Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts

04 April 2013

Film review: Mahler on the couch (2010), by Percy Adlon, ****

Synopsis

Devastated and confused by the discovery that his beloved wife Alma is having a passionate affair with architect Walter Gropius, controversial composer Gustav Mahler travels to Holland to consult with Sigmund Freud, who is on vacation in Leiden. Feeling humiliated and betrayed, Mahler initially refuses the couch, but when Freud wheels a camp bed into the room, he has no choice.

Fiery yet full of humor, their encounter stretches into the night as Mahler vividly recounts his seduction of Alma Schindler, 19 years his junior, the beautiful darling of Vienna's arts scene. Alma and Mahler fall madly in love and marry, but he frustrates her ambitions to be a composer in her own right. When one of their daughters dies, their marriage begins to fall apart...



Review

The subject matter of this film is most interesting: a musical genius married to a stunning socialite who lives in Vienna at the time of the Belle Epoque. Their life is studded with money, fame and intellectually rich encounters. Especially gifted is Alma, who is at first subjugated by Gustav but later ends up calling all the shots. Gustav Klimt and Walter Gropius are only the most immediately recognizable giants with whom the mahlers cross their path.

It has been correctly pointed out that the film does not do justice to Mahler, whose immense artistic stature only gets short shrift here. I tend to agree.

Acting is good and so is the choice of costumes from the time.

The film is in German only, with English subtitles.




16 March 2013

Film review: The Burmese Harp (1956), by Kon Ichikawa, *****

Synopsis

A rhapsodic celebration of song, a brutal condemnation of wartime mentality, and a lyrical statement of hope within darkness; even amongst the riches of 1950s' Japanese cinema, The Burmese Harp, directed by Kon Ichikawa (Alone Across the Pacific, Tokyo Olympiad), stands as one of the finest achievements of its era.

Mizushima taught a Burmese boy to play his harp
At the close of World War II, a Japanese army regiment in Burma surrenders to the British. Private Mizushima is sent on a lone mission to persuade a trapped Japanese battalion to surrender also. When the outcome is a failure, he disguises himself in the robes of a Buddhist monk in hope of temporary anonymity as he journeys across the landscape but he underestimates the power of his assumed role.

A visually extraordinary and deeply moving vision of horror, necessity, and redemption in the aftermath of war, Ichikawa's breakthrough film is one of the great humanitarian affirmations of the cinema.

Nominated for a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar and honoured at the Venice Film Festival. You can watch a trailer here.


27 January 2013

Saluti da Bologna!

Le tre "T" di Bologna

Da notare che i veri tortellini sono quelli a sinistra, della grandezza canonica dell'ombelico di Venere. Il ripieno può essere di prosciutto, mortadella, uovo, parmigiano e noce moscata. Quelli a destra sono cappelletti romagnoli, più grandi e di solito ripieni di carne bovina.

In particolare consiglio l'osteria dei Poeti e, fuori concorso per chi cerca la cucina locale, il ristorante spagnolo di Juan Alberto.

Chandra Raga a Bologna


Durante il mio soggiorno ho anche avuto la fortuna di assistere ad un bel concerto di musica indiana con Paolo Avanzo e Stefano Grazia. Il tutto preceduto da un'ottima cena indiana al Centro Natura. Questo è un estratto di un concerto simile dei due musicisti su Youtube.



A Bologna lo spettacolo è stato completato da danze Bharatanatyam di Alessandra Pizza.

In conclusione: tutto vero, le tre T sono un mito! Gran bel weekend a Bologna. Ho anche trovato in saldo due paia di stivali taglia 39, che faccio sempre fatica a reperire. Da ritornarci presto!

27 November 2012

Film review: The Red Violin (1998) by François Girard, ****

Synopsis

An epic adventure of mystery and obsession unfolds when Charles Morritz (Samuel L. Jackson), an appraiser of rare musical instruments discovers a one of a kind red violin at a prestigious Montreal auction house. Convinced he's found an authentic long-lost masterpiece, Morritz uncovers the spectacular journey of the priceless violin, how it changed hands and lives of all who touched it. When the violin's shocking secret is finally revealed, Morritz must wrestle with his own demons and choose between burying the truth and risking everything.




