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Birds have inspired many great composers, and like all self-respecting performers, they improvise and only sing when they are happy. But can you call them musicians?

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Cultural Brain Stretching

Are Birds Musicians?

Birds have inspired many great composers, but can you call them musicians?

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Brilliant FBI agent and scientist Dana Scully solved supernatural mysteries with her partner Fox Mulder in the TV series The X Files. She had significant influence on an entire generation of young women, inspired to become scientists.

The Scully Effect

The X File's Dana Scully had significant influence on an entire generation of young women

Since its invention in the 19th century, the bicycle has allowed Western women to move around independently. Today, it is the turn of women in Arab countries to discover its power. Though at first glance innocuous and common, the bicycle is unexpectedly feminist.

The Freedom to Cycle

Though at first glance innocuous and common, the bicycle is unexpectedly feminist

The paintings of Vincent Van Gogh are losing their colours. The paints he used were vibrant, but cheap, and degraded within months of painting. It's now impossible to appreciate the true beauty of his works, as his flamboyant flare for colours has slowly turned drab. If nothing is done, the Sunflowers which are still a beautiful gold today could well turn brown. Should we just accept they can't be saved?

Van Gogh's Disappearing Colours

The paintings of Vincent Van Gogh are losing their colours because the pigments used were vibrant but cheap

Why do the works of the Italian painter Caravaggio exude such violence? The answer is to be found in the eventful life of the artist, who just couldn't stay out of trouble and met a sticky end.

Caravaggio, Genius - and Killer?

Caravaggio just couldn't stay out of trouble and met a sticky end

Women who play men's roles while singing high notes may seem suprising but in opera, it's tradition. Handel, Mozart, and Bellini all wrote roles for men, to be played by women. So how does the opera deal with questions of gender?

Does the Voice Have a Gender?

Handel, Mozart, and Bellini all wrote roles for men, to be played by women

Acrobatics, crazy sets, unobtainable beauty standards. A lot of porn often lacks realism. But the industry is changing: audio pornography, which leaves room for the imagination while arousing the listener with erotic stories. The increasingly popular medium attracts feminist women who see the medium as more sensual and empowering than traditional porn.

The Sensual World of Podcast Porn

Audio pornography leaves room for the imagination while arousing the listener with erotic stories

For millennia, people have wondered what constitutes our existence. But could it be that our reality is not real and that, like in the sci-fi movie Matrix, everything is just a simulation?

What if the Matrix Was Real?

Ayn Rand was a survivor of Communism, and as a result, her writings fiercely advocate uncompromising individualism. Her high profile fans include Elon Musk, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and Angelina Jolie.

Ayn Rand, Capitalism Guru

Ayn Rand was a survivor of Communism, and as a result, her writings fiercely advocate uncompromising individualism

In 2019, Les Indes galantes was performed at the Opera de la Bastille in Paris, hip hop style. This baroque opera, composed by Jean-Philippe Rameau, is an ode to colonial exoticism, and its reworking is the brainchild of Bintou Dembélé, the first black woman to choreograph a ballet at the Paris Opera.

Operatic Hip Hop: Dance Decolonised

In 2019, Les Indes galantes was performed at the Opera de la Bastille in Paris, hip hop style

Yurts, tipis, igloos: traditional homes are round, but most modern buildings are full of harsh right angles. In the 60s, influenced by science fiction, strange, curved creations started popping up in France. But it was a brief movement that fell out of favour.

Why Live In a Bubble House?

In the 60s, influenced by science fiction, strange, curved homes started popping up in France

California, 1962: as counter-culture boomed, Corita Kent created her first pop-art paintings. The nun and art teacher mixed Jefferson Airplane, Pepsi and Bible verses in her work. But her activism and political convictions would force her to hang up her habit.

Corita Kent, the Pop Culture Nun

How a nun became a counter-cultural icon thanks to her art

Nikola Tesla claimed to have invented a "death beam" in the 1930s, but laser has been more useful for printing out payslips than it has shooting planes out of the sky. But science fiction loved the idea. From Star Wars to Mars Attacks!, lasers slice up bodies or grind them to dust. What is the enduring appeal of deadly lasers for the SF fandom?

Why Does Science Fiction Love Lasers?

What is the enduring appeal of deadly lasers for the SF fandom?

