When melody and tone attack

Being a classical music fan in the 21st century isn’t so much culturally rewarding as it is a ton of fun. The reasons are like four interconnected movements of a fine symphony: 1) The boundless richness and relevance of great works by great 17th- through 19th-century composers, and the whole world of their lesser-known works […]

Evans' animal instincts

John Borden Evans’ current show of recent work at Les Yeux du Monde Gallery is just so John Borden Evans. And I mean that in a nice way. There’s something strangely wonderful, fresh and unabashed about Evans’ work, something he upholds in each subsequent painting, even though his style remains unchanged and his repeated theme […]

The shape of punk to come

This economically priced collection of Big Dipper’s indie works give us even more proof of the wealth of left field music made between punk and Nirvana. Born from the ashes of Volcano Suns and The Embarrassment, Big Dipper crafted albums steeped in the slashing guitars and hoarse panic of a garage punk that they knocked […]

An old war from a new Grisham

It’s a wonder anyone tries to write historical fiction. You have to bring the past to life without resorting to lectures, stiff dialogue or tedious exposition. To be really good, you also have to avoid clichéd characters and stock situations, while not making the slightest misstep in historical fact. Mark Grisham (brother of Charlottesville author […]

Darden Towe Park lighting controversy continues

The “community conversation” hosted by Board of Supervisors Chairman Ken Boyd on Thursday night at the Elks Lodge began as a dialogue among county residents and county and city officials about the proposed lighting project for Darden Towe Park. But it soon became a chorus in favor of saving McIntire Park. “The two are one […]

NGIC expansion: slimmer pickings than expected

All those home builders banking on selling houses to new National Ground Intelligence Center (NGIC) employees may be in for a rude awakening. An estimate from the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors (CAAR) is that only 30 to 40 percent of employees will relocate, the rest not wishing to unsettle spouses and children. Since NGIC’s […]

CHO gets $4.5M for runway expansion

The Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport (CHO) is now ready to spread its wings. The Virginia Aviation Board announced that it has approved tentative allocations of funds for 33 of the state’s airports for a total of more than $21 million. That funding includes $4.5 million for seven CHO projects, most notably the Runway Extension Phase 1A design […]

So that's what it is!

Ever had trouble finding the Mall? City officials (prodded by Downtown merchants) want to make sure that Charlottesville tourists have no problem figuring out where they can drop some dough betwixt trips to Monticello and the Rotunda. The city Board of Architectural Review is vetting signs like these on September 15, designed by Merje, a […]

Miller Center overrun by old, well-dressed men

In academics as in life, timing is everything, folks. Twenty-four hours after the Bush Administration announced the bailout of financial giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, UVA’s Miller Center of Public Affairs hosted what it called a global summit on “The New Financial Architecture.” In the rain, yellow-slickered parking attendants greeted reporters and financial consultants […]