Hello all. My attention span for my research paper has reached its end for the night - thank God it's just a peer-review due-date tomorrow and not the actual hand-in. However, I'm still probably too hopped up on coffee to fall asleep so I figured I'd give y'all a candid look into the ACTUAL work music majors have to do: the music history research paper.
(quick point about the coffee. i finally got a bean grinder, and i got a free coffee maker a while ago, so i can actually make coffee from home now. couple that with no facebook and my late-night productivity has skyrocketed.)
Yes, the music history research paper. We love to hate it, and vice versa. This time around we actually got to make up our topic; a composer, a work, a city and a decade - mine is on Gustav Mahler, New York, the time he spent there (1907-1910) and his Ninth Symphony (written during that period). It's been pretty good, I just listen to his music for ages and then write a bit about it. The problem, however, is that the piece is so beautiful I'm spending so much time listening to it I'm getting very little writing done. Ah well.
This is all fairly inconsequential anyways - I really just wanted to share the piece itself :P
The Symphony is about an hour and a half long in total, so in order to not have to analyze the entire piece I've just focused on the adagio finale (which is, in my opinion, by the far the best movement of the piece. beyond-words beautiful and moving). I cannot count the number of times I've listened to it over the past week, but it is definitely a high number and is only going to get higher over the next few days while I make myself finish writing.
Youtube yielded gold on this on: I found a video of the full symphony played by the Vienna Phil under Bernstein in IMPECCABLE quality. Like, seriously - this is the best video quality I've seen on youtube. Video and sound are both amazing, syncing is bang on, and like I said it's got the entire work; in particular the video splitting for the adagio are great as well - the editor seperated the videos at pretty fitting musical moments.
I also found a documentary (with footage from the same concert) titled "Four Ways to say Farewell." It's from the same concert performance as the first video set (though the quality is not as good, it just actually looks like it was done in the 70s, which it was), except it's more an analysis of the work as opposed to just the straight piece itself. It features commentary from Bernstein himself, as well as additional footage from rehearsals leading up to the concert. Between the two videos, my mind has been completely blown and there aren't really words to describe how beautiful they both are; hearing the passion and understanding Bernstein displays for the piece is so surreal and inspiring, and the actual uninterrupted work from the first video is just....... no words.
So, here you go. First video is the Bernstein commentary (part 1 of 6) and the second is part 1 of the adagio concert video. Hope you enjoy, and have a good second half of the week!
10.3.10
7.3.10
Sunday Post
Hey y'all. Sorry I'm a tad late this week, very late nights a couple days in a row and I figured some sleep was an okay trade for a late post. I also spent some extra time trying to find a particularly good treat for some compensation. Hope you enjoy, and hope your weeks are all tip-top.
Treat. I was trying to find an incredibly epic guitar thing, but then I found this in my youtube favourites and remembered how amazing, touching and inspiring it was. The Stars soundtrack doesn't do much but help either.
Treat. I was trying to find an incredibly epic guitar thing, but then I found this in my youtube favourites and remembered how amazing, touching and inspiring it was. The Stars soundtrack doesn't do much but help either.
5.3.10
Bike Pirates; Budget/tax/climate rant
This pretty much sums up my week/lack of posts.
I'd include a picture of me playing bass if I felt like finding one cause that's basically been it for me so far. I've been biking like no one's business and it's awesome. If anyone reads this that happened to go to the No HST On Bikes rally wednesday morning I'm sure they will agree it was fantastic.
(Not-so) quick note about this, because I like to use this to, y'know, speak my mind to the internet. I'm no economist, I'm a goddamned music major. I don't know all the ins and outs of the whole government revenue system. What I do know is that their revenue comes from taxes. Sure, they get some money elsewhere, but by and large all the money that the government has comes from taxes. I'm pissed that the BC government lied about HST implementation during their election campaign, but I'm going to have to say I'm more pissed about massive funding and job cuts to, ah, just about everything because of poor revenues.
I didn't go to this rally because I don't want to pay more taxes (which I don't really, but I will be okay with because it's necessary), I went because taxing bikes is fucking stupid. HST is getting tacked onto not just bikes, but all things bike-related: helmets, maintenance, parts, etc. This is going to be a huge DISincentive for people to ride bikes instead of driving cars, especially because of the second thing that completely pissed me off. HST IS NOT GOING TO BE ATTACHED TO CARS OR GAS. This is fucking stupid. Campbell rolls front page of The Globe And Mail saying that strong action is needed against climate change and then turns around and does the opposite in his provincial budget.
This is why I'm pissed off about the situation. BC NEEDS TAXES. It sucks, but that's the only way we're going to get money to the government so that they don't have to keep axing huge chunks out of health, education, arts and just about everything else. However, taxing transportation means and lifestyles that are both sustainable AND healthy while exempting gas/oil and the companies that produce them is just a whole different kind of stupid (it'd be a NEW kind of stupid too, except the the BC government completely obliterated Arts and sports funding a few months ago). Here's the news story on Victoria A Channel News if you want to learn more about it.
*gasp*. So yeah, there's that. Been biking like a mother, finally got a bean grinder, and there are four weeks of school left. Most likely this is it for the week before the Sunday Post. HOWEVER, this is because I'm busy as hell for the next while. UVic Orchestra concert tonight at 8 PM (UVic auditorium), student tickets are only $5 which is an amazing deal. Second, my band West My Friend is playing at Solstice Cafe tomorrow night around 7 with Petit Objet A, and I/we'd really love it if you all came out for the evening. Suggested $5 donation for cover (cause it does actually cost money to book Solstice), which is again a pretty good deal because you're in for a solid two hours of music. Post on Sunday, then it's papers and practicing ahoy.
Have good Fridays and weekends everyone.
PS. So how 'bout the ENTIRE COUNTRY going completely apeshit on Sunday? Best game I've ever seen. I have never before seen Canadians so proud to be who we are, either, and I wish that we could all feel like that all the time - I know I do.
I'd include a picture of me playing bass if I felt like finding one cause that's basically been it for me so far. I've been biking like no one's business and it's awesome. If anyone reads this that happened to go to the No HST On Bikes rally wednesday morning I'm sure they will agree it was fantastic.
(Not-so) quick note about this, because I like to use this to, y'know, speak my mind to the internet. I'm no economist, I'm a goddamned music major. I don't know all the ins and outs of the whole government revenue system. What I do know is that their revenue comes from taxes. Sure, they get some money elsewhere, but by and large all the money that the government has comes from taxes. I'm pissed that the BC government lied about HST implementation during their election campaign, but I'm going to have to say I'm more pissed about massive funding and job cuts to, ah, just about everything because of poor revenues.
I didn't go to this rally because I don't want to pay more taxes (which I don't really, but I will be okay with because it's necessary), I went because taxing bikes is fucking stupid. HST is getting tacked onto not just bikes, but all things bike-related: helmets, maintenance, parts, etc. This is going to be a huge DISincentive for people to ride bikes instead of driving cars, especially because of the second thing that completely pissed me off. HST IS NOT GOING TO BE ATTACHED TO CARS OR GAS. This is fucking stupid. Campbell rolls front page of The Globe And Mail saying that strong action is needed against climate change and then turns around and does the opposite in his provincial budget.
This is why I'm pissed off about the situation. BC NEEDS TAXES. It sucks, but that's the only way we're going to get money to the government so that they don't have to keep axing huge chunks out of health, education, arts and just about everything else. However, taxing transportation means and lifestyles that are both sustainable AND healthy while exempting gas/oil and the companies that produce them is just a whole different kind of stupid (it'd be a NEW kind of stupid too, except the the BC government completely obliterated Arts and sports funding a few months ago). Here's the news story on Victoria A Channel News if you want to learn more about it.
*gasp*. So yeah, there's that. Been biking like a mother, finally got a bean grinder, and there are four weeks of school left. Most likely this is it for the week before the Sunday Post. HOWEVER, this is because I'm busy as hell for the next while. UVic Orchestra concert tonight at 8 PM (UVic auditorium), student tickets are only $5 which is an amazing deal. Second, my band West My Friend is playing at Solstice Cafe tomorrow night around 7 with Petit Objet A, and I/we'd really love it if you all came out for the evening. Suggested $5 donation for cover (cause it does actually cost money to book Solstice), which is again a pretty good deal because you're in for a solid two hours of music. Post on Sunday, then it's papers and practicing ahoy.
Have good Fridays and weekends everyone.
PS. So how 'bout the ENTIRE COUNTRY going completely apeshit on Sunday? Best game I've ever seen. I have never before seen Canadians so proud to be who we are, either, and I wish that we could all feel like that all the time - I know I do.
28.2.10
Sunday Post
Hi kiddies.
No extra treat this week, sorry. I'm pretty bagged right now (cause, y'know, it's 4 AM, for the second night in a row) and I'm bugging out to catch the hockey game first thing in the morning so I won't have time to do the post then. I'll try and find something extra good next time. Have a good week!
No extra treat this week, sorry. I'm pretty bagged right now (cause, y'know, it's 4 AM, for the second night in a row) and I'm bugging out to catch the hockey game first thing in the morning so I won't have time to do the post then. I'll try and find something extra good next time. Have a good week!
25.2.10
Wind Farms
Found this slideshow of wind farm photos on Mother Nature Network (www.mnn.com) and just had to share it. I was trying to selectively pick one or two to keep, then I remembered "wait a mintue, I made the damn blog so I WOULDN'T have to pick and choose like this."
Here's some music to listen to while browsing the wind farms. Explosions In The Sky; this is the first track off their album "The Rescue". Amazing instrumental band from Austin, Texas; I fully recommend looking up the rest of this album and their discography.
Hope you enjoy.
Here's some music to listen to while browsing the wind farms. Explosions In The Sky; this is the first track off their album "The Rescue". Amazing instrumental band from Austin, Texas; I fully recommend looking up the rest of this album and their discography.
Hope you enjoy.
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