Friday, January 22 marks the birthday of Walter Homburger, one of Canada’s most distinguished arts administrators and impresarios, and manager of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra from 1962 to 1987.  Happy birthday, Walter!

On Monday, January 18 Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty announced a significant cabinet shuffle.  Among many other shifts, Minister of Culture Aileen Carroll has left Cabinet, and Culture (which has been a stand-alone Ministerial appointment since the early 2000s) has been re-combined with Tourism.  The new Minister of Tourism and Culture is Michael Chan, MPP for GTA riding Markham-Unionville.  According to the government announcement, Minister Chan will “work to establish Regional Tourism Organizations in regions across Ontario and promote Ontario’s natural beauty, vibrant cities and towns, and thriving cultural attractions to visitors from all over the world. He will also lead our efforts with Ontario’s cultural industries to create new jobs and opportunities for Ontario families.”

The Canada Council for the Arts has appointed Robin Ghosh as its new Director, Finance & Administration, effective February 8, 2010.  Before establishing his own consulting firm in 2008, Mr. Ghosh, a Chartered Accountant and a Certified Public Accountant, worked for more than 20 years at Canada Post Corporation as Senior Director, Asset Valuation; National Director Finance, Mail Operations; and Director , Information Systems Management, where he developed policy and coordinated operations across six regions.