I seem to be on a roll at home lately, having read some truly remarkable novels, and listened to some of the best music ever penned. Over the weekend we heard Benjamin Britten's spellbinding operatic version of "Turn of the Screw," from the novella by Henry James. I studied the book in high school, but now need to reread it. We are searching for an audio version on-line. Britten brings exactly the right sense of drama to the work, and it will stick with me for a long time.
Brahms' Op 53 and Op 54, two works for solo voice and orchestra, are spellbinding in different ways, but essential to hear if one claims to love music. Op 53 was Clara Schumann's favourite piece by Brahms, and Op 54 continues to be one of his most popular. Earlier in music history we have Haydn's Symphonies 41 in C Major and 42 in D Major. Very different works, indeed, but captiving, energizing, and completely wonderful little worlds unto themselves.
In SF literature, reading "Aniara" by Harry Martinson (a Nobel Prize winner for literature) was one of the most moving experiences of my life. He gets completely and utterly to the important matter, and the whole epic poem is a hymn to Earth, and to those who realize what we have (the prize of the galaxy, no less). I will reread this book until I wear out the pages. Also recently devoured was an utterly brilliant story called "Greener Than You Think," by the genius writer Ward Moore, who also brought us "Bring The Jubilee." It actually has a lot in common with Martinson's novel, and it is interesting that by chance I read them back to back. Reviews can be found in my Avon/Equinox blog, in the left margin.
We are continuing with the visually stunning PC game called "Obduction." It has proved impossible to solve without a walkthru, and even then has been very challenging to try and finish it. However, I am often just happy and sit and stare at it, or walk through the many different landscapes.
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