Ever notice how utterly bizarre lions in medieval manuscripts look? It's like the artist had never been to a zoo or searched for 'lion' in Google images or something. Oh, wait...

Why Are Medieval Lions So Strange?

Ever notice how utterly bizarre lions in medieval manuscripts look?

Stadiums filled with raving fans, millions of dollars in contracts and fierce competition: esports is no longer a fad, and could even be headed to the Olympics. A look back on how it all began.

Esport: Born in 1972?

Esports is now mainstream. We take a look back at where it all began

Film director Jean Boullet was obsessed with Dracula. The vampire gained ground in popular culture in the Paris underground scene of the 50s, and Boullet was determined to create a film that captured the true creepy essence of Dracula. He decided to use shadow puppets, but the work would never see the light of day.

The Man Who Wanted to Be Dracula

Film director Jean Boullet was obsessed with Dracula, even getting surgery to look like him

The trolley problem asks, is it better to let 5 people die or choose to kill only 1? And now that problem is more pressing than ever with the advent of self-driving cars. Do they think? And what role should morality play in their decision-making process?

Are Self-Driving Cars Moral?

A self-drivng car won't just get you from A to B, it'll make crucial decisions in those life-or-death moments right before a car accident

A 1960s icon and a martial arts legend, Bruce Lee is still beloved as the king of martial arts the world over. But Quentin Tarantino may have committed the small crime of lese-majesty in his latest film. He asks: was Bruce Lee even really that good at fighting?

Was Bruce Lee Actually Good at Fighting?

Was Bruce Lee even really that good at fighting?

A tribute to nature and a classic coming-of-age film, Bambi is not just a cute Walt Disney cartoon. It first started off as a novel by Austrian writer Felix Salten, which was banned by the Nazi authorities in 1936. So why did the story of this harmless deer draw the ire of the facist censors?

Why Burn Bambi?

Statues are silent observers of our everyday lives... and most of the time they go unnoticed as city dwellers bustle from one destination to the next. But now statues are having their moment in the spotlight. When we look at the stories of the people we put on plinths, we discover painful histories and shameful, forgotten truths.

Why are Statues Controversial?

When we look at the stories of the people we put on plinths, we discover painful histories and shameful, forgotten truths

These aren't doodles: Art Spiegelman or Marjane Satrapi's books are pieces of literary art. Without boxes or bubbles, the graphic novel is now a major genre in publishing. Graphic novels have an unlikely origin story: the genre emerged from woodcutting.

The Origin Story of the Graphic Novel

These aren't doodles: Art Spiegelman or Marjane Satrapi's books are pieces of literary art

White noise to better concentrate at work, pink noise to put baby to sleep, brown noise to meditate... After ASMR, this is the latest trend catering to a society in burn out. Tune in to a sound with a tune, melody, or rhythm.

Relax, Listen to Noise

White noise, pink noise, brown noise: tune in to a sound with a tune, melody, or rhythm

Some letters never reach their destination, whether by accident or design. This missing mail is brought back to life thanks to artist Adrianna Wallis. In a high tech world saturated by data, has the art of letter writing definitively died? 

The Search for Lost Letters

In a high tech world saturated by data, has the art of letter writing definitively died?

In response to the planned obsolescence programmed by the giants of the web, artist Olia Lialina designs interactive works that revive old tech. Will she succeed in saving the Internet?

Olia Lialina: The Artist Who's Saving the Internet

Meet the artist hacking the internet to revive old tech

Degas’s The Little Fourteen Year Old Dancer hit the headlines at the Impressionist exhibition because of its shocking hyperrealism. It's found to be an ugly and crudely done piece. But the real scandal wasn't the work's reception, but the life of the young dancer herself and the treatment of her peers. 

Degas, Backstage at the Opera

Degas’s The Little Fourteen Year Old Dancer has a sad history behind it

Would you attend a gallery exhibition with the paintings turned to face the wall? Probably not. And yet curators find a huge wealth of information about the painting based off of the clues left on the back of the canvas and its frame.

The Picture Behind the Picture

Would you attend a gallery exhibition with the paintings turned to face the wall? Probably not...

We've all experienced lockdown in the past year, but one artist has been doing his own self-imposed lockdowns for years. For Abraham Poincheval, confinement is just another form of artistic expression.

Confined for Art

For Abraham Poincheval, confinement is just another form of artistic expression

They cry, they cry and they faint at the Beatles or One Direction concerts: they are the fans. One might think that this isn't a recent phenomenon. In the 19th century, a pianist prodigy drew big crowds. His name: Franz Liszt. Long before beatlemania, there was "Lisztomania".

Franz Liszt, the First Rock Star

Long before beatlemania, there was "Lisztomania"

In many French cities, there are feminist messages hastily pasted across the walls, denouncing rape and violence against women. They come from a long tradition of feminist protest first sparked off by Oympe de Gouges.

Street Art Takes on Patriarchy

In many French cities, there are feminist messages hastily pasted across the walls, denouncing rape and violence against women

How can an artist unblock writer's block and free themselves of the fear of the blank page? Producer and musician Brian Eno has found the solution: a card game. Called Oblique Strategie", it gave artists inspiration when they had none. David Bowie composed his unforgettable Heroes thanks to this very strange game.

The Game That Saved David Bowie

David Bowie composed his unforgettable Heroes thanks to this very strange game

If Monopoly today is a cheerful celebration of capitalism, it actually didn't start off that way. Its creator, a working class woman who barely made any money from it, had devised the game as a way of denoucing the worst excesses of unfettered capitalism. 

When Monopoly Was Anti-Capitalist

Let's give credit where credit is due: the creator of Monopoly was a working class woman who barely made any money from it

Taboo since ancient times, periods are also taboo in art. But thanks to a generation of feminist artists determined to end the shame around menstruation, period blood is making a big splash in the art world - even if social media has yet to catch up. 

The Art of Menstruation

A generation of feminist artists are determined to end the shame around menstruation

Designer Erik Spiekermann explains how he created the map for Berlin's newly unified public transport network, just after reunification and the fall of the Berlin wall.

How a Map Healed Berlin

Designer Erik Spiekermann explains how he created the map for Berlin's newly unified public transport network

Federico Fellini is renowned for his extravagant productions. On the sets, there was often a mixture of creativity and chaos. But why did the filmmaker make his actors recite numbers and pasta recipes rather than scripts?

Carbonara Alla Fellini

Federico Fellini's creative process was chaotic but legendary

At the first hint of sadness, out comes the pints of icecream and the sad power ballads. But why is listening to sad music our idea of a good time? Does sad music make us happy?

Why Do We Love Sad Music?

Why is listening to sad music our idea of a good time?

Gymnastics - Cultural Brain Stretching

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The humble accordion may not have a reputation as the coolest instrument on the block. But in the hands of Mario Batkovic it takes on another dimension. Since 2017 the Bosnian accordionist has been wowing audiences and recording film and game scores, notably for hit survival game, Red Dead Redemption 2.

Mario Batkovic: Superstar Accordionist

The humble accordion may not have a reputation as the coolest instrument on the block. But in the hands of Mario Batkovic it takes on another dimension.

In a church in Halberstadt, an organ slowly plays music that sounds like the eternal Om of a Buddhist song. The piece was written by John Cage, who wanted it to be played as slowly as possible. Each movement lasts 71 years. The concert started in 2001, and is on track to end in 2640.

The 639 Year Concert

This piece of music is being played so slowly that it won't be done until 2640

The Dreamachine is a cylinder that generates a psychedelic light that triggers strange visions in the people who look at it: it's a drug-free high. Its inventors even thought it would replace TV.

The Dreamachine Trip

The Dreamachine triggers a drug-free high in th people who look at it

Kitschy trash or misunderstood genius? Italo disco was the euro sound of the 1980s that many loved and many hated. This documentary looks at how big names of the genre like Sabrina Salerno and duo Righeira conquered the charts.

The Sparkling Sound of the 1980s

Kitschy trash or misunderstood genius? Italo disco was the euro sound of the 1980s that many loved and many hated

Italo Disco

Can identities be forced, discarded, changed or revived? In the USSR, national identities were a political instrument. Millions of people were resettled, deported, and Russified. Today, the multi-ethnic social fabric of post-soviet nations harbours explosive tensions and the Ukraine war is opening up old wounds. What does identity mean for the next generation?

Identity

The multi-ethnic social fabric of post-soviet nations harbours explosive tensions and the Ukraine war is opening up old wounds. What does identity mean for the next generation?

Tracks East

More than 10 million people in the world are behind bars with half of the world's prison population in Russian, Chinese or American jails. In the United States, where the prison population has risen sharply in recent decades. Artists are sounding the alarm: Jay Z, Denzel Curry and Meek Mill are calling for judicial reform.

More than 10 million people in the world are behind bars with half of the world's prison population in Russian, Chinese or American jails. 

Tracks: Planet Prison

Discover contemporary cycling culture in three European cities: Berlin, the unofficial capital of vintage racing bikes. London, where cycle-cafés also hold speed dating evenings and Amsterdam where cyclists stand out from the crowd with style.

Cycling as Lifestyle

Discover contemporary cycling culture in three European cities: Berlin, London and Amsterdam.

Biking Boom

Tracks East highlights the multiplicity of creative and surprising expressions of solidarity with Ukraine by artists in Ukraine and elsewhere.

Solidarity

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Israeli choreographers Sharon Eyal and Gai Behar present their show Chapter 3: The Brutal Journey of the Heart at Nuits de Fourvière.

Nuits de Fourvière

The Brutal Journey of the Heart by Sharon Eyal & Gai Behar

Paradise islands synonymous with hell? Welcome to the Spratlys archipelago, at the heart of a regional power struggle with global implications. China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam and Brunei all lay claim to these islands... but the question is far from settled. If major conflict does break out, this is where it could start. A clear case of Crazy Borders! 

The Spratly Islands: Flashpoint for WWIII?

Paradise islands synonymous with hell? Welcome to the Spratlys archipelago, at the heart of a regional power struggle

Crazy Borders

Young Korean musicians have been taking the world of classical music by storm. A new generation are winning the big prizes and pursuing successful careers in Europe and around the world. What makes these Korean classical artists so good? A documentary following the rising stars of K-Classic

The Korean Musical Mystery

Generation K-Classics

Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong was the most densely populated area on Earth. 33,000 people settled on 2.5 hectares of land that was disputed between Chinese and British - meaning neither country asserted its authority there. This vertical slum was a hotbed of crime, but also full of factories, cheap shops and a strong community. This is a case for Crazy Borders. 

Kowloon: The Lawless Super City

This vertical slum was a hotbed of crime, but also full of factories, cheap shops and a strong community.

The prisoner of a promise made to Neptune, King Idomeneus is faced with a cruel dilemma... From the Théâtre de l’Archevêché, the most romantic of Mozart’s operas, directed by Satoshi Miyagi and conducted by Raphaël Pichon, with soprano Sabine Devieilhe, promises to be the operatic event of the 2022 Aix festival season.

Aix-en-Provence Festival 2022

The most romantic of Mozart’s operas, conducted by Raphaël Pichon, with soprano Sabine Devieilhe.

Mozart: Idomeneus, King of Crete

If a woman gave birth at the top of Mont Blanc, what nationality would the child be? For France, of course, the baby would be French. But not for Italy! The quarrel has been going on since 1860, when the divison of territory at the top of the mountain was unclearly defined... leaving each country to interpret the boundary more or less as they saw fit. This really is a case for Crazy Borders!

Mont Blanc: A High Altitude Dispute

If a woman gave birth at the top of Mont Blanc, what nationality would the child be?

How can you misplace 80km2 of territory? In Mexico, the island of Bermeja had been on maps for generations. But when it came to actually finding the island... it seemed as if it had disappeared into thin air. And with the loss of Bermeja, Mexico lost a huge windfall of oil revenue in the Gulf of Mexico. This is a case for Crazy Borders. 

The Lost Island of Bermeja

According to the latest calculations by the OECD, South Korean women could live to be over 92 years old on average in 2070, and men over 89. That would be a world record. What's the secret?

South Korea: An Obsession With Health

South Koreans are on track to be the longest-lived people in the world

ARTE Reportage

Planting trees against climate change: Ireland is reforesting its territory by growing spruces. But it's not just about being green, it's about profit. Wood is a big business... much to the displeasure of local environmental activists who want Ireland's forestry policy changed. 

Growing trees to be harvested for wood is big business - but what are the environmental ramifications? 

