Yes indeed, I do keep the Winter Solstice. This year's Winter Solstice Eve I've got all the blackout candles, the wood stove and the hurricane lamps lit, because light is Important. A light dinner of Japanese grilled steak, steamed rice & green beans (presided over by the Companion Creatures) and a nice year old pomegranate-rose hip mead (I make my own because the Hipsters have ruined this also).
It's a calm holiday for me these days, perfect for quiet reflection and that's just the way I like it.
54 F, 84% RH, breezy with a broken cloud deck and the waxing moon peeking through. Warming to 60 F. with rain later on. Not exactly | In the Bleak Midwinter | but you go with what you got.
I tend to gravitate to Benjamin Britten's |Ceremony of Carols| for winter's night music. The Internet is failing me in finding a good link about the reception to this work, but it debuted on the BBC during the winter of the Blitz, and became a light in the darkness for the Brits. It was like nothing else before it or after, and it appeared at just the right moment the British needed it.
ETA: The YouTube link above seems to start in the middle of the video, for some reason I have to drag the cursor back to the beginning, I don't know if anyone else is having that happen. Weird.
Thanks. I picked up a lot of early and traditional music around the Balt-Wash-Annapolis area in the 90's – there was (and is) a robust and very talented "scene" with some fine musicians. Maggie, | The Baltimore Consort |, | Al Petteway |, | Bonnie Rideout. | An embarrassment of riches.
Thanks too for the Benjamin Britten links – I had almost totally forgotten about him (!). I was going to see the BSO perform |The War Requiem | in 2013 but something came up ( as things do). I will for sure look up Britten's works now.
That's a great link at S&R, too. We forget just how devastated England was after the war and Britten was instrumental in pulling the country back up by its psychological bootstraps. Anthony Burgess's last novel | Any Old Iron | has a wonderfully bleak and brutal description of bad old postwar Britain, among other things.
I met a |neuroscientist/gerontoligist| online last July as part of a thing I was working on, and she's also a mezzo-soprano, apparently known for her Handel and Bel Canto.|
Heading over to the cosy cottage next week for January (also hopefully got Shaw internet up the telephone poles from the road! Wee!) Had some bad storms earlier this month, apparently, but at the moment it's just mild and wet along the border.
With all these ellipticals and tilt and such. Guess today the Sun is throwing a deuce.
Yes indeed, I do keep the Winter Solstice. This year's Winter Solstice Eve I've got all the blackout candles, the wood stove and the hurricane lamps lit, because light is Important. A light dinner of Japanese grilled steak, steamed rice & green beans (presided over by the Companion Creatures) and a nice year old pomegranate-rose hip mead (I make my own because the Hipsters have ruined this also).
No news. | Good and appropriate Winter's Night music.|
It's a calm holiday for me these days, perfect for quiet reflection and that's just the way I like it.
54 F, 84% RH, breezy with a broken cloud deck and the waxing moon peeking through. Warming to 60 F. with rain later on. Not exactly | In the Bleak Midwinter | but you go with what you got.
Pretty choices.
I tend to gravitate to Benjamin Britten's |Ceremony of Carols| for winter's night music. The Internet is failing me in finding a good link about the reception to this work, but it debuted on the BBC during the winter of the Blitz, and became a light in the darkness for the Brits. It was like nothing else before it or after, and it appeared at just the right moment the British needed it.
Really it's a shame I can't find a good description of the British people's response online, but here's the closest: http://scholarsandrogues.com/2013/10/01/the-rest-…
ETA: The YouTube link above seems to start in the middle of the video, for some reason I have to drag the cursor back to the beginning, I don't know if anyone else is having that happen. Weird.
Thanks. I picked up a lot of early and traditional music around the Balt-Wash-Annapolis area in the 90's – there was (and is) a robust and very talented "scene" with some fine musicians. Maggie, | The Baltimore Consort |, | Al Petteway |, | Bonnie Rideout. | An embarrassment of riches.
Thanks too for the Benjamin Britten links – I had almost totally forgotten about him (!). I was going to see the BSO perform |The War Requiem | in 2013 but something came up ( as things do). I will for sure look up Britten's works now.
That's a great link at S&R, too. We forget just how devastated England was after the war and Britten was instrumental in pulling the country back up by its psychological bootstraps. Anthony Burgess's last novel | Any Old Iron | has a wonderfully bleak and brutal description of bad old postwar Britain, among other things.
Well Baltimore has Peabody, lucky you.
I met a |neuroscientist/gerontoligist| online last July as part of a thing I was working on, and she's also a mezzo-soprano, apparently known for her Handel and Bel Canto.|
Lotta Culture in that town and I do feel fortunate. This area really draws remarkable people.
That was exceptional. But, filed under "Comedy"? Really?
Also too: "Singer Medical Musician Speaker/Author Neuroscientist Gerontologist Producer
Holy cow. People like this amaze me. I can do many things, but this is Doing Many Exceptional Things Exceptionally Well. Wow.
It's probably because it's a comic character. and yeah, she's way too accomplished. Bitch.
*snort*
Don't worry, everything starts to get a little brighter from here on in. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3woM079L_4
Up here they are strongly suggesting not crossing the passes until tomorrow. Photo a long way before the pass.
<img src="http://media.cmgdigital.com/shared/img/photos/2015/12/18/77/bc/CWiz7NHUAAAgxlm.jpg" width="325">
Heading over to the cosy cottage next week for January (also hopefully got Shaw internet up the telephone poles from the road! Wee!) Had some bad storms earlier this month, apparently, but at the moment it's just mild and wet along the border.