10 June 2012

CD review: Lama's Chants Songs of Awa, *****

Synopsis
Marking the 10th year since this popular Buddhist chant album was first released, this reissue ups the ante by featuring an expanded format. The first disc is a re-mastered version of the original album. The second features unreleased live performances by Gyurme and keyboardists Rykiel and Loy Ehrlich between 1995 and 2001, and it's this second disc that is truly intriguing. Recorded in caves, cathedrals, concert halls and open air festivals, the quality of the recordings is excellent. Mostly chanting and occasionally doing some long tones, Gyurme's voice again seemingly embodies a mix of the human and the holy during his prayers for healing, purification, liberation and peace--he's particularly spectacular on his solo intro to "The Mantra Of Padmasambhaval." Musically, Ehrlich seamless fills out Rykiel's ambient backgrounds, and two do a fine job accentuating the drama and majesty of Gyurme's voice, only overpowering it on the opening "Sacred Words Of Liberation." This is definitely a reissue that deserves to replace the original. -- Tad Hendrickson for Amazon

26 April 2011

3. - 26 APR: Fly from Chengdu to Lijiang, Yunnan. Naxi concert

Alalalei! (Hello!) is the first word in Naxi language I learn from our guide upon arrival in this small but pretty and efficient airport in Yunnan province. Zhubaysay (Thank you!) is the second. Swallow, (the name of our guide) welcomes us in this peculiar province, where most of all the minorities of China live.

In Yunnan province, forty-five million people live in 400,000 square kilometers, an area  almost one and a half times the size of Italy, and of them, one third belong to national minorities, i.e. non-Han peoples. Twenty-five of China's fifty-six national minorities are represented in Yunnan.

The number of Naxi is small, less than half a million people, but Swallow thinks it's probably set to rise a bit since national minorities are not bound by the one-child policy of China. She, however, married a Han Chinese and therefore is stuck to one kid! :-( She says there are quite a few who break the rule. In this case they have to pay 300,000 Rmb (about 30k euro) for a fine. Alternatively, some couple just don't declare their second born. This can be difficult in a city but is relatively easy in the countryside. A third option is to sell the child to couples who can't have any. Finally, quite a few end up aborting their second child.

She takes us around town, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Black Dragon pool park is a serene spot, and very clean... everyone comes here to have their picture taken, and for good reason. A place to be savored for a few hours. A typical Chinese garden, with pagoda, lake, bridge, tower...

My most interesting meeting is with a ninety-something year old man at the Yufeng temple. He is a gardener, and has been tending to an extremely old camelia tree for many decades. He sort of sits there by the wayside, but says that during the Cultural Revolution the Red Guards came up the hill and wanted to cut down the tree, seen as some sort of decadent symbol or whatever... but he stood up and told them they would have to cut him down first, at which point they gave up and left. Not sure what to make of the story, but the obesssion with the damage inflicted by the fanatic Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution is a recurring refrain in this trip.

Dongba pictogams
We also have a chance to visit the Dongba Research Institute, where the old Naxi language is still studied and preserved. It is perhaps the last pictographic language in the world, composed of some 1400 pictograms, ie little drawings, unlike the Chinese ideograms which are composed of graphic symbols that don’t necessarily have any resemblance with the object of their representation.

At 20:30 we get a chance to listen to a concert of traditional Naxi music in the town's concert hall. This is no tourist trap, but an amazing group that resurrected an old musical heritage that had been destroyed to near extinction during the 1950s after the repressions of the "One Hundred Flowers" campaign in 1957.

