Greetings, Programs!
Welcome to my outpost on the Interweb! I write SF, fantasy, and horror for fun and profit. Other interests include music, nature, science, humor, food, bib overalls, and pie throwing (metaphorically AND literally). About Me Comments Policy Photo Gallery My Books: The Song of Forgotten Stars
Other BooksHow to make Buffalo Chicken Soup A Pie in the Face is a Wonderful Thing!
Where to Find Me On Social Media Facebook
(rarely updated)
BlueSky Threads Tumblr Instagram Flickr YouTube Tiktok (pending) My Substack: Dispatches from the Forgotten Stars SUPPORT!
If you like what you see here, consider supporting! See “My Books” in the pages above, or use these donation links. 
-
Category Archives: music
Something for Thursday
Sheku Kanneh-Mason and siblings, playing “Redemption Song”. More info to come, but I really wanted to get this up here! I found this a delight.
Tone Poem Tuesday
It’s not terribly surprising to learn that Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov was one of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s early influences; after all, Rimsky-Korsakov was a gigantic name in Russian music in the late 19th century, second only to Tchaikovsky. Even in his maturity, when … Continue reading
A song for a random Saturday
I don’t have anything else to post today, so I’ll offer up a random song: “Scythe Song” by Dougie Maclean. This wonderful song is about the relationship between master and student, and how true mastery often involves repeated practice in … Continue reading
Something for Thursday
I don’t remember who tweeted about this song the other day, but they basically said something along the lines of, “Sometimes you need a Swedish metal song about the soldiers who protected the Pope during the sack of Rome in … Continue reading
Tone Poem Tuesday
Staying Rachmaninoff-adjacent, as opposed to posting about Rachmaninoff directly: Rachmaninoff learned much from the great master of the Russia of his youth, Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky. Tchaikovsky met Rachmaninoff when the younger composer was still a teenaged student, and he gave … Continue reading
“Oh my darling….”
There’s a frankly ghastly anti-smoking ad that seems to be showing up on teevee a bit of late; I’ve seen it nearly every day during visits to my parents. I’m not embedding the damned thing here, but if you MUST … Continue reading
Something for Thursday
It’s late in the day, almost 6pm, and I still haven’t posted. I wasn’t even sure what to post…and then I see that David Crosby has died. Here are Messrs. Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young.
Posted in music, Passages
Tagged Passages, Something For Thursday
Comments Off on Something for Thursday
Tone Poem Tuesday
Expect a lot of Rachmaninoff on this site this year, as it’s the great composer’s 150th birth year. Today doesn’t quite see Rachmaninoff directly…but a piece by a teacher of his. Sergei Taneyev succeeded Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky at the Moscow … Continue reading
Something for Thursday: Farewell, Jeff Beck
Sad news from the music world yesterday: guitarist Jeff Beck has died. He had a long and unconventional career, which led to some amazing music-making. This song was my introduction to his guitar work, and it quickly became one of … Continue reading
Posted in music, Passages
Tagged Passages, Something For Thursday
Comments Off on Something for Thursday: Farewell, Jeff Beck
Tone Poem Tuesday
Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992) was one of the major names in twentieth-century music. HIs work is always brightly modern, but also accessible in a way that much of the avant garde music of that century was not; Messiaen’s work both rewards repeated … Continue reading