LJ Knows Good Music

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-22340113

I even shared a birthday with him. RIP.

Let me just make it clear: I HATE opera.

You remember that screech of chalk on the blackboard that gave you goosebumps and made you cringe? A soprano hitting the high notes has the same effect on me. I had tried getting into it many years ago, having liked Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro. But I eventually found myself turned off by the sometimes ridiculous and often overly melodramatic plots as well as the screaming, er, singing. Even my own mother and grandmother kept me turned off of it, describing it as something "that's always in another language and where the singers sound like they're screaming".

Now don't get me wrong. I love classical music. Give me Beethoven's Pastoral, Tchaikovsky's Pathetique, Mahler's Fifth, Shostakovich's Tenth, or some Brahms any day. But I have found one big exception to my operaphobia recently: Rossini's The Barber of Seville. And a big reason has to do with pop culture that I grew up with. Elmer Fudd chased Bugs Bunny around an opera stage to its overture in Rabbit of Seville. A big, fat opera singer kept getting disrupted by Bugs as he was trying to rehearse "Largo al factotum" in Long-Haired Hare. That very same aria was used in many other cartoon shorts as well.

Another reason is because it's comical. This opera was based on a play by Pierre Beaumarchais, and is pretty much a romp throughout. The plot involves the attempt of Count Almaviva to woo the wealthy and beautiful Rosina, yet her guardian, Dr. Bartolo, wishes to marry her himself. Eventually, the Count wins the lady with the help of Figaro, a barber. His schemes create many laughs at the expense of Don Basilio.

Whenever I watch this, I forget that I hate opera. And if I'm ever given the chance to see it performed live, I'll probably give it a go.

“This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before.” - Leonard Bernstein

A sad weekend for classical music in general. First, Maria Tallchief, and now...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-12816188

I still love the Sibelius cycle he did with the Boston Symphony Orchestra during the 1970s.

RIP Maria and Sir Colin.

EDIT: Now Adolph "Bud" Herseth, former Chicago Symphony Orchestra principal trumpet, has died as well. >

Has anyone had issues with the newest version of itunes? It causes some problems with classical music. Basically it alphabetizes by "album artist" vs. "artist". I had all my classical music organized by the composer's (last) name, and the new version displays the album artist instead of artist, making it a pain to locate classical music on itunes.

Does anyone have a problem with this? Or have any tips that could override the system to organize by the artist/composer (not album artist)?

Give me back the old version! :-)