Category Archives: On Music

Something for Thursday

So, there’s a local radio station that every day at noon does what they call a “Beatle Block”. That’s four songs by the Beatles. Only…not really. The other day they played this, which is not a Beatles song. It’s a Wings … Continue reading

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Tone Poem Tuesday

When in doubt, go with Berlioz. You can’t go wrong with Berlioz. Here is the Roman Carnival overture, for which Berlioz re-tooled a number of melodies from his first opera, Benvenuto Cellini, which–like many of Berlioz’s works during his lifetime, sadly–failed in its … Continue reading

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Tone Poem Tuesday

Whoops, it is Tuesday, isn’t it? Welp! Some Borodin, then: Well, before I get to that, background: the Polovtsian Dances are one of Borodin’s most famous works. It is, in fact, an excerpt from his opera Prince Igor. The opera itself hasn’t endured … Continue reading

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Something for Thursday (St. Paddy’s Day on a Sunday edition)

Some Irish music, because…Irish music. And I have no idea if John Williams has any Irish ancestry in him at all, but his score to Far and Away is so good that I am officially declaring him a Temporary Honorary Irish … Continue reading

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Tone Poem Tuesday

Today, a rarity: or something that felt to me like a rarity many years ago, when I was still playing the trumpet (and, I might add, at a pretty high level!). The evolution of the trumpet as an instrument meant … Continue reading

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Something for Roger (on Thursday!)

On the occasion of his 71st birthday, here are The Beatles as channeled through the instrument that was Joe Cocker: May Roger have another 71 trips around the sun in store, at least!  

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Tone Poem Tuesday

One of Leonard Bernstein’s main self-appointed missions in life was the advancement of new American music. As comfortable as he was in the orchestral repertoire all the way back to Mozart, Bernstein saw it as his duty to stand up … Continue reading

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Something for Thursday

CCR: Here’s what I don’t understand about this song: “It was down in Louisiana, just about a mile from Texarakana.” Huh? According to what I’ve found on Google, Texarkana is roughly 35 miles away from the Louisiana state line. (Although … Continue reading

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Tone Poem Tuesday

Reinhold Gliere was a Russian composer who lived long enough to stop being a Russian composer and become a Soviet one. He was born in 1875 and lived to 1956, almost exactly contemporary with Joseph Stalin. As the last living … Continue reading

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Something for Thursday

A film music suite from the movie Miracle, about the “Miracle on Ice” hockey game at the 1980 Winter Olympic Games. That game was played 44 years ago today. Wow. For more on that game, please check out Sheila O’Malley’s amazing … Continue reading

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