Hear Ye! Hear Ye!
Cultural aesthetes should be aware that there's an interesting new cable television network out there called Ovation TV. As is suggestive of the network's name, the programming is devoted to Creative and Performing Arts: Music, Dance, Visual Arts, and Drama.
For example, today there is a broadcast of "Pelleas et Mellsande" by Debussy; "Beat Route: Seville"; and "Beat Route: Havana". During the last few weeks, have seen an interview with Marlon Brando (done better on TCM, 256); a special on artist Mark Rothko "Rothko's Rooms"; and "Leonard Bernstein's NY", just to name a few shows.
IMO, there is dearth of video media for a 24-hour cable network dedicated to the Fine Arts. Eventually, Ovation TV will come to the realization that they will have to compete with VH1 or MTV for videos of musical performances. What, then, is the dividing line between mainstream popular music versus artsy, high-brow music? With the programming that I've seen Ovation TV has aired so far, the dividing line is Elvis when it comes to that decision. You and I know that, pretty soon, the Beatles will be the dividing line. And then it will be...
How is Ovation TV to handle great performances that, unfortunately, is not on video? There are superior performances in Classical Music and Opera that was never recorded only on video. And how is the network going to handle Operatic performances in another language? Everyone knows American viewers do not like to read subtitles and watch at the same time.
Is Ovation TV to go the way of Bravo and A&E who, in the past, attempted programming of Classical Music and Ballet? Look what kind of programming exists now on those cable networks...
The numbers just do not look good for Ovation TV... a small audience compounded by a small video library devoted to the Fine Arts. I've noticed that Ovation TV is re-broadcasting it's programming many, many times a day now... too many times for a network that just went national in June of this year.
Ovation TV needs a vehicle like "Dancing With the Stars"... that dance competition, if you can call it that, has propelled more interest in Ballroom Dancing in the last few years, that in all the years previous to that show. How about televising some "real" live competitions from BlackPool?
On their website Ovation TV asks displays a piece of art prominently on the home page and asks the question: "Art or Not?". Ovation TV should take out one of their commercials and replace it with this; the network should ask the viewer to text their vote on their cell phone. I like it!
But, I do wish them well as there is not very much programming like this out in the wasteland called Television. Besides TCM (Turner Classic Movies, 256) and NGC (National Geographic, 276), this is one of my favorite cable / satellite networks.
Update 9-8-2007
Ovation TV should grab this idea from TCM... TCM, in the recent past, had upon the death of someone prominent in the film industry devoted the majority of the day to films attributed to that person, whether it be an actor or director, or even a cameraman.
With the recent passing of Luciano Pavarotti, Ovation TV should devote a day in the near future to some of his best performances on video, i.e., "Nessun Dorma". read more