The musicians are almost all octogenarians, with a few exceptions, among them a lady harpist and an amazing lady singer. They are led by Xuan Ke, who was imprisoned for twenty-one years (until 1978, after Mao's death) for his key role in founding the orchestra. He was allowed to restart it in 1984, and today the ensemble plays some original instruments which were saved from destruction at the time of One Hundred Flowers and then during the Cultural Revolution by some brave locals who hid them from the Red Guards at their own risk.

I talk to Xuan Kue after the concert, he has no bitterness, just an incredibly strong will to keep Naxi musical tradition alive, and he is sorry that it is difficult to find young people to learn how to play it. He claims this is China's oldest music and must be preserved for posterity. So at 81 y.o. he keeps performing with his group every night to packed audiences of locals and tourists.

Leitoto (goodbye in Naxi)!

15 November 2009

Concert: Sacrificium, by Cecilia Bartoli, *****

Today I went to listen to Cecilia Bartoli at the Brussels Bozar. One of the most powerful voices on the planet. This project is about XVIII century music written for "castrati", young males who were castrated before puberty to keep their voices from maturing into full male voices.

A stunning performance, she can not just sing but enthrall the crowd to with her flamboyant personality. She was clearly having fun! I was lucky enough to find a ticket close enough to her to feel my bones vibrate at her seemingly endless warble. Her technical virtuosity is almost painful to hear, one keeps wondering how she can keep going so long, so powerfully and so well without breathing. The concert hall was shaking. She sounds supernatural. Maybe she is. I think "Eyebags" put it very well here in this blog.

20 February 2009

Traveling Jazz Concert

Great concerto today at Pagine del Mondo. Bea is a young, dynamic independent Italian lady who left the safety of a comfortable home to see and live the world. Now in Brussels, she is at home in many countries and speaks many languages. In her spare time she pairs up with Mariano, a professional piano player from Spain, and they put together a multilingual show of songs from aroung the world. We were  honored to host them for a night at our travel club.

This is how she described their program: Music about travel, in several languages with Elisabetta Bernardini (voix) et Mariano Ferrandez (piano), voyageurs par vocation, vous accompagnent tout le long d’un voyage qui , du swing des années 30/40 à la bossa nova, en passant par le bel canto napolitain et la musique populaire espagnole et encore plus loin, vous fera découvrir l’aspect multiculturel et multilingue de la ville de Bruxelles. Elisabetta et Mariano vous présenteront un voyage raconté en six langues..et un peu plus. Le tout dans un mélange d’humour et tendresse. Faut-il vraiment s’éloigner de Bruxelles pour entreprendre un beau voyage ? We pensons que, nicht sempre…

You can view the show on Youtube, or click the links below.

Part 1/3




Part 2/3




Part 3/3

02 January 2008

Bodu Beru a Rakeedhoo, atollo di Felidhoo, Maldive

Lasciamo la barca ancorata in rada e in due gruppetti con il barchino d’appoggio e raggiungiamo il piccolo molo di legno di Rakeedhoo, dove siamo subito accolti da un gruppo di ragazzotti locali, chiaramente ma bonariamente compiaciuti del fatto che siamo solo quattro ragazzi con dodici ragazze al seguito. Chiedo retoricamente dove siano le loro ragazze, già sapendo la risposta, ma stavolta voglio proprio provare ad andare un po’ più a fondo con l’argomento. Mi dicono che le chiameranno per ascoltare la musica insieme a noi ed in effetti così sarà, anche se non proprio come mi sarei aspettato.

In attesa dell’esibizione faccio due passi per i vialetti bui. Non c’è un cane per strada. Nel senso, stavolta, che non c’è nessuno. Poi qualcosa si muove ad una trentina di metri da me e scorgo in lontananza qualche ragazza che passeggia, sono completamente coperte di nero tranne che per il volto. Un’abitudine diffusa nei villaggi, come potrò constatare ripetutamente, anche perché una recente legge maldiviana fa divieto a tutti i cittadini di circolare con un abbigliamento che nasconda l’identità dell’individuo, dunque volto scoperto. Forse un segnale di secolarizzazione, o forse un modo per la polizia di controllare meglio manifestanti scomodi. Comunque c’è anche in tanti altri paesi questa legge, ed anche da noi in Italia, retaggio degli anni di piombo, ma tutto sommato mi pare una legge giusta.

