Three for the New Year

The first days back after the New Year are always a mixed bag: we have the post holiday letdown mixed with the resolve and resolution for the upcoming months.

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There's also the flotsam and jetsam of the internet to sort through, to see what treasures may have washed up in the electronic tide.

Here are three items that washed up in the State of the Arts inlet;

A classical jig while you jog. Our colleagues over at Classical Minnesota Public Radio launch a new on-line series today of playlists to accompany everyday activities. Performance Today producer Suzanne Schaffer hits the ground running for 2012 with a playlist designed for joggers, with 40 minutes of music tailored to the highs of setting off (Aaron Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man "Definitely feeding Olympic dreams. I CAN do this..." ) to the lows of getting through that tough final mile Ludwig von Beethoven: Movement III from Symphony No. 5 "Tired. This music pushes you through!" Other playlists in the works: music for cooking, and for yoga.

A review of 2011 from a conductors point of view (with snark) Conductor Bill Eddins is Music Director of the Edmonton Symphony, but as a long time Minneapolis resident, and artistic director of the sadly defunct Prospect Park Players chamber ensemble, he's known as a man with strong views. He shares some of them in the Sticks and Drones blog, which he writes with Ron Spigelman, Music Director of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra in Missouri and principal Pops Conductor for the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. In his 2011 Report Card Eddins delivers a stinging report card for many of the nations top orchestras. His reviews are based on overall performance, melding both artistic and business operation. Interestingly he predicts upheaval at the Minnesota Orchestra, which just posted an operating loss.

And finally, A poetic flight of fancy. Electric Literature just released its latest Single Sentence Animation. Carmichael Lynch Creative Director Brock Davis' animation and music set Matt Sumell's words alight. It may not be the best 35 seconds of your day, but it could well be in the top 10.

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