"Achievements, seldom credited to their source, are the result of unspeakable drudgery and worries." -Richard Wagner Yesterday on Jeopardy!, this happened: Wrong, Alex. While the character of Jochanaan IS John the Baptist, the opera in which he appears is most definitely NOT by Richard Wagner. The opera is Salome, which of course is the work … Continue reading Wrong, Alex
Slow Down, You Move Too Fast
I remember the first time I heard about "9 Beet Stretch". Sound artist Leif Inge took a recording of Beethoven's 9th Symphony and stretched to last 24 hours, with no change in pitch. That's a 70 minute symphony stretched out to 1,680 minutes. 9 Beet Stretch was featured on an episode of RadioLab all about … Continue reading Slow Down, You Move Too Fast
Peter’s Denial
Almost as quickly as it arrived, the ban on reviews of the Metropolitan Opera in Opera News has vanished. Chalk this up as a victory for free speech. Peter Gelb's recent attempted censorship of negative reviews both at WQXR and at Opera News prompted vicious, nearly unanimous backlash from critics and bloggers around the world … Continue reading Peter’s Denial
Remembering Lorin Levee
The LA Philharmonic lost a dear member of its family earlier this season when co-principal clarinetist Lorin Levee passed away at the age of 61. On this week's LA Phil concert broadcast on Classical KUSC, some of the musicians in the orchestra remember their colleague of 35+ seasons. Above is visual representation of their words. … Continue reading Remembering Lorin Levee
The Day the Music Died
Music Education, a staple of the Los Angeles Unified School District curriculum that inspired tens of thousands of students to pursue a career in the performing arts, died yesterday after a long battle with financial anemia. It was 159 years old. It’s the beginning of an obituary that almost had to be written this year … Continue reading The Day the Music Died
Brian Lauritzen 