Here’s a great rehearsal video of some Georgian (the Russian Georgia, not the US one) dancers [hat tip: commenter “g6loq”]. Usually they wear costumes that make it more difficult to see their bodies. It creates a nice illusion but hides … Continue reading →
During a 1976 interview, author and poet James Dickey said this about poets and celebrities pronouncing on politics: INTERVIEWER Some of your detractors have mentioned the fact that they felt that you should use your influence, your place in the … Continue reading →
“Caedmon” asks me to comment on this clip of Natalia Osipova’s fouettes. Let’s take a look and compare them to the ones shown in my previous post about those whiplike turns: I have to say I lke Osipova’s fouettes the … Continue reading →
I’ve written about the ballet step known as the fouette before, and so I’ll quote myself: The turn…is known as the fouette—a word that means “whip.”…The trajectory of the leg as it quickly unfolds leads the body into the turn … Continue reading →
Emily Phillips had a way with words, and she used it to write her own obituary, which has gone viral [hat tip: Althouse]. I bet we can get a good idea of Phillips’ personality by reading it: It pains me … Continue reading →
[Part I here.] Whatever was I talking about when I said that the lyrics of “Walk Away, Renee” were poetry? You might think the lyrics aren’t so special; just the usual rock pap. But bear with me and see whether … Continue reading →
Recently I wrote a post that featured the Yeats poem “The Second Coming.” Today I decided to look up more about the poem’s background, and came up with this: Modernists read the poem as a dirge for the decline of … Continue reading →
THE SECOND COMING William Butler Yeats (1865-1939) Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and … Continue reading →
RIP, Michael Brown. Who’s Michael Brown? you ask: Michael Brown, a keyboardist and songwriter who at 16 was a writer of the 1966 hit “Walk Away Renee” for his band the Left Banke and composed “Pretty Ballerina” for it as … Continue reading →
I was in my car listening to NPR the other night (yes, sometimes I listen to NPR) and someone mentioned that, back in the 30s, half of John Steinbeck’s first draft of Of Mice and Men had been eaten by … Continue reading →
A little while ago I wrote a post featuring great monotonous songs. Today I’m going to write about great crescendo songs, which consist of either a single crescendo or in some cases a series of crescendos. A lot of songs … Continue reading →
The US reports that ISIS has lost 25% of the territory it once held. Although I hope this is true, I’m not at all sure I believe them, and they sound a bit shaky about it themselves: …a U.S. assessment…determined … Continue reading →