November Reads

I read 7 books related to the Avon/Equinox authors, and 1 book that wasn't.  That one book was a SF novel of some length (over 300 pages) by Sherri Tepper, called After Long Silence (The Enigma Score in Britain).  It details life on a planet that may have intelligent life, in the form of crystals that grow to mountain size.  From 1987, it was my main read during my trip to Sudbury.  A pretty intelligent book, and definitely worth reading.  I gave my cope away to a Sudbury friend when I finished.

I began November near the end of my 16-book author rotation with a novel by Ballard, called  The Unlimited Dream Company, about a man who dies in a plane crash, but who then experiences a suitably strange after life.  This is a phenomenal book, spell binding from the first word onwards.  I took my time with it, which I always do with Ballard, as the novel is rich in imagery, and often requires pause to think about matters occurring.  So it was a great start to the month's reading! 

Next up was Barry Maltzberg's incomparable Gather In The Hall of Planets, about a SF writer attending a convention, and being told by aliens that if he doesn't discover who the alien is masquerading as, the world will be destroyed.  The book completely spoofs SF fans, cons, and is a very funny story.  I laughed at nearly every single dark-humoured page.  This is a book that a true fan of SF literature should read more than once. 

A cycle of reading is complete when I arrive at James Blish, long a favourite SF author.  I began rereading his Cities In Flight novels, likely the best SF series ever written.  The first novel, They Shall Have Stars, begins at the beginning, just as several major developments are about to come on-line, enabling travel to the stars.  The VR scenes on Jupiter are so far ahead of their time that they still resonate.  A true classic, and an excellent beginning to such a wonderful series of four novels.

Well, that makes for 3 books in a row to which I awarded 4 stars, from the Avon/Equinox authors.  What could top that?  Well, not the next book, which was a real clunker from Robert Silverberg.  Called The Seed of Earth, the first half is one of the most abysmal stories I have ever read.  The second half at least achieves average pulp standards.

After Silverberg comes Norman Spinrad.  I spent a huge chunk of the month reading his 500+ page novel called He Walked Among Us.  The premise is amazingly good, and this is the author's third attempt to help Earth avoid environmental catastrophe.  In the end, though, one tires of Spinrad's voice, and especially of one of the characters, the one from the underworld, so to speak.  I really wonder how many people actually finished this novel of those who started it.

I began a new series by Piers Anthony, a major author who I have come to like more and more.  His genius is undisputed, but sometimes he has difficulty expressing himself clearly and concisely.  God of Tarot is a kind of St Anthony in the wilderness story, and is quite well written.  However, I didn't feel totally engaged, instead feeling like an outsider watching things happen.  Perhaps just a bit too clinical.  Some stunning attacks against religion!

I'm running out of novels by John Christopher.  I have begun his Tripods series, with The White Mountains being the first book he published as an author for children.  This mixture of SF and fantasy serves as the template for virtually all of his youth novels.  I thought this was his last series written, because of the publication date.  But the books are reissues from the 60s, and were actually his first.  In my edition the author talks about his experience trying to get this book published in Britain and the US.

I am currently reading a Stonehenge book by Harry Harrison, which I will review soon on the Harrison page of my Avon/Equinox blog. 

Sunday afternoon was Philip Adamson's 6th concert in a years long series playing the 32 Beethoven Sonatas.  yesterday's program included the monstrously difficult Hammerclavier, lasting nearly 55 minutes.  It was a beautiful and magnificent performance!  Now that Philip has a bit of free time once again, I shall try and sneak in a lesson with him.  My own pieces are coming along, and might be up for a January performance or two.  We shall see how December goes.  Randy G. also attended the concert, and we went out for coffee afterwards.

Also on Sunday afternoon was Deb's appointment with a heart specialist from London, Ontario.  Basically they cannot go ahead with any treatment for her until she can provide an EKG strip during one of her episodes.  So we are going to work on that problem, and hopefully provide a strip on her next SVT attack. 

Sunday evening Amanda L came over for a visit, her first since last Christmas holiday.  We had a bit of catching up to do, and even found time to play a round of the Dr. Who card game!  Sunday was a busy day, and our most social in a long while.  I'm afraid we are becoming hermits. 

