This is just the kind of music I needed this morning to broom the cobwebs out of my mind. Well, a better verb would be jackhammering. Because some of this is really, really loud and busy. On second thought, maybe I’d better turn down the volume a little. I’d like to leave few cobwebs behind … [Read more…]
Today brings another musical discovery for me. I’d never heard of Ottorino Respighi (1879-1936) before this morning. Therefore, I’d never heard of these two compositions – Pines of Rome and Fountains of Rome – either. But I’m hearing one of them (Pines of Rome) as I type these words. And it’s not bad. Not generally, … [Read more…]
I knew it was going to come to this, sooner or later. The Nutcracker. The most notoriously kid-friendly, syrup-sweet, Christmas-themed composition in the history of compositions has taken refuge in my earphones today. I took my wife to The Nutcracker ballet once, about 15 years ago. She told me that it was her favorite Christmas … [Read more…]
The spelling of Sergei’s name on this Frtiz Reiner Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Complete RCA Album Collection box set is starting to bug me. Nowhere else do I find his last name spelled “Prokofieff.” It’s always “Prokofiev.” What’s up with that? I first noted this discrepancy on Day 22. His name on the album cover … [Read more…]
Ahhh. This is more like it. Not even Van Morrison’s unique voice (also an acquired taste) could rattle me as I walked into the bagel-and-coffee restaurant this morning to purchase my usual Asiago bagel (toasted twice!) with plain cream cheese and a mug of Light Roast coffee. (It’s so usual that the person at the … [Read more…]
The first thing I noticed about today’s album is the cover, which is different from every other one so far. I also noticed it doesn’t say “Living Stereo” or “Miracle Surface” or “New Orthophonic” High Fidelity Recording or anything other than RCA Victor in the upper right corner…and a phrase I’d never seen (or even … [Read more…]
Now this is more like it: Beethoven. I’m a huge fan of Ludwig’s. In fact, my top three Classical composers are Bruckner, Beethoven, and Mozart – in that order. (Or, maybe Ludwig and Anton are tied for first. I can’t tell. Both offer some of the greatest music I’ve ever heard in my life.) Whatever. … [Read more…]