Today the New York Times profiled a friend of mine, Bill Bragin. When you talk about people shaping culture in New York City, certainly you have to talk about Bill. As a programmer and presenter, he's put his wide-ranging and superb musical tastes to work in service of Festival Productions, Central Park Summerstage, Joe's Pub, and now Lincoln Center. There, he'll run both the Midsummer Night's Swing and Lincoln Center Out Of Doors series.
“The way I define myself and my work is as an arts presenter, not a nightclub booker,” Mr. Bragin said in an interview. “This was exactly the right move. It’s multidisciplinary, it’s multiethnic. I have always been a generalist working in those boundaries between popular art and high art.”
It should be noted that he was instrumental in shepherding "Passing Strange" through it's early development at Joe's Pub.
To be in Bill's orbit is have driven home to you that there's so much great--yes, really great--music being created and performed. Further, in an age when everyone can be a curator, Bill is a "trusted source".
Read the full New York Times article here.
The New York Times certainly wrote a great article about him. There were a lot of insightful quotes included that would make anybody stand up and listen. Plus, one term really caught my attention. Your friend was described as a musical omnivore. I'm still trying to process that idea in my head.
Posted by: Jay, writer Memberspeed.com | March 10, 2008 at 09:36