Kevin's Watch

The girls' university is doing Chicago for their spring musical this year. Magickmaker has been planning to work tech crew for it, which gives me an excuse to go see it.

matrixman wrote:(Oh my, Sea's and Lucimay's avatars are making me melt...)

But hey, Cyn. We did Thelma and Louise last time but, hey, next time we'll do the Roxy and Velma tour!

So sorry to hear about your husband's job, Jaz. Here's hoping that he finds something right away. . .

matrixman wrote:. I wish the best to all who are having a rough time.

(Oh my, Sea's and Lucimay's avatars are making me melt...)

My sentiments also, best wishes from me 4 those whom are finding it tough at present , mind you I,m self employed and my van (my work horse is dying and needs money spent on it) its been in the garage well over a week and I,ve been using the bicycle and train to get to work with my tools on my back mighty sick of it now , want my van back.

As for Sea,s and Luci Avatars they are a little bit HOT

Grrrreeeat!

That's how I feel!

I am excited. Today I am going to see my first live opera, and it happens to be one of my top three favorites (Tristan und Isolde). I'm not too keen on one or two of the casting choices, but I'm sure it will be fantastic nonetheless. I'm going to be missing one of my classes to go see it, but the class just happens to be German, which just happens to be the language the opera is in, so I can use this experience for a project for the class I'm missing. Pretty sweet all around.

Great to see you Owlie!
Enjoy the performance!

Menolly wrote:

Great to see you Owlie!
Enjoy the performance!

Thanks. It's great to be back on KW.

The opera experience was good. I was right about the bad casting choices (several noticeable mistakes and acting that wasn't at all convincing), but there were a few pleasant surprises and overall I'm glad I went even though it wasn't my favorite performance of this particular opera.

Last night friends brought over sympathy beer and wine, we went to a birthday party today and I'm having a good hair day.

That is all.

So bloody annoyed!

We found a caravan (just a clapped out thing really) which we intended to do up and use as a room for visitors etc. Went to pick it up today and the idiot bloke (it was a private sale) had changed his mind about the price, said he could no longer tow it (after agreeing to do so) etc. So there goes that! The stupid drunken fool!

One down. One to go!

I'm so bored. Someone come play with me!

...I can sing some songs out of Chicago for you...I'll even dress up for the part...

...and all that jazz...

Seareach wrote:I'm so bored. Someone come play with me!

...I can sing some songs out of Chicago for you...I'll even dress up for the part...

...and all that jazz...

I thought you did that at SRD's birthday party...

Sorry you were bored, Sea. If I'd seen your post earlier, I would've invited/dragged you over to MSN. Menolly, Lord Foul, CmJ and I had the Mother of all Chats this evening.

Auleliel wrote:...I am going to see my first live opera, and it happens to be one of my top three favorites (Tristan und Isolde).

I never knew you liked opera! And Wagner on top of that. Holy Valkyries!

Say, what is your favorite performance of Tristan und Isolde, if I may ask? I love Wagner's music, but I've only heard two of his works in their entirety -- Parsifal and the Ring cycle.

matrixman wrote:I never knew you liked opera! And Wagner on top of that. Holy Valkyries!

Say, what is your favorite performance of Tristan und Isolde, if I may ask? I love Wagner's music, but I've only heard two of his works in their entirety -- Parsifal and the Ring cycle.

Opera is a rather recent interest (within the last two years), due to the influence of a friend of mine. I've actually only heard/seen one or two operas that weren't by Wagner.
My favorite performance of Tristan und Isolde (mind, I've only heard three other than Friday's live performance) was conducted by Kleiber in 1974. Katerina Ligendza was a superb Isolde.
I haven't heard Parsifal yet (I'm sure I will within the next year, my friend has two or three recordings of it), but I have heard the entirety of at least three Ring cycles--one of which I listened to in one sitting (15 straight hours is a long time to listen to Wagner, but it's worth it).
Yeah, I guess you could say I like opera.

matrixman wrote:

Seareach wrote:I'm so bored. Someone come play with me!

...I can sing some songs out of Chicago for you...I'll even dress up for the part...

...and all that jazz...

I thought you did that at SRD's birthday party...

<sob> I wasn't invited (= he had a birthday party! did you go! THE BASTARD! HOW COULD HE NOT INVITE ME????!!!!)

matrixman wrote:Sorry you were bored, Sea. If I'd seen your post earlier, I would've invited/dragged you over to MSN. Menolly, Lord Foul, CmJ and I had the Mother of all Chats this evening.

<sob> I wasn't invited

I went and visited my uncle, aunt and cousins instead---they have a beach house down here and we catch up with them once a year while they're here. Loads of fun... But...heh...next time look me up. I'm a good conversationalist...er...um...typist...or...well....I'm just...good...I think...well, perhaps not but I could pretend.

