Archive for June, 2008

6 Components Of A Winning Complaint Letter

Writing a letter of complaint is an art form and, as any dedicated complainer knows, there are several important elements that must be included to guarantee a result. What is it complainers want? Public Recognition Of Their Grievance. Why? Because it will allow them to take up residence on The Moral High Ground, the [...]

Beethoven Piano Sonata Op 10 No. 2

Sonata in F major, Op. 10, No. 2 (1796-98)
Allegro
Allegretto
Presto
Beethoven made a few minor changes to the standard sonata form in this piece, the first of which occurs in the development of the first movement. Traditionally, the development is a place for the composer to play around with the first and second themes and [...]

Beethoven Piano Sonata Op 10 No.1

An important part of the Beethoven myth is the idea that he was not bound to any one job or patron but rather wrote what suited him, when it suited. While it is true that he was not employed in the same way Mozart or Haydn were, Beethoven, especially in the early days, still [...]

I went to the opera once and didn’t like it.

Did you stop going to the movies after seeing one you didn’t like?
More brilliantly no-nonsense answers to common whinges at the Queensland Opera.

Thursday Links

The Canadian Opera Company has created a whole little Flash mini-site about its new General Director Alexander Neef. So far the blog is only one post old but the comments are already worth the price of admission.

Shadow culture secretary Jeremy Hunt says that the British Conservative Party is now, “the natural party for [...]

Turangalîla-Symphonie - ‘It’s a holy terror, but a hell of a good time’

Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992) TURANGALILA-SYMPHONIE
I – Introduction
II – Love Song 1
III – Turangalîla 1
IV – Love Song 2
V – Joy of the Blood of the Stars
VI – Garden of Love’s Sleep
VII – Turangalîla 2
VIII – Development of Love
IX –Turangalîla 3
X – Finale
Turangalîla–Symphonie (tour-ahn-ga-lee’-lah) was commissioned by American composer/conductor [...]

A Few Words On The Ondes Martenot

Created in 1928 by Maurice Martenot, the ondes Martenot was the first practical electric instrument. On principle it works the same as the theremin but in practice, they are quite different, mostly because the ondes Martenot requires physical contact in order to be played. Except for the [...]