Music – Politics Plus

Open Thread November 1 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:06 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Nov 012026

Yesterday, the radio opera was “I Pagliacci” by Ruggero Leoncavallo – although these days they are calling it just “Pagliacci” which I’m not happy about – theres a difference betwen “Clowns” and “The Clowns”, and I think the latter is more appropriate for “This one particular troupe of Clowns.” I’s in the verismo style, characterized by telling stories pf ordinary working class people, and usually violence. Most of my lifetime the tradition was to present Pagliacci in a double bill with “Cavalleria Rusticana” by Pietro Mascagni – butin about the last 25 years or so, both of those have been more often paired with a different short opera, and today it was played by itself. I have heard it often enough – and there is enough distasteful subject matter in it, that, although I set myalarm in time to get up andhear it, when thealarmwent ogg I decided to sleep another two hours. The male lead, Canio, was a signature role of Caruso’s, but it’s been sung by just about every competent tenor anywhere in the world. The main aria – “Vesti la giubba,” has probably been sung in concert even more that it has been sung in full productions. It also inspired the cliche “Laugh although your heart is breaking, which also inspired a pop song in the 30s or 40s. I’m off to see Virgil now and will check in upon return.

Bravo (follow up to a previous post)

Charlie

Delta

Echo

Foxtrot These programs seem to be starting to trend lately. More power to them.

Randy – a day late for Hallowe’en, but a day early for Day of the Dead. Let’s split the difference.

Open Thread October 25 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 5:54 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Oct 252026

Yesterday, the radio opera was Wagner’s “Die Walküre”, which you have heard part of, though you may not know it. “The Ride of the Valkyries” has been used in so many commercials you would have to refrain from watching any television got decades to have avoided it. You’ve seen me discuss “mad scenes” which were very much in fashion when the “bel canto” school was dominant in opera in roughly the first half of the 19th century. I don’t think any of the bel canto mad scenes conpares with Sieglinde’s madscene in this opera. Not the music, but the insanity. She has just had sex with her twin brother, from whom she has been long separated. She is tortured with guilt – necause she has just committed incest? Heck no. She feels guilty that she has ever allowed anyone but her brother to have sex with her (like she had a choice, having been kidnapped). While in Wagner’s imaginary universe, that all makes its own kind of sense, it seems to me nuttier than a fruitcake. The music is nothing like Bel Canto. But – I think it was during CoViD, when the Met was allowing people to stream free a different opera from its library every day, I watched Jessie Norman (may she rest in peace) play Sieglinde, and she conveyed the insanity in her movements – and also in her vocal tone. And now I can’t un-hear it. Let’s move on to some good news. There was a lot this week.

In case this is a little too obscure to recognize, it’s “Adelaide’s Lament” from Guys and Dolls.” I love that show, despite the fact that the keys it is written in are very awkward for string players.

Dog

Open Thread October 18 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 5:46 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Oct 182026

Yesterday, The radio opera was Puccini’s “Tosca,” set in Italy around 1814-1815, when Bonaparte had been exiled to Elba, but was fighting his way back, and the populists still thought he was a constitutional populist who would save them (boy, were they wrong. But the viewer kind of needs to side with them because the other side is worse.) Mario, the romantic lead, gets tortured (off stage) and executed (on stage.) These summer operas are not broadcast live; they are recorded during performance, and this performance is even older than last summer – it’s from 2022 (from China). And WFMT will have had no idea how timely this choice would be. Off to see Virgil now – will check in upon return.

October 11 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 5:50 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Oct 112026

Yesterday, the radio opera was Verdi’s “La Traviata,” one of my favorites. It was recorded in China (normal for this time of the year) and all the singers were Chinese except the title character, who was born in Russia but now lives in Italy. That casting sits well with me – it reminds me of the “little red dress” production designed by Willy Decker, which was so controversial and which I didn’t expect to like, but fell in love with. Both productions make visible how much of an outsider Violetta is – and accordingly, how doomed she is – from the very first note. This one does so more subtly. The “little red dress” production hit the audience in the face with it, and never stopped hitting. That was about ten years ago, and many critics are still ranting about what a disaster they thought it was. I beg to differ. But yesterday’s production was vocally perfect – as almost all productions are, despite the difficulty of the music. I’ve only ever heard one that wasn’t, and that was only in one scene, but it was an important one, and even then, it wasn’t that either of the singers was bad, only that the blend between their voices wasn’t there. But I digress. Here are the good news:

Open Thread September 20 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 5:47 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Sep 202026

