I DON'T

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 31st 2008 at 6:52

This week in the Tucson Weekly I review a likeable production of an unlikable show ...

MIDORI GOES TO SCHOOL

From the desk of James Reel on Wednesday, July 30th 2008 at 8:41

All right, now we’re getting caught up with my contributions to Strings magazine. The current issue contains my cover feature on Midori’s ambitious efforts as a music educator ...

FRIENDS

From the desk of James Reel on Friday, July 25th 2008 at 9:44

Although some Tucson theater people would surely like to see me drawn and quartered, I am on friendly terms with several local actors, writers and directors. I try not to get into true friendships with them, unless I knew them before I got into the theater-criticism racket, because that could lead to all sorts of conflict of interest issues, real or perceived ...

THE ART OF ALMQUIST

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 24th 2008 at 7:51

In the latest Tucson Weekly I offer the lowdown on Art Almquist, who is training actors and activists through the theater program at Tucson Magnet High School ...

UNASKED QUESTIONS (ANOTHER IN A SERIES)

From the desk of James Reel on Wednesday, July 23rd 2008 at 7:32

Yesterday, UApresents issued a press release crowing that the campus impresario has ended the fiscal year about $90,000 ahead and with more than $1 million in advance ticket sales for next season ...

THE OTHER AMADEUS

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, July 22nd 2008 at 7:52

We’re almost caught up with links to my articles for Strings magazine that appeared during the blogging hiatus. A couple of issues back, I wrote a piece on the string music of a very interesting figure ...

BEER TASTE ON A CHAMPAGNE BUDGET

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, July 21st 2008 at 7:24

Former singer and current opera marketer Rich Russell offers a nice metaphor linking orchestral programming to the beer selection at his local bar ...

LIKE NIGHT AND DAY

From the desk of James Reel on Friday, July 18th 2008 at 8:47

I’m teaching a four-session course on the history of the American musical theater for the Arizona Senior Academy this month, and boy, did I get lucky with my content this past Wednesday ...

OXYMORON: GOOD ENGLISH FOOD

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 17th 2008 at 8:11

Two plays and a restaurant fall under my critical scrutiny in this week’s Tucson Weekly. Unfortunately, “fall” is the operative word in the restaurant review ...

WORK-AVOIDANCE PROJECT

From the desk of James Reel on Wednesday, July 16th 2008 at 7:25

Via the Face of the Future photo transformer, here’s what I’d look like as painted by Modigliani and El Greco ...

PEARLMAN MAKES IT TO THE END

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, July 15th 2008 at 7:24

A very short review I wrote for Strings magazine:

Handel: Concerti Grossi, Op. 6 Nos. 7-12. Martin Pearlman conducting Boston Baroque (Telarc 80688) ...

CRITICISM, POP AND CLASSICAL

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, July 14th 2008 at 10:17

Greg Sandow is re-opening a conversation about why pop-music criticism can seem more engaging, and more engaged, than classical criticism ...

BIO FEEDBACK

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 10th 2008 at 8:13

My colleague Robert Rappaport blogs about his latest assignment, writing his own bio for our Web site ...

MORE ON CRITICISM

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 10th 2008 at 8:12

Violist-blogger Charles Noble provides some interesting statistics linking newspaper and orchestral demographics, and critic Justin Davidson, one of the few who does still have a job in the mainstream media, offers a solution to the decline in professional arts criticism in American communities ...

DAVINCI PLAYERS

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 10th 2008 at 8:11

My contribution to the Tucson Weekly this weekend is a look at the Da Vinci Players ...

WHY I NEED A BLOGROLL

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, July 8th 2008 at 7:05

When Arizona Public Media switched to this new blog platform, my old blogroll, with links to other sites of consistent interest, went away. I'm sure our tech guys will eventually get around to telling me how I can reinstate it, but for now I'll just have to be more conscientious about linking to specific items I run across. For starters ...

MUSIC ED AND ORCHESTRAL AUDIENCES

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, July 7th 2008 at 8:02

More comments are rolling in following my column detailing why I’m no longer a Tucson Symphony season subscriber. Here’s a missive from a friend; I’ll quote her anonymously, since I haven’t gotten clearance to reveal her identity.

THE ENEMY WITHIN

From the desk of James Reel on Monday, July 7th 2008 at 7:15

Martin Bernheimer, in the Financial Times, assesses the peril to professional arts critics in American newspapers. Much of what he writes is spot-on, if not really news at this late date. But what’s stirring up dissent online is his contention that “A primary cause of our imminent extinction must be the Internet. ... On the Web, anyone can impersonate an expert. Anyone can blog. Credentials don’t count. All views are equal. Some sort of criticism may survive the American media revolution, but professional criticism may not.”

NOT A SOCIAL DUTY

From the desk of James Reel on Friday, July 4th 2008 at 12:48

Several people have been e-mailing and even calling me to comment, mostly positively, on my column about deserting the Tucson Symphony. Here are some pertinent remarks from a former professor at one of America's major music schools, quoted anonymously because without permission.

DEFECTION REJECTION

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 3rd 2008 at 7:50

And already a response to my TSO defection from a faithful KUAT listener and TSO subscriber, with an important point to make

DEFECTOR

From the desk of James Reel on Thursday, July 3rd 2008 at 7:40

In the latest Tucson Weekly, I announce my retirement from the Tucson Symphony Orchestra audience.

ONE CELLIST, ONE VIOLINIST, ONE WILD MAN

From the desk of James Reel on Wednesday, July 2nd 2008 at 8:51

In my continuing effort to catch you up on my contributions to Strings magazine, here are links my contributions to the March issue.

EAR TO THE BOOKS

From the desk of James Reel on Tuesday, July 1st 2008 at 7:50

Daily newspapers have been reducing or eliminating their book-review sections during the past year or so (they've spent a decade trying to appeal to non-readers, so why waste space covering reading?), but NPR is expanding its book reporting, especially online.