Philip Glass‘s 88th Birthday today – 88 Years 88 Keys – He’s honored tonight in Vancouver at the Vancouver Opera with a piano recital featuring the Opera’s Associate Conductor and Chorus Director, Leslie Dala, performing Philip Glass’s Piano Etudes, Book 2 in its entirety.
The Etudes (both Book 1 and Book 2) will be performed at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill this May with a subsequent European tour in the summer.
Closer to home, there’s the 38th Annual Benefit Concert For Tibet House in New York, March 3rd at Carnegie Hall (organized by Philip and Laurie Anderson). More on that anon.
March 11 – Voice For The Voiceless sees publication
Fabulous news – Raymond Foye reports this week on a newly-discovered notebook of John Wieners – “It runs 360 pages and is absolutely full of brilliant poems and thoughts and diary entries. It was begun while incarcerated in Metropolitan State Hospital for the Mentally Ill (as it was called) in Waltham, Mass. It begins on March 16, 1961 (St Patrick’s Day) and ends on October 31, 1961–Halloween. In the back pages are addresses of his friends, Gerrit Lansing, Nemi Frost, Wallace Berman, Cid Corman, Ray Johnson, Diane Di Prima, Elvin Jones (surprisingly), and others.’
and – “Yes, it will be published!
So no Oscar for Daniel Craig. As Kyle Buchanan noted in The New York Times – “Perhaps the surreal, sexually charged Queer was just too challenging for awards season”
More Queer reviews on Simon Warner’s Rock and The Beat Generation – “divergent – and – intriguing” reviews. One from David S Wills and one from C.J. Thorpe-Tracey
& interesting revelations about the legendary 1965 International Poetry Incarnation (Leon Horton interviews Dan Richter) on the same forum:
LH: Adrian Mitchell read ‘To Whom It May Concern (Tell Me Lies about Vietnam‘, considered to be the surprise hit of the event. Who do you think gave the best reading?
DR: Adrian’s reading was great, well delivered, and very timely, but Allen was, for me, the high point of the evening…
& finally. remembering too, and mourning the loss of, two great musicians (and extraordinary human beings)
– the late great Garth Hudson
– see his New York Times obituary – here
Here’s Brian Graham‘s snap of him and Allen together in 1987 at Bearsville Studio (Studio B) – Garth was among those that dropped by during Hal Willner‘s inspiring The Lion For Real recording.
and (real close to home this one) – Marianne Faithfull
– deeply saddened to report on the passing of our dear friend (Allen’s dear friend) Marianne Faithfull – her death was announced yesterday, aged 78 – more on that – here
Fab. Thank you. Xx