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Tradition vs. Newness at Spoleto

POSTED ON BEHALF OF MARC OVERTON, FROM SPOLETO FESTIVAL USA IN CHARLESTON
Hearing the bells of St. Michael’s this morning just after 10:00 made me think again about the striking juxtaposition of tradition and newness that each year’s Spoleto Festival brings. I’ve spent a lot of Sunday mornings in a lot of small American towns over the years as I toured the country on one or another of my motorcycles, but there are few places left where the sound of Sunday morning church bells are so much a part of the weekly rhythm of living. As they rang, I thought that later that day, Spoleto performances by Japanese dancer Hiroaki Umeda, and the raunchy, graphic, ritualized violence of DON JOHN would shake up Charleston’s genteel sensibilities and jazz up its rhythm. And that’s good. Spoleto always brings some jolts that make the old ways stand out in relief, and we all need to be reminded that old things have value for good reasons.

WDAV 89.9 and SCETV To Broadcast Live from Spoleto Festival USA

Unprecedented Partnership Will Enable Broadcasts to Be Heard Across the Carolinas and Around the World
May 20, 2009 — DAVIDSON, NC… For 17 days and nights each spring, tens of thousands of tourists, arts lovers, and critics flock to Spoleto Festival USA. They fill Charleston’s historic theaters, churches and outdoor spaces to witness renowned artists in chamber, symphonic, choral, and jazz music, as well as opera, theater and dance.
At the opening of this year’s Spoleto Festival USA on May 22, radio and online listeners will have a new option for enjoying Spoleto Festival USA: they can listen to several hours of live broadcasts each weekday–direct from Charleston, South Carolina–on WDAV-FM 89.9 Classical Public Radio or South Carolina ETV Radio’s Classical NPR stations: WSCI-FM Charleston 89.3, WEPR-FM Greenville 90.1 and WLTR-FM Columbia 91.3.

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