Last weekend was also Deb's choice for a film festival.  She chose three films directed by Anthony Asquith:  Pygmalion, The Woman In Question, and The Browning Version.  All three are remarkable films in some way or other.  These monthly mini-festivals are fun to have, and with nearly unlimited choice for grouping them, they should continue indefinitely.  Along with the listening programs we have going on, many pleasant evenings are being spent here at the Homestead.  We are prepared for winter nights.

M.

Dark Days Are Here

From the end of November until the middle of January, northern latitudes are at their darkest.  Daylight hours are greatly reduced, even in the southernmost part of Canada (Essex County).  Add to that fact that our area is at its cloudiest, and you have the makings of a depressing time of year.  It's a time of year that one really appreciates quality indoor activities, such as practicing piano, reading, watching great films, gaming, and even more writing.  The walking program is still in effect.  No more snow is forecast here in the near future, though Sudbury got walloped yesterday.

It's been nearly a week since Deb's first laser treatment.  No benefits noted yet, and she returns in 3 weeks for the second one.  The first one seems to have mostly healed, at any rate.  For my part, my right ear began plugging up just before the Sudbury trip, and is now mostly plugged once again.  It will likely remain that way until I give up all hope, then suddenly it will begin to clear again. 

We watched two movies of interest this past week.  Deb's weekly choice was "Boudu Saved From Drowning," an early film by Jean Renoir.  Michel Simon plays what might be one of the most easy to hate characters in all of film.  He plays a tramp who is saved from a suicidal drowning by a bourgeouis book seller, who lives with his wife and their maid.  Boudu proves to not only be ungrateful for the assistance they give him, but he turns all their lives upside down.  He is like a small cyclone that comes into their lives, disrupting everything, before heading back onto the street to live.  The film brings up the interesting question of how many homeless people, who, due either to mental illness or an unwillingness to conform to society's standards, do not fit in, never will fit in, and thus can never be confined to a house.  Many relatives of such people have tried many different ways to care for them, but without success.  It's a problem few people seriously talk about, but Boudu is the poster boy for this type of homeless person.  Anyway, the film cannot be said to be entertaining, as Boudu grates on everyone's nerves after a while, and needs to be punched.  But there are many amazing scenes, and several laugh out loud moments.

 Now showing on Criterion. 

My film choice was called Plucking the Daisy, and goes a long way to show why sexism is still alive and well in France today.  If people were brought up on movies such as this one, they can almost be excused their boorish behaviour towards women.  Roger Vadim scripted it, and Brigitte Bardot is the star.  She plays the part of a sweet young girl from Vichy, daughter of a strict general, who leaves town for the big city, and through one mishap and other ends up in a burlesque show stripping contest.  However, she has published a scandalous book under the name of A.D.  Yup, just the kind of plot I would have thought up.

The film turns out to be a screwball comedy, and there are some very funny moments.  Her brother left the family to become a painter in Paris, telling them he has struck it rich, but he actually works as a low paid guard in the Balzac Museum.  His quick tour with a group of tourists through the museum is quite funny.  Bardot's striptease is actually very funny, too, and done just the way this girl would have done it (in the end, she has to be pushed out onto the stage).  But overall, I do not think I have seen a picture so blatantly sexist in all my life.  The director, Marc Allegret, also directed the 2nd Marius film.  When released, it was the 20th most popular French film of all time, mostly because of Bardot, no doubt.

 Not the least bit sensationalist. 

We are home for two days, then off to Windsor on Sunday.  Deb has an appointment with a heart specialist at 1:15, and then my piano instructor, Philip Adamson, is performing the 6th concert in his Beethoven Sonata series.  Jenn may be coming from Cambridge to hear him play again, and even Amanda is in town and will meet up with us that day.

M.

March Break

This is the time of year that I think of the desert.  For nearly 30 years we would go to NM during the school break at this time, and wander happily in the desert for a week.  I still have unfinished business there, but did not feel like travelling this year.  Hopefully next year.  Our summer and autumn visits to NM are into the high country, but in early spring we stay down where it's warm.

