Lyrics, Dialogue and Favourite Things
A veiled nomad stands in the midst of a Valley, and in front of an old yew tree She stretches wide her arms, extending from Her forehead to her waist, like long palm leaves, And thus creates a portal for me to Enter. Inside is a crossroads where the Stretch of dirt track leads to… Continue reading A Veiled Nomad
Dear Miss Ellie, for many years I have Gladly bought fruit and veg from your cabin. How oft you looked and sighed. It's true, There were others, dressed in their finery, Who offered me a garland of roses, But these prickled my hands and cut my arms. Besides, they were only interested In worldly ways… Continue reading A Letter: Lord Tollemache to Miss Ellie
Johannes Brahms, a composer who died alone But left to us in melody and tone, Out of plain themes, seamless transformations Into complex, Baroque variations. He mastered the technique of counterpoint And perfected a lyrical viewpoint. The Schumanns first recognised his talent, Clara thought the blue eyed beauty was sent From God, and so… Continue reading Johannes Brahms
There are many health benefits To a full laugh, more than a smile. Endorphines are released, and stress Hormones like cortisol reduced. Many tensions of modern life Can be broken with an outburst Of laughter at a comedy. It’s also one of the finest Expressions of one’s liberty In the face of your enemy.… Continue reading On Laughter
Robert Burton - The Anatomy of Melancholy (NYRB Classics, 2001) First published in 1621, it is still a fairly accurate medical treatise, in spite of modern advances beyond the 'four humours’. The melancholia here corresponds to modern day clinical depression, but chiefly it's a fascinating, informative and entertaining account of those afflicted, an analysis of… Continue reading My Desert Island Books
In that most glorious year of years, Seventeen Hundred and Eighty-Nine, Almost all the ancien regime’s fears Over their lasting fall and decline Blasted forth in one long drawn out breath: The middle classes were armed and manned. When God was finally put to death, The Church lost possession of their land, The Nobles exemption… Continue reading 1789
The modern day approach of interpreting Beethoven is to perform the symphonies either with ‘authenticity’, i.e. period instruments, or with a small scale orchestra that mirrors the size of early nineteenth century orchestras, or both. And so, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, John Eliot Gardiner and others are lauded for their approach. Certainly there is a transparency and… Continue reading Top 3 Ludwig van Beethoven Recordings
Folk live the same in Struttenboune Since the time its founders were born, An unbroken community, Its streets retain their unity. Grocers, tailors, butchers, bakers, Bank, school, pub, and undertakers, Independent, family owned Since when Queen Anne was on the throne. There is nothing to keep them hale Like a hearty pint of real ale,… Continue reading Struttenbourne
Landscape painting has long since captured the imagination like no other genre. To begin with, from the rural scenes in Pieter Brueghel the Elder to the classically inspired settings from Claude Lorraine and Nicolas Poussin, mankind was always at the heart of the paintings. There were exceptions, such as Jacob von Ruisdael, who depicted mankind’s… Continue reading Top 3 Favourite Landscape Paintings
Charlie Chaplin’s comedies, to the juvenile and the inner child alike, are the epitome of magic in the movies. An eternally youthful hyperbole, very few artists could elicit such a sensation, from a well of tears to pangs of laughter no remedy can cure, as Chaplin did with his immortal Tramp. True, he had a… Continue reading City Lights (1931): Chaplin’s Masterpiece
