92Y Video: Elektra Records: A Sixtieth Birthday Celebration With Jac Holzman And Lenny Kaye
On October 14, Elektra Records founder Jac Holzman talked with label historian (and Patti Smith Group guitarist) Lenny Kaye.
Elektra Records was started in 1950 by a then 19-year-old named Jac Holzman and grew to be one of the most revered labels in the history of modern music. That history was showcased in the opening video montage (seen above) that contains dozens and dozens of clips, including Jean Ritchie, Pete Seeger, Josh White, Fred Neil, Theodore Bikel, The Limeliters, Tom Paxton, Phil Ochs, Judy Collins, The Doors, Nonesuch Explorer Series, Tim Buckley, Love, Incredible String Band, MC 5, Bread, Carly Simon, Harry Chapin, Freddie Mercury, Queen, Jackson Browne, Natalie Merchant and Bruno Mars.
The talk that followed is chock full of amazing tidbits, describing a record industry that surely looks much different today. At one point, Holzman describes personally looking for and finding the musician Arthur Lee, with intent to sign him. Arthur told him he wanted $5,000 in cash, and Holzman walked to the bank and got the money.
Holzman was very hands on in the studio as well, right down to looking after what microphones were used. As a matter of fact, he told Kaye he used to bring the records to the pressing plant himself, on his scooter. That amazing tidbit came shortly after the 20 minute mark.
“I was very hands on, because that’s how I was going to learn,” Holzman continued. “I did everything I possibly could do myself. I took photographs, I wrote notes. I did all of the editing. I produced probably 90% of the Elektra records for the first 12 or 13 years.”
Anyone interested in the music industry would do good to watch the video in full, containing very informative and interesting conversation about the internal machinations of the business at that time. And check out all upcoming Arts & Entertainments Talks coming up at 92Y.
The stories that adults invent for children – whether they’re designed as entertainment, diversion, education, balm or a mixture – come with a built-in dramatic irony. Not only does the teller have control of a particular narrative, how it proceeds and, perhaps most significantly, how and when it ends, but they will usually have a more developed understanding of what a story is in the first place, and know the approximate coordinates of the border between reality and fiction. But that kind of knowledge, as Salman Rushdie suggests in this engrossing and fantastical fable, loses its lustre if you stop believing in the stories you’re telling; at which point, an injection of childlike innocence might be exactly what you need.
On November 22, Rushdie will read from Luka and the Fire of Life at the 92nd Street Y. And don’t forget, tickets for this reading and all Main Reading Series events are just $10 for those aged 35 and under.
Upcoming reading at 92Y Poetry: Adonis (Oct 25); An Evening of Doctor Zhivago with Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (Nov 1); Nicole Krauss and Cynthia Ozick (Nov 8); and An Evening of Mozart with J. D. McClatchy and the Metropolitan Opera (Dec 1).
The Gotham Independent Film Awards Nominees Announced
Chris Rock and Natalie Portman at The 2009 Gotham Independent Film Awards / Photo Credit
The Gotham Independent Film Awards, the first honors of the film awards season, have announced their nominees; congratulation to all of them. But a special note to films screened at 92YTribeca this year. Those include Summer Pasture, nominated for Best Film Not Playing in a Theater Near You, Sweetgrass, nominated for Best Documentary and Holy Rollers, nominated for Breakthrough Director.
As the New York Pressinformed last year, 92YTribeca is “one of the few venues in the city to routinely show new, challenging independent cinema.”
At first glance, his current exhibition of small improvisational-looking paintings would seem to indicate a major change of direction. But closer inspection reveals that the artist’s signature themes—the investigation of power and the transmission of information—are still here. “Flash Action,” which depicts a point-and-shoot camera painted over a roughly rendered gray background, and “Station to Station,” in which a vaguely urban landscape is enclosed in a circle resembling an eyehole, speak to the ubiquity of the media and surveillance systems.
Time Out New Yorkhas a slide show featuring some of the work, and named it one of ten “must-see” art shows. The show runs until October 24. More information can be found here.
