How we feel Is an illusion we choose
Popular posts from this blog
Another Queen of Night
I post this because whenever I recommend to anyone the Queen of Night, I always recommend it in the Lucia Popp rendition. It's a matter of personal taste, but what I love about this is that it is somewhat slower than the other versions and as a result, it would seem to me somewhat more difficult to perform and sustain--those high notes in which the Queen's voice becomes the Magic Flute itself are rounded, full, and deep while remaining light and airy. I have read some rather severe criticism of this ritardando; and while it may or may not reflect Mozart's intent, it is certainly within the options for staging. It creates a real vocal showpiece from what is already a magnificent example of same. It really is an amazing example of a virtuoso composition sung by a virtuoso voice. All of which should not be taken to mean that I do not truly appreciate the version posted earlier by Diana Damrau, it's just nice to see what a difference tempo can make. I think we can take
Angel Time--Anne Rice
Review copy received 11/04/09 From the time of its announcement, I had been looking forward to this new book by Anne Rice. As I say in every review, I am not a die-hard Anne Rice fan. I found Interview with a Vampire interesting and intriguing, but in hindsight, must lay much of the responsibility of the current vampire as victim and love-object obsession at its feet. After that, I had no patience with her writing until Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt. In that book I observed a kind of control and authorial voice that I had not seen in any of the books I had sampled since Interview . So too with Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana. Perhaps because of the subject matter, perhaps for other reasons, these two books seemed to witness a level of control of language and story that the other books did not. Gone were messy florid passages that lavished two, three, four paragraphs on the description of the lace and flounce of a jabot. These new books were spare, polished, poetic. The
So, he said with his tongue in his cheek, the passive voice ought not be used? What of Orwell's advice that a long word ought not be used when instead a shorter word could be used? Passive, yes. Good advice, certainly.
ReplyDeleteOne of my "first day of class" handouts was Orwell's five rules of writing from that essay. I don't know whether it did any good, but I felt better anyway. At least I had warned them.
ReplyDeleteFred, what a great idea. I know what students in my classes will be receiving at the beginning of the next semester!
ReplyDeleteDear R/T,
ReplyDeleteIt would not do to consider the not inconsiderable prolegomenon one would espouse in the utilization of so considerable a source. The vitiation of the not inconsiderable strength of the English Language obviates the utilization and lateralization of lesser guides.
How's that for violating most of the five?
shalom,
Steven
Well done! You earn an "A" for obfuscation. Be aware, though, Steven, Orwell's spectre is preparing to visit you.
ReplyDeleteR/T,
ReplyDeleteGlad you found it useful.
Steven,
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like something Nixon's former chief of staff would say--Was his name Haig?