A Cultural Life
by Joseph Sherman

While any number of Buzz readers have remarked upon my last column, "Civil Cinema," with most issuing the patented thumbs-up, a surprising several have taken me to task for presuming to know what people who pay good money for a movie ticket should and shouldn't do. "I can't imagine watching a movie without a large box of buttered popcorn on my lap," one woman of my

read more...

A Cultural Life
by Joseph Sherman

Reading the page proofs of my forthcoming book (I can be a shameless self-promoter when moved), I am struck by how much can alter in the mind of the writer between composition and the stage at which he pretty well has to live with what it is he’s written. Not quite as indelibly as with the process of egg tempera painting, but that’s not an inapt metaphor.

One is always

read more...

A Cultural Life
by Joseph Sherman

Reception to my PEIBA (Prince Edward Island Book Award) suggestion of last month has been so encouraging, I am advancing the second of my Big Ideas for (I trust) the benefit of the PEI literary community and Island culture in general; granted, this proposal gives precedence to our seasoned poets.

I don’t have a clever name for this one yet, but let’s call it a sound arc

read more...

Téada

Review by Joseph Sherman

The first thing I notice at the concert is that Téada is not Danù. One youthful player less (both ensembles feature immensely talented musicians in their 20s), and no pipes or vocals, but it’s more than that; it’s the angle of approach to the music and the arrangements.

On the first, the Téada folk are more forthcoming, perhaps even more knowledgeable, as demonstrated

read more...

A Cultural Life
by Joseph Sherman

It’s time to establish a Prince Edward Island Book Award, henceforth to be referred to as the PEIBA in easy reference.

For 18 years The Island Literary Awards have honoured the best in manuscripts (with a smart emphasis on creative writing by young people) through a juried competition, completed with a gala public presentation of certificates and sponsored cash awards.

read more...

A Cultural Life
by Joseph Sherman

CBC Culture: If the CBC lockout has been resolved before this appears, these remarks will seem less urgent. I stand by them. Given the number of anti-network management articles I’ve read, it’d be an interesting exercise were I to make management’s case. From the top down, CBC execs have been demonized when they haven’t been flipped the bird (by those who foolishly underva

read more...

The Chieftains

Review by Joseph Sherman

As Celtic flutist extraordinaire Matt Molloy eases into the truly haunting strains of “Women of Ireland,” a favourite of the late harper Derek Bell, I am relieved to realize that The Chieftains have not gone career-hard and ubiquitous. They play relatively few original numbers, but what they do with O’Carolan compositions and scores of other Celtic melodies, ancie

read more...

Canada Rocks!

Review by Joseph Sherman

Canada Rocks! Is a joyful, entertaining mess that doesn’t know whether it is a catalogue of Canadian popular music or an excuse for a weak story line punctuated by songs, many of which qualify as rock to the extent that I qualify as a rock critic. Well, it does know. Fortunately—and I use the terms “joyful” and “entertain” with sincerity—the real star of any musical revie

read more...

A Cultural Life
by Joseph Sherman

Okay, I admit it, I’m not dealing with the aging process equanimously. I may seem devil-may-care, with smiles for every babe, but inside there is a tipped bag of tumult.

Vanity has never been one of my problems, not where my physical characteristics are concerned. I long ago accepted the fact that I’d stopped growing at 168 cm like my dear old dad, though I’d once hav

read more...

Pegi by Herself: The Life of Pegi Nicol MacLeod, Canadian Artist by Laura Brandon

by Joseph Sherman

I’d probably have fallen in love with Pegi Nicol MacLeod myself had I been her 1940s contemporary. Many men did. Described as gamin-like (think the luminously sensual Holly Golightly in the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s), she was an only child and seemed individualized early on. She took to painting and ill

read more...

A Cultural Life
by Joseph Sherman

The first piece of original craftwork I bought for myself—actually a joint engagement purchase with Ann—was probably the urnish lamp base created by a well-known New Brunswick potter. Just visiting his studio and shop on the outskirts of Fredericton seemed an exotic exercise at the time…all those unfired pieces on view, his magical potter’s wheel and oven. A few years on we b

read more...

A Cultural Life
by Joseph Sherman

I collected flag cards. They were wallet-sized and thick, and the reverse side offered stats about each flag’s country. As they were available only in Scottie’s Potato Chips bags, I went through a period of intense chip consumption in an effort to complete my set. I managed to collect all but Greece, and kept them together with a rubber band. I’d have them now if not for m

read more...