That being said, I've been reading some good books lately. In discussions with my sister (who is a living repository of great things to read), I think I figured out that I'm not a tremendous fan of fiction. It's not that I don't like said genre (I was one of the kajillion people that read The Da Vinci Code in something like 2 days), I just like non-fiction better. I think it has something to do with my fascination with general knowledge. Fiction often talks about it in conjecture or in metaphor; I'd rather just know it. It's the same reason I love The West Wing. Make-believe President Josiah Bartlett just knows a sh*tload of stuff and that's incredibly interesting to me.
I'm about a third of the way through Mikal Gilmore's Stories Done: Writings on the 1960s and Its Discontents. My mother heard him speak on NPR and thought that, knowing me as she does, I would enjoy reading it. Each chapter is about a different person who served as a huge contributor to one of the most influential eras in American history.
He writes in a reverent but fair way about each person in question. I just finished the (extremely long) entry on George Harrison this morning but I've already made it through chapters on Allen Ginsberg, Timothy Leary, Ken Kesey and Jerry Garcia among others.
I also recently finished Benjamin Ivry's eponymous book on Francis Poulenc. I've been singing his stuff since I was in college (seemingly on a yearly basis) and it was good to finally get to know the man himself. Every time I am made to learn a Poulenc choral piece I curse him for writing such difficult things (that eventually pay off, of course) because it's so easy to get pissed off at the person who is putting you through it all while you're practicing. However, once you get the harmonies in your ear and the awkward jumps in your voice, it's quite obvious that the man was a genius. And, as you can see, he had enormous ears. Is it any wonder he wrote The Story of Babar the Elephant?
I just got Polyphony's massive recording of his Gloria. It's presented alongside a few motets-and-such for good measure and is, hands down, the best recording of that piece I have ever heard. The brass section of the Britten Sinfonia sounds like brass ought to. It's like riding one of those magnetic roller coasters that rockets you to 60mph in something like two seconds. Just brutal...but oh-so-good.
I'm a lover of the local music scene and try to get out and see bands whenever I can (which is not often enough). At the moment that participation extends to listening to Adam Svec's session on Live Friday at Portland's KPSU radio station while I type. I've run into Adam off and on over the years and--alone or as the lead singer of The Glad Version--he maintains a permanent place on my list of favorite songwriters.
Take a listen if you've never heard him before. His first solo release, Enemy Swimmer, was fantastic.
I also just recently watched what may become one of my favorite movies of all time. It doesn't belong on the same list as the movie I mentioned a few entries ago but it is most certainly in for another viewing (and possible purchase). Battle Royale is a Japanese film released a couple of years ago and, for the purposes of this diatribe, I'll let amazon.com's description speak for itself:
Based on the novel by Koshun Takami, the film opens with a series of fleeting images of unruly Japanese schoolchildren, whose bad behavior provides a justification for the "punishments" that will ensue. Once the prequel has been dispensed with, the classmates are drugged and awaken on an island where they find they have been fitted with [exploding] dog collars that monitor their every move. Instructed by their old teacher with the aid of an upbeat MTV-style video, they are told of their fate: after an impartial lottery they have been chosen to fight each other in a three-day, no-rules contest, the "Battle Royale." Their only chance of survival is through the death of all their classmates.
How can that concept not yield enjoyable-on-some-level results! They also call it "A Clockwork Orange for the 21st century" but I completely disagree with that because I thought this movie was absolutely hilarious. About 15 minutes in I actually called the friend of mine who recommended it to thank him for making me watch it. He was surprised I found it so funny and I guess the only thing I can say about it is that they get teenage melodrama absolutely perfect...then they all kill each other. 
It's just so damn over-the-top. I can't imagine taking this movie seriously at all. It's like Lord of the Flies meets Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome.
I think that's all the gratuitous blogging for now. The two people who read this blog (that includes you, dad) will be pleased to know that there are a ton of more music-oriented entries coming down the pike very soon which will hopefully include photographs that I've actually taken.
1 comment:
For more information on Britten Sinfonia, our recordings, concerts and more work with Polyphony please visit www.brittensinfonia.com
Post a Comment