Same Old Lang Syne
It’s not the season for it, but oh well – I’ve always liked this song of Dan Fogelberg’s. Turns out it has an interesting story behind it, too:
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Open thread 3/17/22
I’m happy to say that I’m now able to identify which Bach piece I learned after that Chopin waltz, as described in this previous post. Actually, it was two Bach pieces, two minuets. Easy ones but very lovely. If your … Continue reading →
Dueling Chopin Polonaises – and my very brief piano career
My favorite classical composers are as follows: Chopin, Tchaikovsky, Bach, Dvorak. Note the order; Chopin leads the way. Is that because I was heavily exposed to Chopin from the age of four in ballet class? I don’t think it’s just … Continue reading →
Then and now
I wrote a draft for a huge post focusing on Ukraine’s history and on NATO. It’s probably going to be a two-parter. Instead of racing to get the first part up here for the weekend, I’ve decided to postpone that … Continue reading →
Dueling violin prodigies playing Winter in Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons
Christian Li is fourteen years old here. This seems to be a rehearsal. I love the way prodigies get a very adult and focused look on their faces when they play. His delivery is very fast, with lots of attack. … Continue reading →
Virtuals vs. Physicals; Imagology vs. Reality
This article is worth reading: Many have slotted this drama [in Canada] into a familiar framework of right-wing populists versus left-wing elites. But a different way of looking at it may be more helpful in explaining not only what has … Continue reading →
Tyranny creep: Canada and elsewhere
Commenter John Tyler asks: There never is a shortage of jack-booted enforcers to impose a government’s will upon the citizenry. This time Canada is the venue. So, ladies and gents, what is about the Canadian personality or culture that enables … Continue reading →
Presidents’ Day poetry
[NOTE: Today is Presidents’ Day, and this is a repeat of a previous post.] I’m not that old, but pedagogical practices in my youth seem absolutely archaic compared to whatever passes for education these days. For starters, we had Washington’s … Continue reading →
On the ugliness of the German language
[NOTE: This post was inspired by a discussion in the comments in this thread.] I don’t speak German at all except for a few words. In fact, foreign languages aren’t my forte, although I’m sensitive to sounds. Until a few … Continue reading →
Mask-free in Las Vegas
This video has been making the rounds. It shows Las Vegas schoolchildren’s wild glee at being told that starting tomorrow they can ditch their masks. They’ve certainly suffered more than enough with this, but one of the things I find … Continue reading →
Tragique and triviale; weight and lightness
On the previous thread on COVID hope and fear, David Foster offered this quote from Arthur Koestler, as related by Koestler’s friend Richard Hillary: K has a theory for this. He believes there are two planes of existence which he … Continue reading →
Christa Ludwig disagrees with Leonard Bernstein about tempo
I had no idea why YouTube decided I would like this video called “Vocalist Disagrees With Bernstein’s Tempo.” But they recommended it, and I idly clicked on it and watched it: “It doesn’t matter; who can hear the words anyway?” … Continue reading →