I ragazzi ci conducono verso alcune case e ci sistemiamo su tre lati di un’aula vuota di una scuola vicino al porto. Dopo poco arrivano i musicisti, una banda un po’ raccogliticcia ma simpatica di ragazzi di età diverse e qualche signore più attempato. Qualcuno ha un bel tamburo in mano ma la maggior parte di loro non ha strumenti, son vestiti come tutti i giorni, e si siedono lungo la parete dell’aula che noi abbiamo lasciato libera, sotto due finestre che danno su un cortile interno.

Nel quadro di queste finestre si notano i visi di alcune giovani donne, incappucciate di nero, che guardano dall’esterno cosa succede dentro l’aula. Una di loro tiene un neonato in braccio. Esco dall’aula, giro intorno all’isolato ed arrivo alla sala della festa da dietro, e posso così avvicinarmi alle ragazze che sono ancora alla finestra, a guardare divertite il pandemonio che succede dentro. Dopo qualche sguardo e qualche parola arriva un tizio, che se ne stava lì dietro nell’ombra, probabilmente un parente delle donne, che mi dice che è inutile parlarle perché tanto non parlano inglese. OK messaggio recepito... faccio qualche fotografia e me ne torno indietro. Forse mi sarei dovuto avvicinare accompagnato da una donna italiana, chissà, magari sarebbero state più a loro agio, o magari il torvo parente si sarebbe preoccupato di meno, ma non credo avrebbe fatto alcuna differenza.

Una decina dei ragazzi portano un bodu beru ciascuno e si sistemano davanti ai primi, cinque a destra e cinque a sinistra, in due file indiane contrapposte una di fronte all’altra. Appena tutti hanno preso posto, si scatenano le percussioni. Cominciano subito a suonare ritmi forsennati, accompagnandoli di canti e incitamenti. A turno, uno o due alla volta, i ragazzi senza strumenti si alzano in piedi e saltano verso il centro dell’aula cominciando danze vorticose, esuberanti, quasi esplosive. I nostri membri dell’equipaggio si uniscono presto ai locali. Dopo un po’ qualcuno di loro cerca di rompere il ghiaccio ed invitare le nostre ragazze a ballare...

Questo post è un estratto del mio libro sulle Maldive. Per comprare il libro in brossura o ebook formato kindle su Amazon clicca qui sotto.

30 November 2007

Concert: Pieter Wispelwey, Bach's six suites for cello, *****

Johann Sebastian Bach, 6 Suites for Cello Solo (complete)

Bach's Six Suites for Solo Cello are among the greatest works for the instrument; they represent a peak that every cellist feels the need to tackle. Pieter Wispelwey has played them on a number of occasions and has also made two magnificent recordings.

I went with a couple of friends and we had tickets way in the back of the Brussels Consevatorium, nothing better was available. However I told him to follow me and we sneaked as I usually do behind the scenes of the Conservatorium and sat on the floor of the closed off balcony to the left of the stage. Perfect! Just a few meters from the soloist. One heck of a concert to remember for life. Technically perfect, precise yet passionate, warm, colorful.

I have had the CDs of his second recordings for some time, and they are always a joy to listen, on par, or almost so, with those recorded by Rostropovich and Fournier, neither of whom however I ever had a chance to listen to live.

17 November 2007

Concert: Itzhak Perlman violin - Bruno Canino piano, *****

Program:

Franz Schubert, Rondo brillant, for violin and piano, op. 70, D 895

Ludwig van Beethoven, Sonata for violin and piano no. 5, op. 24, "Spring"

Richard Strauss, Sonata for violin and piano, op. 18

Encore: Bazzini, la ronde des Lutins, an impossibly challenging virtuoso piece, which you can here played by Perlman with another pianist.


