With over 1 billion speakers, English is an incredibly diverse language. Dozens of countries around the world have their own varieties, many of which have not historically seen adequate representation in English dictionaries.

This past April, the Oxford English Dictionary hosted the Oxford World English Symposium 2022, a two-day event featuring a series of parallel sessions and panels on topics relating not only to varieties of English, but language prejudice, colonialism, and context-based English language teaching, among others.

On today’s episode, we’re featuring Lisa Lim, Phillip Louw, and Michael Proffitt, three of the Symposium’s participants, in the form of a follow-up panel hosted by Dr. Danica Salazar, World English Executive Editor for Oxford Languages.

More information about the Oxford World English Symposium 2022, including links to the panel discussions and parallel sessions, can be found here: https://public.oed.com/varieties-of-english/oed-symposium-2022/

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Oxford World English Symposium 2022 Recap - Episode 72 - The Oxford Comment

Toby Young's original setting refreshes this well-known text with a masterful and memorable melody that is imbued with an indelible tenderness. Young makes use of effective textural changes and syncopation, fusing the flavour of a contemporary worship song with the structure and scoring of a traditional carol.

More on the OUP site

O holy night! - Toby Young

Lucy Walker's thoughtful setting of 'There is no rose' flows between swells of emotion and warm chromatic inflections in the Latin refrains. This piece captures the natural emphases of the text, seamlessly moving between irregular and simple metres.

There is no rose - Lucy Walker

Quartel's arrangement of the 'Huron Carol', renamed 'Iesous ahatonnia' to reflect its origins, sets new texts by Wendat poet Andrée Levesque Sioui and invites choirs and audiences to learn from the past while working to shape a better future.

Iesous ahatonnia’ - Sarah Quartel

In this fun and snappy arrangement of a well-loved Christmas carol, Crawford has breathed new life into the melody using playful alternations between 3/4 and 6/8 metre. The simple vocal lines are underpinned by a supportive, bouncy piano accompaniment.

Joy to the world! - Lowell Mason

Setting a text by Marc Bratcher, 'I too shall walk to Bethlehem' depicts a journey to the Bethlehem stable 'where once a child was born', recounting the strength, courage, and heart acquired from the encounters along the way. Unison passages in upper and lower voices move seamlessly into warm homophonic harmonies, with brief moments of divisi. A flowing piano accompaniment provides support during, and interludes between, verses.

I too shall walk - John Rutter

Learn more about the origins of the exhibition from curator Lauren Hinkson.

Transcript
Lauren Hinkson: Welcome to the exhibition "Jenny Holzer: Light Line." I’m Lauren Hinkson, the Associate Curator for Collections here at the Guggenheim. 

For more than forty years, American conceptual artist Jenny Holzer has presented her astringent ideas, arguments, and sorrows in public places and international exhibitions. Her medium is language. Whether inscribed on a plaque, poster, or condom, Holzer’s incisive text-based practice draws on the explosive power of the written word. The work tackles some of the most pressing issues and themes of our time—from climate justice to women’s rights, from war to corruption. Holzer is a vital voice in both art and activism. 

Starting in the 1970s with a series of posters around New York City and continuing through her recent light projections on landscape and architecture, Holzer’s practice has rivaled ignorance and violence with humor, kindness, and courage. For "Light Line," Holzer has conceived of the installation of work from throughout her career as a singular conceptual project—a holistic installation that builds on and refracts concerns about society, politics, and the work of living that have been an undercurrent in her practice. 

As you move through the museum, you will see and be absorbed by the monumental LED display climbing all six ramps of the Frank Lloyd Wright–designed rotunda to the building’s apex. This work is titled "Installation for the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum." It is a collection work owned by the Guggenheim. The work is a reimagining of Holzer’s 1989 LED sign that was shown here some thirty-five years ago.  

The new manifestation of Holzer’s electronic sign transforms the building with a display of scrolling texts that Holzer has written over her career. The work is both witty and profound at the same time, with iconic statements from early works, such as “You Are the Victim of the Rules You Live By,” “Private Property Created Crime,” and “Abuse of Power Comes as No Surprise.”   

The texts and themes in the LED sign also materialize in other works on view in "Light Line," reinforcing the correspondences in Holzer’s conceptual practice across time and medium. There are also new works incorporating texts by poets, politicians, activists, and literary figures, as well as sources like government dossiers and redacted FBI files. These take new forms in the exhibition, including light projections on the building and gold-leaf paintings. 

These messages are thought-provoking, with the artist hoping that they would sharpen people’s awareness of the political and social connotations urgent to our time. They are meant not only to be read but also heeded.

Exhibition Website

Introduction to Jenny Holzer: Light Line

A shining city on a hill. America the beautiful. The United States has long been mythologised as the land of dreams and opportunity. And since the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s it has been undisputedly the most powerful nation on earth. But is it a fading force? The idea of an America in decline has gained traction in recent years and has, of course, been capitalized on by President Trump. Is America’s ‘greatness’ under threat?
In this episode of LSE iQ, a collaboration with the LSE Phelan US Centre's podcast, The Ballpark, Sue Windebank and Chris Gilson speak to LSE’s Elizabeth Ingleson and John Van Reenen and Ashley Tellis from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. 

Contributors
Elizabeth Ingleson
John Van Reenen
Ashley Tellis

Research
Made in China: When US-China Interests Converged to Transform Global Trade by Elizabeth Ingleson
The Fall of the Labor Share and the Rise of Superstar Firms by David Autor, David Dorn, Lawrence F Katz, Christina Patterson and John Van Reenen, The Quarterly Journal of Economics, May 2020.
Revising U.S. Grand Strategy Toward China by Robert D. Blackwill and Ashley J. Tellis

LSE Phelan United States Centre: https://www.lse.ac.uk/United-States 
Listen to The Ballpark podcast: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/Podcasts; LSE Player, Spotify; Soundcloud
Related interviews on The Ballpark with guests on this episode
Dr Ashley Tellis - The Future of US-China Competition
Dr Elizabeth Ingleson - Made in China: When US-China Interests Converged to Transform Global Trade

LSE IQ podcast

Will the US remain the world's superpower?

Welcome to the last episode of YJBM Science News for the school year of 2023-2024! We are so thankful to all our listeners who were here for our journey. We will continue releasing our other podcast project over the summer, and in the meantime - stay tuned for next year’s Yale Science News, starting in August of 2024!

Links:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07407-y
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-024-01870-3
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41556-024-01413-y
https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.ajp.20230849

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Oxford World English Symposium 2022 Recap - Episode 72 - The Oxford Comment

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