SRD didn't invite you? Geez, I thought you guys had the whole giant cake and everything set out. Oh, well.

Auleliel wrote: Opera is a rather recent interest (within the last two years), due to the influence of a friend of mine. I've actually only heard/seen one or two operas that weren't by Wagner.

Opera isn't really my primary musical interest, but there are a few that I really love. Wagner's Ring, of course. But now I just put on the "Highlights" CD when I want my Ring fix. Parsifal I've only heard and seen once - a televised performance featuring the Berlin Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan. (I'm bad with remembering the singers' names.) Other operas I've only enjoyed via highlights; in that way I've come to admire Verdi. He just might be the most awesome opera composer next to Wagner.

However, my single most favorite opera is Alban Berg's Wozzeck: it's a 20th century opera, but I hope that doesn't put you off. It's a tightly constructed work, the music is lean but intense, and the story is very powerful. Wozzeck affected me in a way that no other opera had before (or since). In a nutshell, it's about a lowly soldier, Wozzeck, who is put upon by others, and who spirals into paranoia and madness when he suspects the woman he loves is having an affair with one of his superiors. Alban Berg had first hand experience as an army conscript in WWI, so it would be fair to suggest that Wozzeck's tale of an unstable soldier in an uncaring world expresses the composer's post-War feelings. Yes, that's more info than you need, but great music gets me raving.

I have heard the entirety of at least three Ring cycles--one of which I listened to in one sitting (15 straight hours is a long time to listen to Wagner, but it's worth it).
Yeah, I guess you could say I like opera.

Wow...you're more hardcore than I'll ever be!

matrixman wrote:However, my single most favorite opera is Alban Berg's Wozzeck

Never heard of it but it sounds intriguing. In my opinion paranoia and madness make operas much more interesting. I shall have to look into this one.

Wow...you're more hardcore than I'll ever be!

I'm not really that hardcore. Most of the time when I listen to the entirety of something I am doing so with friends. Otherwise I just fast forward to my favorite tracks. And I'm usually not just sitting around listening to it either. I let other people be hardcore and then I just sort of follow them around to see what happens.

Not much of an opera fan, myself. Maybe the only one I could sit through would be Purcell's Dido and Aeneas. It's only about an hour long, after all. But still, seriously good stuff!!!

And how can you not love lyrics like this... Aeneas is told by the gods that he's going to found a serious empire, and he tell's Dido he has to go. She gives him a lot of crap, and he starts to change his mind:

AENEAS
By all that's good ...

DIDO
By all that's good, no more!
All that's good you have forswore.
To your promis'd empire fly
And let forsaken Dido die.

AENEAS
In spite of Jove's command, I'll stay.
Offend the Gods, and Love obey.

DIDO
No, faithless man, thy course pursue;
I'm now resolv'd as well as you.
No repentance shall reclaim
The injur'd Dido's slighted flame.
For 'tis enough, whate'er you now decree,
That you had once a thought of leaving me.

AENEAS
Let Jove say what he will: I'll stay!

DIDO
Away, away! No, no, away!

AENEAS
No, no, I'll stay, and Love obey!

DIDO
To Death I'll fly
If longer you delay;
Away, away!.....
[Exit Aeneas]
But Death, alas! I cannot shun;
Death must come when he is gone.

CHORUS
Great minds against themselves conspire
And shun the cure they most desire.

And Dido's Lament is an amazing piece! An extremely famous passacaglia, which, basically, means a repeating bass line runs throughout the aria.

(recitative)
Thy hand, Belinda, darkness shades me,
On thy bosom let me rest,
More I would, but Death invades me;
Death is now a welcome guest.

(aria)
When I am laid in earth, May my wrongs create
No trouble in thy breast;
Remember me, but ah! forget my fate.

The overture was the piece of music that made me fall in love with baroque music. It's in the French Overture style. Slow-dotted rhythms in the first section, with a faster, imitative second section.

(Sorry. Uh, I just couldn't help myself. )

Fist, you might like Wagner's The Mastersingers. Pretty short, good music, and pretty much his only comedy. Happens to be my favorite of Wagner's operas. The English version is quite good.

Funny lyrics, Fist! Her ending up pushing him away, even when he insists he'll stay.

And, yeah, Dido's Lament is very eloquent.

I've not heard Dido and Aeneas but it's one I'll keep in mind. Purcell is a composer I've neglected to look into. The Baroque era in general is one I've unfairly overlooked, with the big exception of J.S. Bach.

Too bad I don't have equivalently poetic bits from Wozzeck to post, but that opera uses plain speech to reflect the banality and ugliness of the "real world" Wozzeck inhabits.

And, I'll have you know that in a brisk performance, Wozzeck takes only about an hour and a half, though the version I have is two hours. But honestly, the terseness and sparse orchestration of this work makes all that time fly by, in my opinion. You might say Wozzeck is chamber-like in its intimacy and immediacy.