I have long loved classical music, as those who have read my blog posts over the years will likely remember. Of the various subsections of the overall classical genre, I tend to be a classical guy, though I do like some romance and baroque music too (think Mozart). I’m not a fan of modern classical, as most of it seems to be a contest of who can create the most discordant cacophony. My favorite composers have always been Mozart and…
Rather than a specific piece, I thought I would highlight a music style today–the barcarolle. A barcarolle is a traditional folk song sung by Venetian gondoliers and over time has come to mean any piece of music that was composed in that style. A barcarolle when done properly is supposed to give the sensation of traveling on waves through music. It is usually written in 3/4 or 6/8 time (or some other three beat pattern) and is often, though certainly…
Image from https://www.inyourpocket.com/krakow/the-dead-south_24759e Meet The Dead South, a folk-bluegrass band from my hometown. My son sent me the link to this song without telling me about the band, but the majority of video was obviously shot in and around Regina, Saskatchewan. That got me curious, so I had to find out what was going on. They formed in 2012 and have been together, for the most part, since then. Take a listen to this, it is well worth a few…
Photo by Kaja Kadlecova on Unsplash I’ve had a tune running through me head and I wanted to share it with you. It’s a delightful, happy song that my mother listened to on occasion. As her favorite music was classical, with a smattering of opera, I had assumed this was an aira from something like The Barber of Seville. Hearing this song brings back memories of Bugs Bunny’s “Rabbit of Seville” episode. Imagine my surprise when I discovered was composed in conjunction with the …
I wanted to jump in and wish you all a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy New Year, or whatever you prefer to celebrate. I love this time of year, for the hearts of everyone we meet seem to be somehow softened at this time of year. I am a Christian and celebrate the birth of the Savior, Jesus Christ at this time of year, but I see this softening in anyone, and not only Christians. May you have all the…
Today I want to share three of what I think are the prettiest Christmas songs of the past sixty years. They are not carols, but they do bring the spirit of the season. The first is “I Believe in Father Christmas” by Greg Lake. A bit of interesting trivia about this song is he did not compose it as a celebration of the season, but rather as a protest over what he saw as the increasing commercialization of the holiday….
I stumbled across this a few days ago and had to share it. Delibes: Lakmé – Duo des fleurs (Flower Duet) is a duet for soprano and mezzo-soprano in the first act of Léo Delibes’ opera Lakmé, premiered in Paris in 1883. It is sung by the characters Lakmé, daughter of a Brahmin priest, and her servant Mallika, as they go to gather flowers by a river. While you may not recognize the name of this piece, you should be familiar…
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is one of Mozart’s most beloved and enduring pieces of music. Though the origins are not known, it was likely a commissioned work, completed in about August of 1787. It is a serenade, and was written for a small ensemble, though today we usually hear it performed by a full orchestra. The name comes from Mozart’s own notation in the music, in which he almost certainly was not giving it a special name, but had only noted…
I’ve been thinking a lot about life and mortality of late. If you read Colin’s tribute post you will know that our mother passed away at the beginning of the month. In the latter years of her life, she began to struggle with immobility and problems with her legs that left her walking with a walker, and then later essentially confined to a wheelchair when she wanted to get around. Even worse, she was diagnosed with dementia, which became so…
I am a child of the 60’s. When Beatlemania hit in 1963, I was seven years old, but even at that age I loved their music and, honestly, about ninety-five percent of the music from that decade. Were those ten years the pinnacle of musical achievement? In my humble opinion, while some fantastic compositions were penned in that period, they don’t hold a candle to Mozart, Beethoven, Liszt, and a host of other composers from the previous three or four…