In this episode of our podcast interviews with our favorite art historian, Dr. Peter Mooz explains how art is empowering. How do you foster a love for the arts in children? What if you do not live close to “big city” resources? Dr. Mooz gives some … Read more
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Scriabin, Prelude for the Left Hand, Op. 9, No. 1 My undergraduate composition professor used to talk about seeing colors associated with specific musical keys. For example, he said F major was green and E-flat was bright orange. He talked about it as though the colors … Read more
Sometimes it’s the glances that remain with us. Glances that barely hold the eye, but are enough to tell the tale. I’ve been recalling the recent three weeks of intense travel during my last stint as a Smithsonian speaker. I confess that this voyage overwhelmed … Read more
Tarquinio Merula, Ballo detto Pollicio Tarquinio Merula (1595-1665) probably doesn’t show up on your iTunes playists (or mine). And his music is not what I expected to find in my email inbox a short while back. But that’s where I found it, and since it came … Read more
Sometimes it’s more than I can take in. Too many impressions, too many new names, too much information. That’s how I felt when we docked in Muscat, Oman last week. We’d been enveloped in the deep green of coastal cities in Malaysia, Thailand, Burma, and … Read more
Prima, Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing) The King of Swing, Louis Prima (1910-1978), was a singer, trumpet player, and band leader. He first recorded Sing, Sing, Sing in 1936. It was the Benny Goodman Band, however, that made it a hit. Many people refuse … Read more
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
I’ll never wash clothes again without recalling this place. If you know Mumbai (Bombay), you’ve guessed what I’m about to describe. Dhobi ghat. It’s the central laundry district founded in 1890 that sits smack dab in the middle of the city. Yesterday, as part of … Read more
Stephen Paulus, The Road Home We are not done with the subject of American choral music yet (and of course we never will be). William Billings and Eric Whitacre provide some nice bookends, chronologically at least, for some further discussion. Choral music has proven to be … Read more
On Tuesday I gave my first lecture ever on Indian music. Indian, as in the continent of India, not as in Native Americans. I was far out of my comfort zone and put plenty of work into preparing it, as one usually does when panic … Read more
Handel, Royal Fireworks It was 1749 and the king wanted a celebration. George II had signed the Treaty of Aix-La-Chapelle ending the War of the Austrian Succession. Handel (1685-1759) was the logical composer for the occasion. By then he had had a long career in London … Read more