Re: Money Grows on Trees

10 years ago Tunisians rose up against their oppressive regime. Street protests led to the fall of the dictatorship and free elections and kickstarted a wave of protests across the Arab world. Is life better for Tunisians a decade later?

Tunisia: 10 Years on from the Jasmine Revolution

10 years ago Tunisians rose up against their oppressive regime. Is life better for Tunisians a decade later?

After fifteen years with the White Stripes and The Raconteurs, Jack White started his solo career in 2012. 2022 marks a milestone for the Detroit-born artist with the release of two new albums: Fear of Dawn and Entering Heaven Alive,. Mr White is live in Paris at the legendary venue, the Olympia.

The White Stripes star is live in Paris to perform his two latest albums: Fear of Dawn and Entering Heaven Alive.

Jack White at the Paris Olympia

Did you know that the Middle Ages is only a few kilometers off the French coast? A lord and his vassals live peacefully on the island of Sark where cars are not allowed. This is a case for Crazy Borders! 

Sark: A Modern Day Feudal Island

A lord and his vassals live peacefully on the island of Sark where cars are not allowed.

The Russian enclave of Kaliningrad sits between Lithuania and Poland. Once German East Prussia, it is now home to 1 million Russian citizens. What is life like in this small territory now practically cut off from its EU neighbours since the war in Ukraine began?

Kaliningrad: Putin's Enclave

The Russian enclave of Kaliningrad sits between Lithuania and Poland and is now practically cut off from its EU neighbours since the war in Ukraine began.

In Europe, the last primary forests are found almost exclusively in the mountains in the east or south-east of the continent. These virgin forests have never been exploited or cut down, and have remained as they have always been. Few studies have been done on this forests, which are presumably havens of biodiversity. We go on a research trip to the Dinaric Alps in Albania.

The Green Lungs of Europe

We go on a research trip to the Dinaric Alps in Albania

Geo Reportage

The most popular of Gustav Mahler's symphonies, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen and staged by Romeo Castellucci. A very special production, which promises to stir up the audience at the Aix-en-Provence Festival.

A message from director Romeo Castellucci:
The action you are about to witness has the particular misfortune of containing images that, charged with violence, seem to be the cruel likeness of our near reality.
I imagined this work over a year ago.
No one could have foreseen this painful overlapping of art and reality, which today seems like an atrocious prophecy.
How to support today the unconscious exactness of these images on the stage?
But what to do in the face of the irretrievable that theatre represents?
It is essential to accept the pain produced by this concordance, in the light that Gustav Mahler’s Resurrection can represent.
Romeo Castellucci
July 2022
Recorded 13 July in Aix-en-Provence with the Orchestre de Paris and the Choir of the Orchestre de Paris.

The most popular of Gustav Mahler's symphonies, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen and staged by Romeo Castellucci. A very special production, which promises to stir up the audience at the Aix-en-Provence Festival.

Resurrection - Gustav Mahler

French electro duo the Blaze are in demand for their melancholic-euphoric sound, trademark dream-like music videos and seriously engaging live performances.

Live from the Nuits de Fourvière

The Blaze

Did you know that the last war between France and Spain took place in the 1970s? It was the war of the stop signs in Llívia, a Spanish town - but in France, in the Pyrenees. This bizarre quirk is due to a treaty signed centuries ago. This really is a case for Crazy Borders! 

Llivia, Between France and Spain

Did you know that the last war between France and Spain took place in the 1970s?

In the town of Baarle, a body of a woman was discovered in a house... but before police could intervene, first authorities had to call a surveyor. Baarle is crisscrossed over with a winding frontier between the Netherlands and Belgium, and police needed to know which country was responsible for investigating the killing. One half of the house was Dutch, the other half was Belgian. This is a case for Crazy Borders! 

Baarle, a Town of Two Nations

A city divided between Belgium and the Netherlands, and scene of a murder? Welcome to Baarle.

Are Birds Musicians?

Gymnastics - Cultural Brain Stretching

Gymnastics

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The Scully Effect

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The Freedom to Cycle

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Van Gogh's Disappearing Colours

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Caravaggio, Genius - and Killer?

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Does the Voice Have a Gender?

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The Sensual World of Podcast Porn

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What if the Matrix Was Real?

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Ayn Rand, Capitalism Guru

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