Yesterday, the radio opera was Verdi’s “Falstaff”, obviously based on Shakespeare, of whom Verdi was quite the fan. It was the last opera he wrote, and at the time he was maybe 2 years younger than I am now. Falstaff is an absolute jerk, in Shakespeare and also in Verdi, but he does get his comeuppance in the play (The Merry Wives of Windsor”) and the opera, which is a comedy as is the play. But I’d rather discuss Gustavo Dudamel (AKA The Dude) today. Born in Venezuela into a musical family, he started violin lessons with El Sistems at the age of five. (If you don’t know about El Sistema – it is a musical educational phenomenon in Venezuela, and the envy of the classical music world. He soon began to study composition, and at 14, he began to study conducting. At 18, he became the music director (which includes the positon of principal conductor) of the Simon Bolivar Orchestra – Venezuela’s national youth orchestra, also associated with La Sistema. At 36, he conducted the Vienna New Year’s Concert, becoming the youngest conductor ever to do so. Conductors tend to live (and work) to advanced ages – some believe this may be at least in part due to the upper body exercise they get on the job – well, it’s possible. In 2007 he was appointed music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic with a contract which was extended three times. They are finally leting him go to become Music Director of the New York Philharmonic – the most prestigious orchestra in the US. He is now 45 – which is still young for a conductor. Without contracts, he has worked with orchestras all over the world. He conducted the intro and outro for one of the Star Wars movies at the request of John Williams. He has also worked with Coldplay, Beyoncé, and Bruno Mars. I could list his accomplishments and accolades until the cows come home, and then some – but I’d bore y’all to tears. Let’s just say The Dude is a phenomenon. I believe history will remember him as being to the 21at century as a conductor what Mozart was to the 18th century as a composer (of course he’s already older than Mozart was when he died.)

With that, I’ll move on to other good news and continue with my alphabetical listings.

Y’all probably know that Mitch – OUR Mitch, not the monster -is a huge lover of jazz. But you may not have known that he has a cousin who plays bass in a jazz band. He sent me a link to them performing “Undecided,” and they are really good. You don’t get to see Mitch’s cousin much – and it’s part of a playlist, so you .may need to stop it when it’s over (if you skim the playlist and see what other bands are included, you’ll see I’m not alone in rating them really good.)

2fer

Open Thread September 13 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Sep 132026

Yesterday, the radio opera was Bizet’s “Carmen.” I expect everyone has heard something from it at some point, including people who have never been within miles of an opera house. The Toreador Song is probably the piece most likely to be known by name, though the Gypsy dance in Act 2 is also very catchy. Even fluent French speakers may miss the straight-out-of-Pete-Hegseth lines in the Toreador song: “Some men are soldiers, some are toreros. What’s the diffrence who we are? We all love a fight!” Carmen is the opera know better than any other, except maybe La Boheme, and that would be at most a tie. When I was studying music after leaving the USMC, the college I was studying at staged it, and I played first chair second violin (not well – some of it is tough.) That consitutes really getting to know an opera the hard way.

I’m going to let the good news speak for itself again, and continue running through the alphabet for my links. (Some you may need to turn sound on.) If the song is a rerun, I apologize.

Open Thread August 23 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Aug 232026

Yesterday, the radio opera was Giuseppe Verdi’s “Luisa Miller” – one of his early successes which made masterpieces like Il Trovatore, La Traviata, Rigoletto and more possible. It reminds me of La Gioconda, in that both have a character who has the hots for the heroine (who is in love with someone else) and is so resentfl at being turned down that he destroys pretty much everyone else in the cast. Verdi named this character “Wurm,” so you know right up front just who he is. (Come to think of it, “Andes Chenier” has one of those too.) Off to see Virgil now – will of course check in upon return.

Dave is not the first male Drama Queen I have ever encountered – not even the first male felins Drama Queen. But he may be the loudest.

Open Thread August 9 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 5:57 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Aug 092026

Yesterday, the radio opera was Pelléas and Mélisande by Debussy = the only opera he ever finished. The plot is basically Tristan und Isolde without the love potion, and so steeped in turn-of-the-20th-century symbolism that it’s tricky to follow – a listener just needs to go with the flow. The libretto is from a play by Maurice Maeterlink – who was pissed off that his girl freind was not cast as Mélisande ay the premiere that he didn’t see it until agfter Debussy died, at which time he said, “In this affair I was entirely wrong and he was a thousand times right.” As a listener/viewer, I would say this quote from Wikipedia nails it: “The deliberate vagueness of the story is paralleled by the elusiveness of Debussy’s music.” Off to see Virgil now. Will check in upon return.

Archived from abc news because theirs only stay up for a while and I need to spread them out to avoid running short.

I am impressed. I did know that birds – particylarly columbids (which includes pigeons) and corvids (crows and ravens), but a bird knowing, first, the it needs oxygen, and second, that it could get some from the right humans, andthird, that these were the right humans -that’s quite a feat.

From GOODGOODGOOD. Just look at all the volunteers it took to make this happen.

Here’s a link to the GIF at the bottom, since it isn’t GIFing: https://martiniambassador.substack.com/p/baby-okapi-is-okie-dokie

These Grannies are from Charlotte (I assume NC.)

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