Gloria Vanderbilt is and has been many things: heiress, painter, muse, designer, model, writer, entrepreneur, actor, socialite, survivor, icon. She’s also Anderson Cooper’s mom! Her father, Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt, lived in a “house” on Fifth Avenue that took up the entire block with a total of 130 rooms.
New York magazine recently wrote of Gloria’s decorating chops at her own home, and has a slide show of photos taken in her two-bedroom apartment on the Upper East Side. Coop told New York about his mom:
“...she is an emissary from a distant star that has long since faded out, and yet she is not adrift; she’s incredibly in the moment and of this time. She has lived multiple lives—and lived completely and fully. I find it fascinating. And she is still doing that, you know—going through metamorphosis and evolving.”
Hear more on November 21, when Wendy Goodman, design editor at New York, joins Ms. Vanderbilt for a talk her life as a Vanderbilt and how she has reinvented herself again and again.
Upcoming Lectures & Conversations at 92Y: The Borowitz Report: Midterm Madness! (Oct 20); Ron Chernow: On George Washington (Oct 21); Summit Everest! (Oct 24); Rachel Greenwald: Successful Single Woman’s Dating Plan (Oct 24); and Euro Crisis: Can this Union Survive? (Oct 24).
Christopher North, faculty member at 92nd Street Y Guitar Institute, has composed a genre crossing score as soundtrack to the new film Eavesdrop. The album features all-star performers - Grammy nominated Eroica Trio, the ebullient Ethel, harpist extraordinaire Carol Emanuel and a jazz quintet assembled for North’s original jazz tunes.
Related, the 92Y School of Music Faculty Concert Series is gearing up! The first concert takes place this Friday, October 22, with the Rafi Malkiel Ensemble. All concerts are free of charge and, as the name implies, features our immensely talented faculty members. See you there!
Music has the power to invigorate and inspire its listeners as well as to reflect the mood and feelings of the era. 92nd Street Y truly values the creation of new music, to capture a moment and to inspire those in the future. This is why we’ve asked composer David Ludwig to create a new piece to premier at 92Y on April 2, 2010, performed by Benjamin Hochman in concert.
You can directly support the commission of this new work. 92Y is excited to invite you to contribute to our campaign on Kickstarter.com, a new fundraising website, that will allow dozens, or even hundreds, of music lovers to pool their support in order to make this exciting event happen. If donors pledge enough support and the project meets its funding goal, then Kickstarter.com will charge the donors and funds will go directly to 92Y. If the goal is not met, no one is charged. This type of all-or-nothing funding means that it’s really important to get everyone’s support so that we can raise the entire $5,500 goal! You can pledge as little as $1.00 to help contribute to the funding, and play a direct role in the commission of a new piece of music.
To help our donors feel closer to the process, we are offering them benefits that allow them to be a part of the experience; from being listed as a commission partner in the April 2 House Program, discounted or free tickets or meeting with the two artists back stage on the night of the performance. Let’s create a new piece of music. Contribute here.
Tours: SoHo Chocolate Tour with Francine Segan: Visit SoHo’s most innovative chocolate shops, taste samples and learn about the fascinating world of chocolate.
In honor of the 20th anniversary of Glamour‘s Women of the Year Awards, Glamour has put together a day of panel discussions and events featuring famous and celebrated past winners of the award. Anna Sui, Bobbi Brown, Arianna Huffington, Padma Lakshmi, Dylan Lauren, Deborah Roberts, Crystal Renn, Paulina Porizkova, Bethenny Frankel, Ann Kearney Cooke, Mika Brzezinski, Brooke Shields, Sherri Shepherd, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Natasha Lyonne and Stacy London will all be at the 92nd Street Y on November 1 for the event. The day begins at 3pm with the Love Your Work Life panel. Get your tickets here!
As we’ve mentioned before, 92nd Street Y is competing in the PepsiRefresh Project during the month of October. Thanks to all who have voted thus far; we are in 95th place! To win a grant that will help us continue our music education program—as many New York City schools face deep cuts in arts education budgets—we need to break into the top ten! Vote for 92Y today and everyday between now and October 31, and ask your friends to vote too!
You can vote multiple times a day. Vote from the Refresh site, text your vote by texting 103167 to 73774 and vote via the Facebook application. Thanks for voting, your votes will help 92Y bring music back to NYC schools!
