Just back from a typically wonderful Philadelphia Orchestra concert conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin. View fullsize Yannick and Hélène Grimaud taking bows after the concerto Yannick seems to have bleached his hair. I didn’t subscribe last season and the only concert I attended was not conducted by him, so I’m not sure if this is a … Continue reading Umoja
Music
The Music That Makes Me Dance
I was harsh on the music of Legally Blonde: The Musical, and I just wanted to add a few words about that.It’s true that the style of music in that show was not to my current musical tastes, but that was not why I was so critical of it. View fullsize Jonas Brothers For example, … Continue reading The Music That Makes Me Dance
Bartók
This afternoon I attended a performance of the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen. I don’t have a subscription this year, so this was the first concert I went to this season. It was a mixed bag.The last few years that I had a subscription I had box seats that were in the Second Tier … Continue reading Bartók
An Enchanted Afternoon?
View fullsize Liat and Lt. Cable (Alison T. Chi and Ben Michael) As I've written previously, South Pacific is my favorite Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, so I was looking forward to the Walnut Street Theatre's current production.I like sitting front row center when possible, but the ticket I bought was for the far right seat, … Continue reading An Enchanted Afternoon?
Mahler’s Homage to Brahms
Dennis Fowler posted a comment on a classical meetup event about the similarity of the opening theme of Mahler's Symphony Number 3 to the main theme of the fourth movement of Brahms's first symphony. Was it a case of Mahler paying veiled tribute to Brahms? The Mahler theme, he said, sounds like a “minor-key ghost … Continue reading Mahler’s Homage to Brahms
The Golden Spinning Wheel Annotated
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I Can’t Dance, Either…
As I explained in a previous post, while watching "All In with Chris Hayes" a few weeks ago, a comment that Hayes made about the (possibly temporary) legalization of same sex marriage in the state of Utah reminded me of a song, and I set about making a song parody video. You can read that … Continue reading I Can’t Dance, Either…
My Piano Teachers
My uncle Curtis (father's brother) was a music teacher and started to teach me to play the piano about the time I began kindergarten. As a result, I knew how to read music before I could read words. He continued to teach me while we lived on the farm (the piano was in my grandparents … Continue reading My Piano Teachers
I Can’t Belt! Don’t Ask Me!
A few days ago I was watching a news program where the topic was the court's declaration that same sex marriage was now legal in Utah, and something that someone said suggested a song parody and video to me. As it happened, Apple had just released a major upgrade to their Final Cut Pro X … Continue reading I Can’t Belt! Don’t Ask Me!
Felina
So who knew Walter White would transform into Momma Rose, right before our eyes? "I did it for me." The series finale of Breaking Bad was possibly the most satisfying finale of any show I've ever seen. It hit all the right notes, but for the most part I didn't see any of it … Continue reading Felina