Even though there are no lessons here this week, I have four students coming tomorrow.  A dedicated bunch.  Today I had my piano tuned.  I wish I could have it tuned every week--it is such an amazing instrument to play when it is in tune.  Since we turn the heat down at night, and then back up in the morning, it plays havoc with the strings.  I was supposed to have a lesson with Philip Adamson today.  I had to cancel, due to a night of insomnia.  I would have wasted my time and his if I had tried to play for him today--it would have just been mechanical, at best.

Speaking of Philip, he played his fifth in a series of Beethoven piano sonata programs last Friday evening.  He played the three sonatas that are in the key of D.  It included two of my favourites: The Tempest, which I have played at two different stages of my life, and The Pastorale, which I would love to study.  He performed with the music, which isn't surprising since he gave his last program on October 15th of last year.  That's fast work!  His performances are always worth attending; doubly so when he plays Beethoven, for which he has an uncanny affinity.  Deb and I attended with Randy G. and Jenn G.

Of course skies were perfectly clear the night of his recital, so I had to give up the one and only clear moonless night we have had.  However, it was clear last night, and I headed out to Hallam to do battle with a 5-day old moon, which rides annoyingly high in the March sky.  Still, it was wonderful to be back out amongst the stars!  I was home (nearly frozen) by midnight.  Usually I can fall asleep immediately after such a night.  Not last night.  The brain would not turn off.  Thus no piano lesson today.

On Thursday Jenn, Deb, and I are heading to Detroit to hear the orchestra perform the Mahler 5th Symphony.  The concert mistress will also perform a Mozart violin concerto.  Before that we will sample some beer at Hopcat, and get to the mailbox.  Dinner somewhere, too.  Then, after the concert, depending on how we all feel, there is a one-night photo exhibit we would like to attend, a little deeper into the city.  So I will likely blog again on Friday, time permitting.  No art work today, but if I do get time tomorrow I will post one.

Mapman Mike

Unofficial End of Winter

At last!  The 10-day forecast we have all been awaiting--every single day temps will rise above 0 C, sometimes impressively so.  Winter unofficially began on January 9th, when our first real cold air descended.  It stayed for 8 weeks and 2 days.  Time to say Good Riddance!  Looking forward to walking every day again.  We recently received our gas bill for late January and most of February.  Last year, which was a brutal winter, the average daytime temp for the same time period was -2C.  This year it was -5 C.  The average norm for that period is closer to 0 C.  Yes, it's been cold.

Today was a busy day.  We brought our car in again to VW for an odour problem, related to a leaking sunroof back in October.  Last time they gave it a thorough cleaning and infused it with scented baking soda.  Didn't work.  This time they are going to strip the insides right down to the bare steel, and likely replace the under padding, and possibly some of the carpet.  It's all under warranty.  They gave us a loaner until the job is done.  Also, it was Deb's infusion day, and afterwards she had an examination by her doctor.  She is still in total remission, and everyone is happy about that.  And I got my new reading glasses; trifocals for piano, computer, and close reading.  I am very pleased with the results so far, but I only have practiced piano for an hour.  More tomorrow, but so far so good.  Reading is fine.

Friday evening, Philip Adamson is presenting his fifth concert in the complete piano sonatas of Beethoven.  After this he will have performed 19 of the 32, with several gigantic ones still awaiting.  Jenn is coming from Cambridge to hear him play.  Hopefully Randy G. will also be there.  I hoping to see hm next week for a lesson.  I need to play through my program for him.

And now it's time for another work of art from the DIA.  Following up on the last time, I am presenting another version of the Jupiter and Callisto story....

Jupiter and Callisto, Beauvais Tapestry ca. 1680.

Detroit Institute of Arts.  293 cm x 227 cm 

This time we get the beginning of the story, when Jupiter, disguised as Diana (the fiend!) seduces Callisto.  Boy, is she going to be sorry (see the previous blog).  And surprised.

 The scene is set in an impressively rich landscape.  Detail of above.  Looks like a great spot to make out with your girlfriend.

 Upper levels of the woods.  Detail of above tapestry. 