NYC Media is the official TV, radio and online network of New York City. The NYC Media crew brought their cameras to 92nd Street Y during the 92Y/Mashable Social Good Summit and filmed the Digital Media Lounge. The results can be seen above. The video is also running in between prime time programs on Channel 25, the TV channel of NYC government.
92Y Executive Director Sol Adler explained shortly after the two minute mark: “This is actually an inflection point for the world, where the 92nd Street Y, Mashable, The U.N. Foundation and Skype are changing the equation. This is where we get the whole world to know, quite transparently, what is going on.”
Related:Check out Henry Timms, Director of the Charles Simon Center for Adult Life & Learning Staff, along with the UN’s Robert Skinner and Mashable’s Adam Hirsch, offering the 411 on what went down behind the scenes to put together Social Good Summit!
Upcoming events at 92Y include The Rothschild Lecture: Ed Koch, His Legacy and the Remaking of New York City (TONIGHT!); Ingrid Betancourt: Even Silence Has An End (Oct 19); The Borowitz Report: Midterm Madness! (Oct 20) and Ron Chernow: On George Washington (Oct 21)
What You Missed: Comedy Below Canal™ With Kristen Schaal, Reggie Watts And More!
Last Thursday, 92YTribeca Comedy spent the night with the funniest guys and gals in town, including Kristen Schaal (Flight of the Conchords, The Daily Show, Dinner for Schmucks), Jared Logan (Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham, CollegeHumor.com), Francesca Martinez (Extras, Edinburgh Festival), Reggie Watts (Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Conan O’Brien’s “Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television” tour) and Mike Lawrence (2010 ECNY nomination for Emerging Comic Award).
See all upcoming 92YTribeca Comedy events here, and stay up to date on the newest information via Twitter and Facebook. You can also sign up for 92YTribeca Comedy’s eNews.
Tuesday Night Tête-à-têtes / Ages 40+ with Jim Trotta. If you love deep dialogue and discerning discussion, these events are for you! Topics include philosophy, spirituality and sociological issues.
Better Than Wine: Beer and Cheese Pairing. Explore a variety of beer styles, including lagers, pale ales, porters or stouts and lambics and learn what sorts of cheeses match them best and why.
Waldorf-Astoria Tour and Lunch: Explore the hotel that world leaders and the president of the United States have long called their home away from home in New York City.
Greenwich Village Literary Walk: Explore the charming streets of Greenwich Village and see where the likes of James Fenimore Cooper, Louisa May Alcott, Edgar Allan Poe, Mark Twain, Washington Irving, Edna St. Vincent Millay and other literary luminaries lived and worked. Read more on the 92Y Blog.
Summit Everest! In an extraordinary and unique event, world-renowned mountaineers will get you as close to Everest as you can get with real, live climbing procedures, equipment and conditions!
Israeli Family Programs: Join in an Israeli-style, biweekly program for families with young children, focusing on Israeli culture and conducted entirely in Hebrew.
Greenwich Village Ghosts Tour: In this after-hours tour, venture to some of the city’s most haunted spots, including the Old Merchant’s House, the Astor Library, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, a former potter’s field, an execution ground and more.
Euro Crisis: Can this Union Survive? Twenty years after German unification, is the promise of European unity a mirage? How will the Euro crisis affect global economics?
Daniel J. Levitin’s Music and the Brain Series further explores these issue. Levitin—neuroscientist, musician, psychologist, record-producer and author—delves into the biology of music through three sessions filled with stimulating conversations and live musical performances. Is music in our DNA? Is that merely a metaphor, or are our brains genuinely “hard-wired” for sound?
The first session, Music, Inspiration and Creativity: Does Practice Make Perfect? with 5-time Grammy Award winner and bass guitar virtuoso Victor Wooten, begins November 3. Tickets can be purchased here.
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Gloria Vanderbilt is and has been many things: heiress, painter, muse, designer, model, writer, entrepreneur, actor, socialite, survivor, icon. She’s also Anderson Cooper’s mom! Her father, Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt, lived in a “house” on Fifth Avenue that took up the entire block with a total of 130 rooms.
Christopher North, 
