of his city's provincial fear of responsible critical writing. Most of the letters he gets sing the same tune: "There isn't enough criticism. No, we mean there's too much criticism. And besides, we're sure they'd like it in New York." Real cities with a truly distinctive cultural scene do not give a flip what New York likes, says Kappes, unless the city is New York, and furthermore, they understand that critics are playing a role in the artistic process, and that their role should not require the use of pom-poms and human pyramids. The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) 01/02/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 5:54 am
Promises, Promises "Britons want to be more cultured and attend more arts events next year, a survey suggests. About 90% of the 1,000 respondents said they would aim to see more theatre, opera and exhibitions in 2004. Only one in 10 went to the ballet or opera in 2003, despite research suggesting nearly 70% of UK citizens think they are 'cultured'." The high cost of tickets and the lack of enough spare time seem to be the major obstacles keeping more Britons from experiencing their local arts scene. BBC 12/30/03
Posted: 01/02/2004 5:20 am
Yevgeny Kissin, Adult Pianist Yevgeny Kissin was all of 12 years old when he was propelled into the international spotlight, and anointed The Next Great Pianist. That's a lot of pressure for a pre-teen, and Kissin now admits that he had very little idea of how to handle it. "I've eventually learned how to behave properly when approached by musical fans, but I have to admit that just 10 years ago I was absurdly anti-social in this respect." Still, Kissin has long since reached that difficult moment in the career of any former child prodigy, when he is expected to somehow morph into a mature interpreter of art, without losing any of the youthful vigor that made him famous. The Guardian (UK) 01/02/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 6:30 am
Cabaret To Close The Broadway revival of Cabaret, which is still playing to full houses, is closing this week to make way for Stephen Sondheim's edgy musical, Assassins. "The second longest-running revival in the history of Broadway musicals ends its storied run — in this its third incarnation — after 2,378 performances and nearly six years." The show was a favorite with New York critics, with the current revival described as "much darker, deeper and far sexier than either of its predecessors." New York Daily News 01/02/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 6:43 am
Understudy Heaven Broadway's current troubles may be bad news for the moneymen bankrolling the lavish productions, but it's turning out to be great news for understudies, the unsung actors who stand at the ready, should the stars of the show be suddenly stricken and unable to perform. Broadway is, of course, crawling with big-name Hollywood talent at the moment, but it turns out that big-name Hollywood talent is tough to keep around when the box office is suffering, and more than a few understudies have been unexpectedly catapulted into leading roles. The Christian Science Monitor (Boston) 01/02/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 6:14 am
Cut! Print! NEXT! It's a game, but it's a cinematic challenge, as well: New York City Midnight Moviemaking Madness, held last October, challenges competing teams to "write, cast, shoot, score, and edit an entire movie" in 24 hours. With deadlines like that, you might think that nothing of real artistic quality could emerge from all the scrambling, and, as a matter of fact, you'd be right. Wired 01/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 5:23 am
Hollywood Gets Tough On Piracy The movie industry, taking a cue from the success of the music industry's hardline efforts to curb illegal copying and distribution, is lobbying for tougher laws against videotaping of films inside of movie theaters. "Offenders caught during the latest crackdown in Ohio could face six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. The penalty in Michigan, by contrast, is up to five years in jail and a $250,000 fine." BBC 01/02/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 5:15 am
The Timelessness of Balanchine Perhaps more than any other art form, dance is subject to the constantly changing tastes of the public, and a choreographer celebrated as a forward-thinking genius in one decade can see his work become dated and clichèd only a few years later. So the fact that the works of George Balanchine can still inspire the same visceral reactions today as they did nearly a century ago is a remarkable thing. Balanchine's centennial is coming up this month, and New York's dance community will be showcasing his work all year. The New York Times 01/02/04
Posted: 01/02/2004 6:01 am
