Ahhh, now this is more like it. Pure, unadulterated Beethoven. I realize life requires variety, even experiencing/tasting/seeing/hearing things we don’t particularly like, just so that we’ll appreciate the things we do like. And I totally get that if all I listened to was Beethoven, I’d eventually get sick of Ludwig’s creative endeavors. As much as … [Read more…]
Today’s CD is another double – with nothing on the back cover and nothing on the gatefold inside. I put up with that before. But I’m not going to this time. There’s no excuse not to provide information – especially when I know the original album release contained an entire booklet inside the box that … [Read more…]
Tonight’s album is Unfinished Symphony and Symphony No. 5 in B-Flat by Franz Schubert (1787-1828). So, I figured that this august recording deserved a tasty accompaniment: an ice-cold Schlitz, for example, one of the few remaining beers from the good old days when men were men and beer was beer. Schlitz – like Stroh’s, Carling … [Read more…]
I got to my favorite Reiner-listening restaurant before it opened this morning. I didn’t mean to. I must have gotten up earlier than usual. Or farted around getting ready less than usual. Anyway, when I saw the waning gibbous moon hung above the entrance, I did what any self-respecting prospective diner holding a satchel full … [Read more…]
There’s a magical quality to today’s album, a certain dreamlike bouquet. And it begins with Claude Debussy’s La Mer (the sea), which is “A Tone Poem after Lenau,” whatever that means. The Objective Stuff From his entry on Wikipedia, (Achille) Claude Debussy (1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as … [Read more…]
Everybody knows the name Van Cliburn (1934-2013). I knew it decades ago, even while I was listening to The Monkees. So when it popped up in today’s rotation, I was thrilled. Strangely, in all of my knowing the name Van Cliburn, I don’t recall ever hearing him play. Today’s the day I will rectify that … [Read more…]
When I first listened to Haydn’s complete works a number of years ago, I wasn’t impressed. I thought Haydn was a snooze fest. And, yes, I’m aware that he’s referred to as “Father of the Symphony” and “Father of the String Quartet” That notwithstanding, I never connected to Haydn. Fast forward several years and first … [Read more…]