mesmerizing
Enno Poppe (1969-), Stoff (2015); Ensemble Dal Niente (Enno Poppe, guest cond.), live, Chicago, 2016
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lagniappe
found words
I’m above the soil—and I love it.
—Neighbor’s response this morning when I asked how he was doing.
never enough
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1
András Schiff (piano), live, London, 9/7/17
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lagniappe
reading table
Cold night: the wild duck,
sick, falls from the sky
and sleeps awhile.—Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), translated from Japanese by Robert Hass
more
Kaija Saariaho (1952-), Petals (1988; cello and electronics); Imke Frank (cello) and Gary Berger (live electronics), live, Switzerland (Winterthur), 2011
another take
John Luther Adams (1953-), The Light Within (2007); Late Music Ensemble, live, England (York), 2015
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lagniappe
random sights
other day, Chicago (Columbus Park)
Need a break from listening to yourself?
Kaija Saariaho (1952-), Nocturne for solo violin (1994)
Alexi Kenney (violin), live, New York, 2016
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lagniappe
reading table
John Ashbery (July 28, 1927-September, 3, 2017)
Whatever we’re dealing with catches us
in mid-reconsideration. It’s beautiful,
my lord, just not made to be repeated,
that’s all.***
It was a moment, what can I say.
—John Ashbery (1927-), “A Breakfast Radish,” “Domani, Dopodomani” (fragments), Breezeway (2015)
another take
Morton Feldman (1927-1986; MCOTD Hall of Fame), Rothko Chapel (1971); Markus Creed (cond.), SWR Vokalensemble (Vocal Ensemble), et al., live, Germany (Cathedral of Speyer, Schwetzinger), 2017
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lagniappe
art beat: yesterday, Art Institute of Chicago
Paul Gauguin (1848-1903), Cup Decorated with the Figure of a Bathing Girl, 1887-88 (Gauguin: Artist as Alchemist, through September 10th)
*****
reading table
John Ashbery (July 28, 1927-September, 3, 2017)
What will it all be like in five years’ time
when you try to remember?—”For John Clare” (fragment)
one of the most absorbing pieces I know
Morton Feldman (1927-1986; MCOTD Hall of Fame), Rothko Chapel (1971); Ensemble Intercontemporain, live, Paris, 2017
(Rothko Chapel, located in Houston, reportedly was not damaged by Harvey.)
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lagniappe
reading table
John Ashbery (July 28, 1927-September, 3, 2017)
. . . as though wondering
whether forgetting
The whole thing might not, in the end, be the only solution.—Soonest Mended (fragment)
*****
random sights
yesterday, Chicago (Columbus Park)
soundtrack to a dream
John Luther Adams (1953-), The Light Within (2007); Faculty & Fellows, Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, North Adams, Mass., 2016
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lagniappe
reading table
John Ashbery (July 28, 1927-September, 3, 2017)
The bad news is the ship hasn’t arrived;
the good news is it hasn’t left yet.—He Who Loves And Runs Away (fragment; Planisphere, 2009)
*****
random sights
this morning, Chicago (Columbus Park)
never enough
Frederic Chopin (1810-1849), Prelude No. 15 in D flat major (“Raindrop”); Friedrich Gulda (1930-2000), piano
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lagniappe
reading table
dragonfly—
flying two feet,
then two feet more—Kobayashi Issa, 1763-1827 (translated from Japanese by David G. Lanoue)
more
Anna Thorvaldsdottir (1977-), In the Light of Air (2013/2014); International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), live, New York, 2014
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lagniappe
musical thoughts
Suppose that, for the rest of your listening life, you had two options. One: You could only listen to things you’d never heard before. Two: You could never listen to anything new. Which would you choose?
