BACKBallet brand adds darker shades of pointe shoes, as petition calls for change
Responding to an online petition that attracted over 140,000 signatures, Bloch ballet suppliers will be adding more varied shades to its selection of satin slippers, to ensure greater representation of people of colour.
A major ballet shoe supplier is finally making pointe shoes to match black and Asian skin tones.
Bloch, based in West London, announced it would be adding new skin tones to its selection following a Change.org petition calling for more representation for people of colour.
For a long time, the company has been urged to expand its range of skin tones to make ballet more inclusive. Until now, Bloch ballet suppliers have made pink satin pointe shoes.
The petition was started two years ago, and gained traction again this month as issues of racial inequality continue to dominate national conversation and action following the death of George Floyd.
Intendant des Pierre-Boulez-Saals verlängert
Der Intendant des Pierre-Boulez-Saals in Berlin, Ole Bækhøj, bleibt fünf weitere Jahre im Amt. Der dänische Kulturmanager habe seinen Vertrag bis September 2025 verlängert, teilten die Veranstalter am Mittwoch mit. Bækhøj leitet den von Architekt Frank Gehry entworfenen Kammermusiksaal in der Barenboim-Said-Akademie seit 2015. “Eines meiner Ziele ist es, die Intimität dieses außergewöhnlichen Saals in den kommenden Jahren noch stärker in die digitalen Medien zu transportieren”, sagte der Intendant.
In der kommenden Spielzeit sind mehr als 150 Veranstaltungen geplant. Im Mittelpunkt steht ein Konzertprojekt zum 500. Todestag von Josquin des Préz. Das britische Alte-Musik-Ensemble Tallis Scholars mit seinem Leiter Peter Philipps präsentiert an vier Tagen sämtliche Messen des franko-flämischen Komponisten.
Artistic Director of Pierre Boulez Hall extends contract
The artistic director of the Pierre Boulez Hall in Berlin, Ole Bækhøj, will remain in office for another five years. The Danish cultural manager extended his contract until September 2025, the organizers said on Wednesday. Bækhøj has been leading the chamber music hall in the Barenboim-Said Academy, designed by architect Frank Gehry, since 2015. “One of my goals is to bring the intimacy of this extraordinary hall even more into the digital media in the coming years,” said the director.
More than 150 events are planned for the coming season. The focus is on a concert project to mark the 500th anniversary of Josquin des Préz’s death. The British early music ensemble Tallis Scholars with its conductor Peter Philipps presents all of the Franco-Flemish composer’s masses over four days.
Davide Martello, qui avait joué à Paris après les attentats est à Minneapolis en hommage à George Floyd
Davide Martello délivre en musique des messages de paix et d’espoir. On l’a déjà vu débarquer, avec son piano sur une remorque tractée par sa voiture ou son mini-vélo, sur de nombreux lieux de drames et de conflits depuis 2013. À chaque fois, d’Istanbul à Kiev, en passant par Bucarest, Hambach ou Paris, après les attentats de Charlie Hebdo et du Bataclan, Davide Martello, alias Klavierkunst (l’art du piano), s’installe au piano en pleine rue pour délivrer en musique des messages de paix et d’espoir. Depuis la semaine dernière c’est à Minneapolis que le pianiste joue quelques heures chaque jour, à l’angle de Chicago Avenue et de la 38e rue, là où George Floyd est mort le 25 mai. David Martello raconte qu’il était venu en mars aux États-Unis pour donner un concert à Oklahoma City mais n’avait pu rentrer chez lui en Allemagne en raison de l’annulation des vols aériens internationaux imposée par la crise du coronavirus.
Davide Martello, who played in Paris after the bombings, is in Minneapolis in homage to George Floyd
Davide Martello delivers messages of peace and hope through music. We have already seen him disembark, with his piano on a trailer towed by his car or his mini-bike, on many places of drama and conflict since 2013. Each time, from Istanbul to Kiev, via Bucharest, Hambach or Paris, after the attacks on Charlie Hebdo and the Bataclan, Davide Martello, alias Klavierkunst (the art of the piano), settles at the piano in the street to deliver messages of peace and hope through music. Since last week it is in Minneapolis that the pianist has been playing for a few hours every day, at the corner of Chicago Avenue and 38th Street, where George Floyd died on May 25th. David Martello says he came to the United States in March to give a concert in Oklahoma City but was unable to return home to Germany due to the cancellation of international air flights imposed by the coronavirus crisis.
When Will It Be Safe to Sing Together Again?
Imagine the scene: You’re at church, belting out a hymn, and the sound is so joyful that you turn, smiling, to look around. You notice a spray of spit coming from the mouth of the person next to you: One particularly large droplet arcs toward the person in front, then lands, right on their neck.
Three months ago, you might have thought that moment was gross. Today, you’d probably find it frightening.
In the space of a few months, group singing has gone from being something life-affirming to a potential source of disease, even death. Outbreaks of the coronavirus have been linked with choir rehearsals and church services in Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, the United States, and, this month, South Korea.
Some countries have banned group singing as a result, and scientists are studying the risks. But with conflicting messages from the authorities worldwide, singers are left for now with little but anxiety.