Society

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Sumi Jo banned from performing in China
If you live and work in the Asia-Pacific region you surely are familiar with THAAD. The acronym actually stands for “Terminal High Altitude Area Defense,” and represents an anti-ballistic missile system designed to destroy incoming ballistic missiles. The missile carries
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Still too hot to handle!
Daniel Auber: La muette de Portici!
The Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels hosted a rather special performance on 25 August 1830. William I, Prince of Orange and King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg was celebrating the 15th year of his reign, and
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Elphie has landed in Hamburg!
The project was delayed by 7 years, and overran its projected budget by 700 Million Euros! But finally, the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg—tenderly referred to as “Elphie” has landed! Placing a wave of glass on top of several refurbished old harbor
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Another Casualty of War
Alexandrov Ensemble
Flying is supposed to be the safest form of transportation; at least that’s what statistics will tell you. In very recent memory, a crash in South America has received lots of media coverage because it carried a first division Brazilian
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Ancient Sounding Timbers
Pianos by Stuart & Sons
If you’ve been reading my column on instrument makers over the years, you certainly must have noticed that I am highly critical of the huge number of mass-produced and bland pianos that are being churned out by established brands every
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Patriotism and Nationalism VII: Patriotic Songs but Not National Anthems
Many countries have songs that are patriotic but that are not their national anthems. Sometimes these are known as the ‘unofficial national anthems’ and sometimes they’re just more familiar.
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Patriotism and Nationalism VI: South Africa and Belgium
For many countries, their National Anthems are symbols of their place in the world. They may reflect many different aspects of a country, sometimes listing nature’s bountiful beauties, sometimes giving an encapsulated history of a country, or reflecting a particularly
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Patriotism and Nationalism V: Australia and Ireland
For many countries, their National Anthems are symbols of their place in the world. They may reflect many different aspects of a country, sometimes listing nature’s bountiful beauties, sometimes giving an encapsulated history of a country, or reflecting a particularly
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