You are currently browsing the category archive for the ‘Music’ category.
The Simon and Garfunkle green greatest hits album was the very first piece of music I acquired on Compact Disk. I can still remember receiving for Christmas a portable stereo system with the newfangled technology known as a “CD”. Oh, what aural experiences were to be had. :)
I’ve heard many covers of the Sound of Silence and was expecting a three minute tour on the good ship ‘Fail’, but was pleasantly surprised by this song. The lead singer of Disturbed has a surprisingly rich and emotive voice, it just never comes through while he sings in the other style that one might say is a smidge more raw.
Thank you to all who have made it into the New Year and let us pause in brief remembrance of those that will not be joining us in 2016. I can think of no other piece to feature other than this one. It stands alone in its majesty and meaning. I’m not going to big-word-barf any more than this on the scale(!) of this piece.
There. I can wipe my eyes now and wish you all a Most Happy New Year and of course, as King Henry said, “Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;”.
I kinda hate Silent Night as our choir has sung this tune to death over the last 5 or 6 years. However, you don’t see shit as fine as this everyday. Domingo is the gold standard for Tenors and all of us wee fledgling Tenors wish we could be a quarter as good as he is. :) So, we get a unique arrangement of Silent Night, with the Master singing. All is well.
**Fascinating stuff, I heard this tune, while doing the dishes, on CBC’s Vinyl tap(!). I usually cast a jaundiced eye toward shows centred around pop music and what not, but Saturday evenings, the choices available of good non-commerical radio is notoriously thin.
**So, dishes with the ‘Tap’ it was.
**And a quick trip through the neural wiring that constitutes my memory. Listening to this with my Mom in the car or at home on the radio… her gentle reassuring presence. These darn songs can bring back such vivid memories. I’ll be posting this to her facebook wall to see if she remembers as well. :)
“There’ll be no strings to bind your hands
not if my love can’t bind your heart.
And there’s no need to take a stand
for it was I who chose to start.
I see no need to take me home,
I’m old enough to face the dawn.
Just call me angel of the morning ANGEL
just touch my cheek before you leave me, baby.
Just call me angel of the morning ANGEL
then slowly turn away from me.
Maybe the sun’s light will be dim
and it won’t matter anyhow.
If morning’s echo says we’ve sinned,
well, it was what I wanted now.
And if we’re the victims of the night,
I won’t be blinded by light.
Just call me angel of the morning ANGEL
just touch my cheek before you leave me, baby.
Just call me angel of the morning ANGEL
then slowly turn away,
I won’t beg you to stay with me
through the tears of the day,
of the years, baby baby baby.
Just call me angel of the morning ANGEL
just touch my cheek before you leave me, baby.”
**
This earworm will not go away. I cannot escape because I have to practice the damn piece for our upcoming choir performances. So what’s better than an earworm? Sharing one, of course. :)
This is the best version I can find on youtube, so until we bust out our version, this will have to do. :)
We are putting this on the list of piano music that is too damn hard right now, but stuff I will eventually be able to play. Watch his hands after the first repeated section – what is going on is that he is alternating quickly between two sets of notes a 6th apart with the same hand. To the piano student, this is akin to trying to wipe your ass with the wrong hand while wearing mittens filled with bees. My piano teacher assured me that, like with all things, practice makes it easier.
A little background on what a Passacaglia is and an example of what J.S. Bach does with it.
Passacaglia – A musical form of the 17th and 18th centuries consisting of continuous variations on a ground bass and similar to the chaconne.
There are 20 variations in BWV 582/1. The first begins with a typical C minor affekt, “a painful longing” according to Spitta, similar to the beginning of Buxtehude’s Chaconne in C minor (BuxWV 159).[9] Numerous attempts have been made to figure out an overarching symmetrical structure of the work, but scholars have yet to agree on a single interpretation.[10] Particularly important attempts were made by Christoph Wolff and Siegfried Vogelsänder.[spelling?][11] Some scholars have speculated that there is a symbolic component to the structure of the work: for instance, Martin Radulescu argues that BWV 582/1 is “in the form of a cross”.[12]
There is agreement among most scholars that the Passacaglia builds up until its climax in variation twelve.[citation needed] This is followed by three quiet variations, forming a short intermezzo, and then the remaining five variations end the work.
Bach performer and scholar Marie-Claire Alain suggested that the 21 variations are broken down into 7 groups of 3 similar variations, each opening with a quotation from a Lutheran chorale, treated similarly to the Orgel-Büchlein written at a similar time:[13]
-
Bars 8–12, the top part spells out the opening notes of “Nun komm’ der Heiden Heiland”
-
Bars 24–48, a cantilena spells out “Von Gott will ich nicht lassen”
-
Bars 49–72, the scales are a reference to “Vom Himmel kam der Engel Schar”
-
Bars 72–96, recalling the “star” motif from “Herr Christ, der Ein’ge Gottes-Sohn”
-
Bars 96–120, ornamented figure similar to that in “Christ lag in Todesbanden” accompanies theme in the soprano then moving successively to alto and bass
-
Bars 144–168 “Ascending intervals in bass recall the Easter chorale “Erstanden ist der heil’ge Christ”.
And yes, this was an organ piece originally.
bleatmop
Mystro
The Arbourist
Dead Wild Roses 
Your opinions…