Author: NY TIMES

Alice Parker, whose arrangements of hymns, folk songs, and spirituals were used in concert halls and churches across America, and who composed 11 song cycles and four operas, died on Dec. 24 at her home in Hawley, Mass. She was 98.Her death was confirmed by two of her children, Molly Stejskal and David Pyle.Ms. Parker’s simple renderings of traditional hymns like “Hark I Hear the Harps Eternal,” spirituals like “You Can Tell the World,” and Christmas carols and folk songs, made her a trusted partner for choirs all over the country.For two decades she also worked with the most prominent…

The International Court of Justice, the United Nations’ highest judicial body, will begin hearings this week in a case brought by South Africa that accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.The hearings, the first step in a lengthy process should the case go forward, will be the first time that Israel has chosen to defend itself, in person, in such a setting, attesting to the gravity of the indictment and the high stakes for its international reputation and standing.Genocide, the term first employed by a Polish lawyer of Jewish descent in 1944 to describe the Nazis’ systematic murder of about…

In 2014, when Lai Ching-te was a rising political star in Taiwan, he visited China and was quizzed in public about the most incendiary issue for leaders in Beijing: his party’s stance on the island’s independence.His polite but firm response, people who know him say, was characteristic of the man who was on Saturday elected president and is now set to lead Taiwan for the next four years.Mr. Lai was addressing professors at the prestigious Fudan University in Shanghai, an audience whose members, like many mainland Chinese, almost certainly believed that the island of Taiwan belongs to China.Mr. Lai said…

Out & About covers the events where notable, powerful and influential figures gather. Plus the outfits. This week: a reunion for “The Sopranos” cast and a gathering for the podcast “Nota Bene.”A Family Dinner on Mulberry StreetOn Wednesday night, in Little Italy, cast and crew members of “The Sopranos,” which premiered 25 years ago this week, gathered for dinner at Da Nico, an old red sauce restaurant on Mulberry Street. The celebratory feast was held alongside an anniversary nostalgia tour for the show, with fan events and special screenings.“It’s like heaven. It’s extraordinary being with these people,” David Chase, the…

“Ready, on three,” Jamie Love said to the group of hikers as they huddled for a photo. “One, two, three …”“Don’t die!” they shouted in unison.The dozen or so strangers were gathered at the foot of Temescal Canyon Trail along the Pacific coast in Los Angeles on a cool Saturday morning in mid-December. Several of them, including Ms. Love, 38, who had organized the outing, wore black T-shirts with the bold white text, “DON’T DIE.”The hikers had come together with a shared goal: to extend their life spans through diet, sleep, exercise and whatever technologies might come along.Not present was…

When he joined The Los Angeles Times as its top editor nearly three years ago, Kevin Merida was hailed as a leader who would restore calm to a newsroom that had been buffeted by cost-cutting and corporate ownership battles.Now, he’s exiting with little warning, an abrupt departure that leaves the largest news organization in the West in a state of flux.Mr. Merida told staff members on Tuesday that he was stepping down “after considerable soul-searching about my career.”He did not specify exactly why he was leaving, but he did say that his last day would be on Friday.Patrick Soon-Shiong, the…

Subscribe to Popcast!Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon MusicNo one on the New York Times pop music staff attends more live shows than Caryn Ganz, the pop music editor. On this week’s Popcast, she reflects on the first full post-pandemic year of live performances, with stadium and arena tours finally back at full strength.That includes reflections on performances by Madonna, the Rolling Stones, 100 gecs, Depeche Mode, SZA, the Cure, Liz Phair and many more.Guest:Connect With Popcast. Become a part of the Popcast community: Join the show’s Facebook group and Discord channel. We want to hear from you! Tune in,…

The United States and five of its allies on Thursday carried out military strikes against more than a dozen targets in Yemen controlled by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia, in an expansion of the war in the Middle East that the Biden administration had sought to avoid for the past three months.The American-led air and naval strikes came in response to more than two dozen Houthi drone and missile attacks against commercial shipping in the Red Sea since November, and after warnings to the Houthis in the past week from the Biden administration and several international allies of serious consequences if…

They sit in ones and twos in half-destroyed homes. They shelter in musty basements marked in chalk with “people underground” — a message to whichever troops happen to be fighting that day. They venture out to visit cemeteries and reminisce about any time other than now.Ukraine’s elderly are often the only people who remain along the country’s hundreds of miles of front line. Some waited their entire lives to enjoy their twilight years, only to have been left in a purgatory of loneliness.Homes built with their own hands are now crumbling walls and blown-out windows, with framed photographs of loved…

Brianna Michaud’s ’90s childhood was filled with sleepovers at friends’ houses. Her mother sometimes came inside the house and chatted with the parents for a few minutes, but sensitive topics like bodily autonomy, gun safety or technology use — except for the rule that she not watch anything rated PG-13 or higher — weren’t the kinds of things discussed.“It was a different time,” Ms. Michaud, now 35, said.It may come as no surprise that parents are experiencing more anxiety in general these days. There is an increased awareness of issues like sexual abuse and gun violence, said Christy Keating, a…