Impressions:

This great violinist is one of the most outstanding musicians of our time. Together with Bruno Canino, his long-standing musical partner, Itzhak Perlman presented a programme with a harmonious balance between early Romanticism, with Schubert and Beethoven, and late Romanticism, with Richard Strauss.

Perlman is simply out of this world.

You can buy some of his greatest hits here:


24 August 2007

20° g - 24 AGO: trasferimento a Tongatapu e visite archeo

In mattinata Jürgen ci porta in aeroporto e dopo un po’ di ritardo si parte. Non aveva chiamato l’aeroporto per assicurarsi che il volo fosse in orario come gli avevo chiesto (tanto, diceva, siete metà dei passeggeri e se fa ritardo il direttore della torre che è mio amico mi chiama perché sa che state qui) ma una volta arrivati lì ci dicono che l’aereo è rotto e fermo a Tongatapu. Non si sa quando potrà venire a prenderci. Ora rischiamo di perdere la giornata in aeroporto senza poter fare nulla. Stavolta la precisione tedesca fa cilecca...

27 August 2005

9° g - 27 Ago: Serengeti – Lago Vittoria

Arriviamo per l’ora di pranzo, sosta e poi visita al villaggio tradizionale dei Sukuma, dove il Sig. Jefta Kishosha (direttore del campo UTAMADUNI, email: kishoshajefta@yahoo.com, indirizzo postale Utamaduni Camp, PO Box 10356, Mwanza – Tanzania) sta cercando di mantener vive alcune tradizioni culturali di quella che è la più grande tribù del paese.

Concordiamo un programma di visite, gastronomia locale e rappresentazioni per la sera ed il giorno dopo: lezione sui Sukuma, battuta di pesca in barca, visita presso un guaritore tradizionale, visita al villaggio dei pescatori, visita ad un mercato locale, tutto per 15 dollari a testa, i soldi meglio spesi del viaggio!

La sera un gruppo di suonatori e di attori viene a recitare una leggenda della mitologia locale al nostro albergo. Molto interessante, la storia di due fratelli in competizione per la loro abilità come danzatori. Compro un piccolo tamburo da Kishosha, dice che è stato fatto da un certo Barnaba, che ora è morto, era un famoso artigiano, ed in effetti il tamburo suona molto bene.

Dormiamo allo Stopover Lodge di Mwanza, non male le camere e la cena anche se lentissimo il servizio.

01 September 2004

Music and films about Polynesia


Brel, Jacques, “Les Marquises” is a selectio of some of his best songs, including the eponymous one about the islands where he now rests in peace.




Mazière, Francis: The Gaugin Years (collezione di canzoni e danze polinesiane)



Fanshawe, David: Pacific Chants (collezione di musiche tradizionali polinesiane)



Tahiti – Air Mail (canzoni assortite)


Himene: Polyphonies Polynésiennes (choral music)



09 August 2003

3° g - 9 AGO: Tabriz e Kandovan

In mattinata visita a piedi al bazar, colorito e ricco, molti tappeti, ovviamente. Cerchiamo di fare provvista di contante sufficiente per vari giorni al mercato libero, anche se questo comporterà il trasporto di molteplici mattoncini di banconote, e possibilmente tenere una buona scorta di banconote di piccolo taglio per mance, frutta, acqua…

27 February 2003

8° g - 27 FEB: Santiago: Castillo, teatro, Tumba Francesa

Colazione pantagruelica, frutta tropicale , prosciutto cotto, formaggio, uova, c’è sostentamento per tutto il giorno! La prima visita è al Castillo de San Pedro, patrimonio mondiale dell'umanità dell'UNESCO. L’autista ha qualche dubbio su come arrivarci e chiediamo indicazioni ad una ragazza che passa per strada. La ragazza è molto gentile... anzi gentilissima: sale sul nostro bus e ci offre spiegazioni dettagliate, poi dice che vorrebbe venire con noi ma deve andare al lavoro, fa l’infermiera in un ospedale. Però vuole rivederci dopo, chiede il telefono della mia casa privata, dobbiamo assolutamente rivederci. Mi telefonerà poi varie volte ma per un motivo o per un altro non siamo mai riusciti a combinare. Insomma aveva visto un gruppo di occidentali, con un maschio spaiato (io) e aveva fatto di tutto per agganciare...

