During the first class with a new group of high-schoolers taking our America’s Artistic Legacy course, I asked an important question. The question was posed after my initial presentation of what falls in the category of “American Art”—in short, the whole range of artistic expressions … Read more
Fazil Say, Paganini Variations Pianist and composer Fazil Say was born in Ankara, Turkey in 1970. He performs much of the standard repertoire in concert appearances and his recordings include mainstays such as all of the Beethoven sonatas. His performance persona tends to be eccentric … Read more
“Now there’s new information, Carol!” I can see your raised eyebrow. Seriously, though, learning takes effort. That fact is not stated enough. Effort is something that we human beings are not wont to expend—unless we got the hang of it during the various stages of … Read more
Jim Weiss teams up with Carol next week for a live presentation: Going West in the USA, featuring “Fulton’s Steamboat” and “The Railroad Men.” Adults and children as young as 7 will find these stories entertaining and educational. The art of storytelling and music have … Read more
Janequin, Le chant des oiseaux The French Renaissance composer Clément Janequin (c. 1485 – 1558) may be best known for his use of onomatopoeia. Onomatopoeia involves the mimicking of sounds occurring in nature—words like buzz, splash, or murmur. You probably know some longer examples with words … Read more
Well that got your attention, yes? To get it off the table, let me state that the most damaging sentence in studying music is “You can’t sing!”—particularly when slung at a child. Elsewhere I have written about this incorrect assertion (all people can sing: if … Read more
Jim Weiss and Carol Together The announcement is official now. Carol and Jim Weiss are teaming up for a 4-part online series on music and storytelling. The first session kicks off on Wednesday, September 16 at 7 pm EDT. The topic is “Going West in … Read more
Holst, The Planets (Mars) The last few weeks have taken us through some rather vivid and dramatic music: Strauss, Copland, Sousa, and even The Magnificent Seven. This week continues along those lines with the rousing tone poem The Planets by Gustav Holst. Very early in this … Read more
With joy I have been preparing a new course on Russian literature offered as part of Memoria College. And yes, I have shamelessly picked my most beloved novel-in-verse Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin as our principal focus. By considering also Turgenev’s masterwork Fathers and Sons, … Read more
Webinar: Tuesday, September 1 at 8:00 p.m. EDT Discover more about perhaps the most famous of all composers—Ludwig van Beethoven! What brought him such fame? And why does his music still speak so strongly to us today? Beethoven would be surprised to know how he … Read more