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…a sideways glance at London's classical, jazz and world music scenes
Browsing All Posts filed under »Opinion«
Preview: Amira & Bojan Z @ Arts Depot (LJF)
I was in Sarajevo during the summer, attending Bascarsija Nights, the July-long, government-funded arts festival (named after the city’s famous Turkish quarter) in the Bosnian capital. You can read about my trip in the new edition, #88, of Songlines magazine. While there I attended a brilliant evening of Sevdah music, Bosnia’s national song, performed by […]
Opinion: Manifesto for a new Mercury Music Prize
September 15, 2012 by Culture Capital
This article was written for the Voices section of the Independent website. I am not a betting man but I know the difference between 4/1 and 10/1. It is the gap between Plan B, favourite to take the 2012 Mercury Music Prize, and the relative obscurity of the nominated artists languishing at the bottom of […]
Opinion: Confused by the Cultural Olympiad? Here’s why you should take notice
June 28, 2012 by Culture Capital
Cultural Olympiad: what does it even mean? Much of the press coverage of the arty side of the 2012 Olympics – culminating at the moment with the London 2012 Festival – has involved head-scratching about what the hell it actually is. In Birmingham for its ‘launch’ last Thursday, Channel 4 News’ culture editor Matthew Cain stuck the […]
Opinion: The quiet evolution of live classical music
February 23, 2012 by Culture Capital
This post was originally written for the Independent blogs. London’s classical music scene is changing before our eyes. Over the last five to ten years a whole host of ambitious start-ups have emerged across the capital. Ensembles like the Aurora Orchestra and the London Contemporary Orchestra (LCO) are stuffed with talented young players and perform […]
Opinion: Mind the culture gap
January 23, 2012 by Culture Capital
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This article was written for Independent blogs. Standing at the bus stop the other day, I bumped into an acquaintance who had been working outside London for the last few years. When I asked how he liked living in Bristol, and then Liverpool, he reeled off a list of positives before saying, “but culturally, there […]
Opinion: Seasonal music makes a comeback
December 17, 2011 by Culture Capital
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A version of this blog piece was originally written for the Independent. This week on the Today programme, two well known names in classical music – Observer critic Fiona Maddocks and impresario Raymond Gubbay – discussed an article in The Economist that highlighted the resurgence of carol singing at Christmas. Their observations are spot on. Whether it is […]
Opinion: Jazz and the Mercury Prize
August 10, 2011 by Culture Capital
With a month to go until the winner of the 2011 Mercury Prize is announced, at least one shortlisted artist could be forgiven for not bothering to prepare a victory speech. Since its founding as an antidote to the commercialism of the Brits in 1992, the Mercury Prize has never been won by a jazz, […]
Opinion: BP and the National Portrait Gallery – where do you draw the line?
June 15, 2011 by Culture Capital
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As has been widely reported, a group of climate activists conducted a noisy protest outside the National Portrait Gallery yesterday. They were angry that BP, the bogeyman of an already unpopular industry, was the named sponsor for the gallery’s Portrait Award. The relationship between big (and bad) corporations with the arts frequently results in these […]
Opinion: International Women’s Day 100th anniversary
March 8, 2011 by Catherine Marks
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Today is the 100th International Women’s Day – celebrating the achievements of women across the world – and there are some fantastic bits and pieces going on in London as part of it. Here’s a taster of a couple of music events that should be great: International Women’s Day 100th Anniversary Concert, Cadogan Hall, Friday […]
Opinion: art and commerce – never the twain shall meet
February 21, 2011 by Culture Capital
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In the Economist this week, the columnist Schumpeter turned his/her focus to the relationship between business and the arts. Perhaps surprisingly for a business columnist at the uber-capitalists’ weekly, the article dealt with what the former can learn from the latter. Business, said Schumpeter, can learn from the presentation and selling acumen of visual artists […]
October 14, 2012 by Culture Capital
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