something I am grateful for today
Jun. 13th, 2012 11:44 amA tree.
Near my office is a tree that looks very much like the one in the picture [I hope you can see] below. So whenever I see it, I am reminded of this album, and therefore of Rautavaara's music, which I quite like. I find this rather cool.

Near my office is a tree that looks very much like the one in the picture [I hope you can see] below. So whenever I see it, I am reminded of this album, and therefore of Rautavaara's music, which I quite like. I find this rather cool.

something I am grateful for today
Aug. 24th, 2011 07:20 amThe work of John Weinzweig, OC -- “The Dean of Canadian Composers” left us on this date in 2006. But he left us with one of my favourite bodies of musical works. I remember and salute him today.
classical strings geek
Jan. 12th, 2011 03:10 pmAnything that I have heard Hilary Hahn record, strikes me as The Definitive Performance of that piece. I mean, I can't even say the same for Jacqueline du Pré, so, uhh, there it is.
Happy Birthday
Mar. 11th, 2010 03:30 pm... to the Dean of Canadian Composers, John Weinzweig. (would've been 97 today)
speaking of mountains
Sep. 16th, 2009 04:28 pmAlan Hovhaness also dug mountains, apparently. A lot of his compositions are about, or based on, or inspired by, or dedicated to, or otherwise related to mountains. (Check him out, his sutff is purdy cool.)
wotta intriguin guy
Aug. 19th, 2009 01:18 pmSeems to me like Havergal Brian must've really enjoyed doing what he did.... an unusual tale.
string quartets
Aug. 14th, 2009 12:39 pmI dunno what it is about string quartets, but they really intrigue me and rub me the right way. A well-written, well-recorded one somehow sounds as full and rich as an entire orchestra, and it fascinates me how just four guys with such lo-tech equipment can do that. Pick just about any composer, and their string quartets will usually be some of my fave pieces of theirs. Kinda geeky, I know...
Hope these links work:
http://www.amazon.ca/tasty-string-quartets-volume-one/lm/UOX2SVY6WK8Y/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_full
http://www.amazon.ca/tasty-string-quartets-volume-two/lm/WUAA4VNIHWXE/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_full
Hope these links work:
http://www.amazon.ca/tasty-string-quartets-volume-one/lm/UOX2SVY6WK8Y/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_full
http://www.amazon.ca/tasty-string-quartets-volume-two/lm/WUAA4VNIHWXE/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_full
I only heard the news today [oh boy] but can't let it pass unremarked...
Weinzweig was often dubbed "The Dean of Canadian Composers" -- one of the country's first modernist composers, one of the finest modernist composers of any place or time [definitely in my own personal Top Ten Composers Ever], and teacher to generations that followed. Most likely no single person had a greater effect on the flavour and direction of my nation's "serious" music.
Maestro, I salute you.

Maestro, I salute you.
recommended
Dec. 23rd, 2005 06:48 pm
A great deal if you're into rich, colorful classics. Villa-Lobos was one of the most rewarding 20th-century composers of any culture and any decade, and this package gives you 3 discs of high-quality performance and recording for a truly bargain price.
Proof that Brazil has given the world more than just The Perfect Ass™... ;P