SACD REVIEW: PRATUM INTEGRUM ORCHESTRA PLAYS TELEMANN

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, November 2nd 2009 at 9:11

I’ve been hanging on to a small batch of SACDs on the Caro Mitis label for something like two years, intending but never getting around to writing reviews for this blog. Let me begin to rectify that, starting with two very attractive Telemann discs ...

IS IT LIVE OR IS IT MEMOREX?

From the desk of James Reel on Friday, October 30th 2009 at 8:12

The main reason I’ve hardly been blogging during the past few months is that I’m just too busy with other duties around here. At the beginning of summer, Arizona Public Media—suffering from the same budget crunch as the rest of the University of Arizona—had to lay off a few employees, including KUAT-FM’s afternoon announcer and its music director. Since the goal was to save money, those people’s work had to be taken on by employees who were already salaried, meaning, primarily, Bill Luckhardt and me ...

INTERVIEW WITH THE VIOL MASTER

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, October 26th 2009 at 7:19

In case you missed my announcement in August, I’ve withdrawn from the Tucson Weekly. As I wrote in that column, “I’ve been contributing to the Weekly for 10 years, during much of which I’ve reviewed one to three plays in almost every issue, and after all this time, I want my weekends back.” It turns out that plenty of other diversions have filled my anticipated weekend vacuum, so I have yet to enjoy all the cocoon time I’d anticipated. Besides which, I’m still writing for a couple of magazines ...

FTC BACKPEDALS

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, October 20th 2009 at 8:37

In other news, the Federal Trade Commission is now telling book bloggers (and presumably CD reviewers) not to worry about its new rules on freebies and disclosure. It would be nice if the agency could get its story straight.

SECRETS FROM MEMBERSHIP CENTRAL

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, October 20th 2009 at 8:36

As you surely know by now, we’ve thrown ourselves into our autumn membership campaign. Coincidentally, last week Slate repeated an article in which June Thomas, after listening to campaigns on her New York City station, explained public radio's 10 most effective fundraising strategies. Read the article, listen to what we do, compare and contrast. And don’t forget to pledge.

BEYOND PREACHING TO THE CHOIR

From the desk of James Reel on Wednesday, October 14th 2009 at 9:13

We had a staff meeting yesterday at which senior staffers outlined Arizona Public Media’s growing use of social networking media. It’s great that we’re going to make a bigger push with Twitter and blogging and Facebook and such, but I’m not sure that some of us completely understand its potential ...

I HAVE RETURNED AGAIN

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, October 8th 2009 at 8:03

A long, long time ago I announced that I’d soon be resuming blogging. Obviously, I was being too optimistic ...

MEN (AND WOMEN) IN TIGHTS

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 2nd 2009 at 8:09

In the latest Tucson Weekly, I review the current Gaslight Theatre production ...

NO TORTURE AT NPR

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, June 30th 2009 at 7:56

Alicia Shepard, National Public Radio’s apologist—er, ombudsman—wrote a column defending the news operation’s cowardly refusal to apply the word “torture” to the much-reviled interrogation practices authorized by the Bush administration. Salon.com contributor Glenn Greenwald wrote a column denouncing the NPR practice and Shepard’s defense of it, then invited her for an interview in which she could explain her position and NPR’s. Shepard cowers behind her desk, and refuses to participate in an interview—which is what usually happens when someone knows her position is indefensible. NPR continues to look like just another neocon mouthpiece, like most of the rest of the mainstream media, including the Washington Post and New York Times, let alone the usual suspects like the Wall Street Journal. The notion that NPR has a liberal bias is simply false, and this is further evidence. Start reading here, and follow the links.

SLABS OF COMEDY AND BEEF

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, June 25th 2009 at 8:19

Well, I’m sorry to get back into the blog with the sort of self-promoting post I hate to see from other bloggers, but at least this is really about things out in the community, not just me. I am referring to my contributions to the Tucson Weekly...

WATCH THIS SPACE

From the desk of James Reel on Wednesday, June 24th 2009 at 7:30

First I was waiting for the Web guys to contrive a way for me to re-establish the blogroll, which fell by the wayside when we switched to this "improved" system. Then I was busy with various projects related to KUAT and otherwise. Now I'm about ready to resume blogging, but not quite yet. I expect that tomorrow the stream of brilliant apercus will resume, complete with standing links to the outside world. Stand by.

MAD GENIUSES

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, April 16th 2009 at 8:25

Yes, I know I’ve been an inconstant blogger recently. I’ve been busy cranking out articles, mainly for Strings magazine, but also for the Tucson Weekly. Here’s the beginning of my latest contribution to the local alternative rag ...

THREE ANGELS AND ONE WHO ISN'T

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, April 9th 2009 at 8:29

My theater review in the latest Tucson Weekly begins with an excuse ...

MASS UNAPPEAL

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, April 7th 2009 at 7:33

Douglas McLennan’s recent blog post on the failings of CNN and other cable news purveyors leads to a comment on where newspapers have gone wrong ...

HANK CINQ

From the desk of James Reel on Friday, April 3rd 2009 at 10:09

Last night I attended Arizona Theatre Company’s presentation of The Acting Company/Guthrie Theatre’s joint touring production of Shakespeare’s King Henry V. I’m not reviewing it for the Weekly, because it will be long gone by the time the review would hit the street, and I’m disinclined to blog a full review. But I do want to call your attention to it; it’s a good production, and I don’t think tickets are selling very well ...

LATE THEATER, GOOD CHINESE

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, April 2nd 2009 at 8:29

The Tucson Weekly has a brand new site design, and here’s your incentive to take a look at it: content provided by little old me ...

MIDDLEBROW ADVOCACY

From the desk of James Reel on Wednesday, April 1st 2009 at 8:47

Greg Sandow expresses my sentiments exactly ...

CONCERTO GROSSO CORNUCOPIA

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, March 31st 2009 at 10:22

Here are a couple of Handel concerto grosso reviews I wrote for two different publications a few months ago ...

PLEDGE TO NPR?

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, March 30th 2009 at 7:24

Just as our week-long membership drive gets underway at KUAT-FM, we get news that we may have future fundraising competition from NPR ...

PHOENIX SYMPHONY DISCONTENT

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, March 26th 2009 at 9:33

There’s big trouble brewing in an orchestra to our north ...

IMMORTAL LONGINGS

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, March 26th 2009 at 9:31

Here’s a review of a play in which I get to bring in a reference to music and dancing, too ...

GOOD NEWS/BAD NEWS

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, March 24th 2009 at 8:31

The Washington Post reports good news about National Public Radio’s growing audience, but bad news about its dwindling budget ...

THE BOO BOX

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, March 23rd 2009 at 10:26

In the Wall Street Journal, Terry Teachout offers this proposal for audiences wishing to express themselves more assertively in this era of obligatory standing ovations ...

TICKETMASTER: SORDID DETAILS

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, March 23rd 2009 at 10:23

Douglas McLennan has looked into the gaping maw of Ticketmaster and its proposed merger with another company, and reports what he has found here. This is what interests me the most ...

DIRTY FINGERS

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, March 19th 2009 at 8:03

My Arizona Public Media colleague Robert Rappaport, one of the few people I know who still dirties his hands with newspapers instead of just browsing news Web sites, has an amusing blog entry showing how desperate the Arizona Daily Star is to get its product into the hands of people like Robert. But aren’t house ads that promote the newspaper merely preaching to the converted?

Meanwhile, National Public Radio personnel will no longer sully their fingers with other news organizations’ ink ...