24 February 2003

5° g - 24 FEB: Trinidad

Mattinata a zonzo per Trinidad, è come passeggiare in un grande museo. L’architettura è solo il fantasma dello sfarzo coloniale che si sfoggiava qui durante l’epoca d’oro dell’impero spagnolo. La struttura urbanistica a dimensione d’uomo, raccolta attorno alla zona della cattedrale, quasi una miniatura, lascia ancora respirare l’atmosfera di allora. Naturalmente il traffico è minimo, ed a parte qualche raro camion, le immancabili automobili americane degli anni cinquanta contribuiscono a rendere l’ambiente ancora più caldo ed invitante...

29 April 1989

6° g - 29 APR: Mosca, al parco Kolomenskoe e concerto rock

Visita a Kolomenskoe, vecchia residenza campestre di Ivan il Terribile, poi teatro di varie vicissitudini storiche. La chiesa principale è strapiena di gente per la vigilia della pasqua ortodossa. Sono soprattutto vecchie donne, ma anche gente di mezza età. Pochissimi giovani... come nelle chiese un po' in tutto il mondo in fondo.

22 May 1980

Drive North to Gniew and loud rock in Gdansk

Today it's our designated departure for Gdansk, the old Geman Danzig, in the North of the country, by its Baltic Sea shores. But, of course, we can not leave without our almost-daily meal at Borzena's. We are served a sumptuous breakfast at 9:30, lots of proteins and caffeine. Good, we'll appreciate that during our long drive.

After taking care of ourselves we take care of our car. Giallina needs a clean, and only after having fulfilled that duty we can start our drive north.

We drive by Torun, some 250 km to the north, after a winding and altogether pleasant road along the Vistula river. No time for sightseeing though, we must reach Gdansk tonight. Just after Torun we stop at a road-side eatery to eat some excellent mushrooms.

We choose to continue on secondary country roads instead of the highway. More interesting, you never know whom you we might meet. We are in Pomerania, a land of ancient Teutonic (German really) roots and deep historical significance because of that.
Gniew of Teutonic memory

We do take a little time off at Gniew, an old "Mewe" fort of the Teutonic Knights, it's really fascinating. Another quick pit stop is to buy some gasoline, and even though we don't know the guy he sees our foreign plate and immediately proposes a deal for some black market fuel. Kombinowac...

We finally arrive in Gdansk by sunset, after some 450km of driving, and find two rooms at the hotel Monopol. We are quite tired and decide to have dinner here, to just eat and relax.

If only... Little did we know, there is a very loud and unbearable rock group playing really bone-shattering music until midnight. Yet the locals seem to appreciate it. It seems that, even though Poland does have access to most Western music, there is still a fairly naive attitude to rock and roll: the louder the better. Not unlike what one can find in smaller Italian provincial towns, only more so. Rock music as protest is a thing of the past in the West, but I have a feeling it is still very much a thing of the present here.

02 April 1980

Train tickets and church music

After the usual morning classes I go for a hair cut at a barber shop in the Forum Hotel. 92 zloty with shampoo, pretty cheap and a good job.

Then Romek accompanies the three of us to buy our train tickets to Berlin. Despite the thorough preparatory work of the previous days, we need his help to overcome the indefatigable Polish bureaucracy. At one point a clerk wanted us to change money again, because the receipt of the money we changed yesterday had a different date (yesterday) than the date on the receipt of the train tickets (today). We manage to stay cool and Romek persuades the man to finally issue our tickets.

In the evening we go for a concert of Bach's Luke's passion in a small church in the center of town. Always a moving experience to listen to bach's religious music, even if I am not religious.

You can choose one of many editions of Bach's Passion according to St Luke on Amazon.

The best is probably this one: