Category Archive: MUSIC
A Wagner Timeline
As Robert W. Gutman observed, “cannonades preluded the birth of Richard Wagner“.* When he passed up, from Venice to Valhalla, almost seventy years later, he had been working on “The Feminine Element in Humanity”, a concept bearing some similarity to work of another German giant, Goethe, and he expired in the arms of his wife, Cosima. Betwixt 4 am on 22 May, 1813, and 3.30 pm on 13 February, 1883, the greatest music dramatist that ever lived led a hectic, crowded life, one that defies encapsulation, even by the very best biographers. You’d need to spare a couple of decades, travel a…
Continue Reading →Impressions of Die Walküre
Josef Hoffman design for Act I, 1876
Richard Wagner Society, 3 April 2016 The Society had a lovely afternoon discussing ‘Visions of Die Walküre,‘ when Wagner enthusiasts spoke of varied productions across the map, and three distinguished speakers (plus yours truly) gave some formal shape to the issues. Neville Hannaford reviewed leading recordings, from the Chereau/Boulez centenary production at Bayreuth to the visually impressive (albeit quirky – Hunding’s hut is represented as a circle of stones) but weakly-acted Valencia offering. He selected Bayreuth as the best naturalistic version, featuring the best Siegmund (Peter Hoffman) and Hunding (a formidable Matti Salminen, who also appeared at Valencia). …
Continue Reading →All the Young Dudes
Songs in Our Heart # 4 All the Young Dudes (Mott the Hoople) (Written by David Bowie; released July 1972) [Bowie‘s gift to Mott the Hoople is up there with his best. “Now I’ve drunk a lot of wine and I’m feeling fine Got to race some cat to bed Oh, is that concrete all around Or is it in my head? Yeah I’m a dude, dad“]
Continue Reading →Nicholas Carter in Conversation
(Bradley Forum, Adelaide, March 2016) [ASO Chief Conductor Nicholas Carter in conversation with Jacinta Thompson] TVC attended this important discussion at Uni SA last evening, in the “Bob Hawke Prime Ministerial Centre”, a think-tank with the mission of “strengthening our democracy – valuing our diversity – building our future”. (As to these aims, one could not help hearken back to the imbroglio of Bob’s many failed attempts to impose the Australia Card on us, but let that pass!) The central text was the relevance of the orchestra in the 21st Century – which recalls the golden moment from The Ploughman’s Lunch,…
Continue Reading →“Welcome Back, My Friends, to the Show That Never Ends”
Emerson at the Moog in 1970 (photo thanks to Surka)
Keith Noel Emerson (2 November 1944 – 10 March 2016) Anyone who has had the misfortune to sit through a spin of the record Switched on Bach by Walter – er, sorry, Wendy, Carlos, as well as a slew of other Moog travesties (from Moog Beatles tunes to Moog country and western) will know that the harmonic effect of this diabolical machine is as weird as some of its leading practitioners. Keith Emerson, who died last Thursday, was a leading exponent of prog rock, as exemplified by the synthesizer. In particular, via Emerson, Lake and Palmer, which in its first incarnation…
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