Mapman Mike

Beethoven's Turn

Saturday, October 20th/18 

For the last three weekends we have attended a concert that has been devoted to a single composer.  Two weeks ago it was Schubert; one week ago it was Bartok.  Now it was Beethoven's turn.  Philip Adamson, my piano instructor for the past many years, was back at his bucket list, performing 4 more of the 32 piano sonatas.  He has now performed 16 of them, and is likely at work today on the next programme.

Beethoven is such a composer of truly odd works, and despite historians and musicologists trying to pigeonhole his styles and periods, in my opinion it is all for nought.  No two piano sonatas are alike, or even closely related.  They all explore completely different ideas, emotions, and, in some instances, games and buffoonery.  When Beethoven wishes to be serious, it can lead to music of such devastation and calamity that it is a wonder a true performer doesn't die in the attempt to bring it forth for an audience.  I am reminded of a performance many years ago of the 5th Symphony by Antal Dorati and the Detroit Symphony.  Even back then I was totally familiar with most of the notes in that iconic work.  However, Dorati's performance was so intense and overpowering that I jotted in the margin of my program something like "This music is like a mighty mountain being torn apart."  

 Portrait of Beethoven we saw in Vienna,

at one of his houses.  My photo.

My favourite performers of Beethoven's piano music are the late Ivan Morovec, who only performed and recorded select sonatas, and Andras Schiff, alive and well and still performing the entire set on occasion.  I have been fortunate to hear these masters on several occasions, and their Beethoven sets standards far beyond anything that mere mortals can achieve, no matter how many hours are spent at the piano.  Having said that, Dr. Adamson has accredited himself admirably in his attempt to climb the mighty heights of the Beethoven Sonatas.  Though he has completed work on 16 of them, there are still some mighty big sonatas that lie ahead, including the Appassionata, the Waldstein, the Hammerclavier, the Tempest, and the nearly impossible to bring off effectively final sonata.  So I congratulate him on his progress, and wish him well with the rest of his amazing journey!

Last night Philip chose to group three of the four pieces he performed around the key in which it was written.  Beethoven chose G Major for four sonatas, but the smaller student one had already made an appearance on an earlier program.  Since (see above) the sonatas are so vastly different, and strikingly odd in each their own way, there was no danger of the works sounding like one another.  Especially so with Philip's deeply thought out interpretations and carefully chosen tempos.  With professional pianists sometimes the music flashes by so quickly that special moments are lost in the flurry.  Philip takes time to bring out these moments, and many others, but manages to keep things lively and moving along.  Favourite parts for me were the slow movement of Op 79, the first movement of Op 14, #2, and the first movement of the Moonlight Sonata.  The latter was as fine a performance of that old chestnut as I have ever heard.  It certainly beats out Morovec, who plays much too slowly, and comes closest to Schiff, though somehow Schiff manages to play with the damper pedal depressed all the way through.

I had some problems with the piano, a new Yamaha CFX, priced somewhere near $100,000.  For one thing, it was out of tune, and a high C# was twanging away throughout the final piece (which was in C#).  For another, the middle range has difficulty keeping pace with the very powerful bass, so sometimes balance of sound was a problem.  Having said that, the acoustics for piano performances are vastly superior in the new recital hall than they ever were at Assumption Chapel, which more less resembled an echo chamber. 

Overall it has been a very fascinating three weeks of live concerts.  Combined with my home listening projects of attempting to hear the complete works of Britten, Brahms, and all the Haydn Symphonies (we already have completed Delius) I am doing my best to keep my ear(s) in good shape!  Our next concert date isn't until November 10th, another piano solo recital (with some Beethoven)! 

In New Mexico news, Jens Hanson was at the concert last night.  He was professor of theory and composition at the university when I attended.  He and Dr. Kovarik, who taught history, were the two most interesting people in the building.  He is from NM!  He managed to get back to his hometown for a visit this past spring.  However, a massive forest fire had devastated the surrounding mountains, leaving him with a rather sad impression.  I am currently at work on my blog version of our journey, and hope to have the first post up soon.  So come back often!

Mapman Mike