QUOTATION: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Man postpones or remembers; he does not live in the present, but with reverted eye laments the past, or, heedless of the riches that surround him, stands on tiptoe to foresee the future.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) Discuss

 

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TODAY’S BIRTHDAY: MARY FAIRFAX SOMERVILLE (1780)

Mary Fairfax Somerville (1780)

Somerville became an accomplished science writer at a time when women’s involvement in the sciences was generally discouraged. She earned widespread recognition for her 1831 translation of Pierre-Simon Laplace‘s five-volume Mécanique Céleste (Celestial Mechanics), a project she undertook for the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, which aimed to adapt scientific material for the rapidly expanding reading public. What term was coined in a review of one of her other works? More… Discuss

 

THIS DAY IN THE YESTERYEAR: LARGEST MASS EXECUTION IN US HISTORY (1862)

Largest Mass Execution in US History (1862)

Though the US government and the Sioux concluded several treaties during the first half of the 19th century, relations had deteriorated by 1862 when a Sioux uprising killed more than 800 white settlers and soldiers in Minnesota. Military tribunals convicted 303 Sioux prisoners of murder and rape and sentenced them to death. US President Abraham Lincoln commuted most sentences, but the public hanging of 38 prisoners was still the largest mass execution in US history. What became of the bodies? More… Discuss

 

ARTICLE: THE GLAUBERG

The Glauberg

The presence of ancient ruins on the Glauberg plateau in Hesse, Germany, had long been attributed to the Romans, until the 1906 discovery of a torc—a metal necklace—which pointed to a Celtic influence. The Glauberg is one of a network of fortified sites found in parts of Germany. In 1988, a historian flying overhead discovered tumuli—mounds of earth protecting tombs—that were revealed to contain warriors’ remains and weapons. Perhaps the most significant discovery, though, was a statue of whom? More… Discuss

 

NEWS: IDEA OF GAINING WEIGHT “TERRIFIES” SOME YOUNG UK TEENS

Idea of Gaining Weight “Terrifies” Some Young UK Teens

The results of a survey on body image and weightfixation in 13-year-old schoolchildren in the UK have doctors concerned. They show that about half of girls and a third of boys are “a little worried” by the thought of getting fat, while nearly 12 percent of the former and 5 percent of the latter are “terrified” by it. Though eating disorders are not typically diagnosed in kids so young, about a quarter of the girls and 15 percent of the boys surveyed were already exhibiting eating disorder behaviors such as fasting. More… Discuss

 

Il est né le Divin Enfant

Salt lake Children’s Choir singing IL EST NÉ LE DIVIN ENFANT at the 2007 Christmas concert. Sung in the Cathedral of the Madeline in Salt Lake City, Utah 12-1-2007

Get this song and our album on Amazon.com: 
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006… (please leave a review)

Or on iTunes.com: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/all… (Please leave a review)

Or get an MP3 Single or album on our site:
http://childrensing.com/recordings/noel/

Salt lake Children’s Choir singing IL EST NÉ LE DIVIN ENFANT at the 2007 Christmas concert. Sung in the Cathedral of the Madeline in Salt Lake City, Utah 12-1-2007

Founded in the fall of 1979 and long regarded as one of the finest ensembles of its kind in the nation, the Salt Lake Children’s Choir consists of singers generally from 8-15 who hail from around the Salt Lake Valley and beyond. It emphasizes natural vocal production and works of the immortal masters, as well as oustanding folk and contemporary music from around the world (including the music of Sweden, Norway, Finland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Ukraine, Russia, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Namibia, Zambia, Mexico, Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, Japan, Korea, China, and Native and African America). A prize winner in international competition, the choir has appeared with many internationally celebrated artists and organizations — including Grant Johannessen, Frederica von Stade, Marvin Hamlisch, Pete Seeger, and on numerous occasions with The Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Utah Symphony (with whom it has also recorded). It has been featured at several conventions of the American Choral Directors’ Association, and has been heard on Public Radio International and PBS. Its singers are also regularly requested for major sound-tracks and promotions (which have included projects for such entities as CBS, NBC, and Walt Disney Productions).

The son of an internationally renowned choral conductor, director Ralph B. Woodward is an accomplished singer, horn player, composer and an authority on the care and development of the young voice. He has played in the American Wind Symphony, and also with the Rheinische Philharmonie and the Utah Symphony, performed with jazz greats, Chuck Mangione and J.J. Johnson, studied and recorded with horn virtuoso, Herman Baumann, and worked in close collaboration with pianist, Grant Johannessen and folk singer, Pete Seeger. His own considerable writing for the choir often reflects his extensive multi-cultural/lingual background in Europe and Latin America. In 1999 he was awarded special recognition for his teaching, arrangement, and conducting at the Golden Gate International Children’s Festival and Competition.
The Salt Lake Children’s Choir holds general auditions in early August (for boys and girls ages 8-15). 

 

Tchaikovsky Nutcracker Suite – Russian Dance Trepak

The Russian Dance from Tchaikovsky’s famous Nutcracker Suite. This is probably not only my favourite of all the movements, and I hope you’ll enjoy it!

 

J. S. Bach: Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248, Part II: Sinfonia — CMDH & Laurenscantorij

Johann Sebastian Bach
Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248
Part II: Sinfonia

Laurenscantorij & COLLEGIUM MUSICUM Den Haag
Wiecher Mandemaker, conductor

recorded live at the Laurenskerk in Rotterdam, The Netherlands
December 1st, 2012
http://www.laurenscantorij.nl
http://www.cmdh.nl

 

Felix Mendelssohn – Six Anthems for eight voices a capella opus 79 – New Year

Maulbronn Chamber Choir
The night shines as the day
Conductor: Jürgen Budday

A concert recording from the church of the
UNESCO World Heritage Site Maulbronn Monastery.
Released & created by Andreas Otto Grimminger & Josef-Stefan Kindler
in cooperation with Jürgen Budday.
Juli 2010.

F. Mendelssohn: Sechs Sprüche zum Kirchenjahr.
In durchweg opulenten 8stimmigen Sätzen durchmisst Mendelssohn die Feste des Kirchenjahres vom Advent bis zu Himmelfahrt. Dabei reicht die klangliche Palette je nach Charakter des jeweiligen Festes vom dumpfen Adagio bis hin zum strahlenden, jubelnden Allegro. Inhaltlich repräsentiert insbesondere der Text der Passionszeit das Thema des Konzertes: Die “Übeltaten”, das Elend und die Sünde stehen für die negativen Seiten des Lebens, die durch Christus in der Herrlichkeit Gottes aufgehoben werden.

 

Rimsky-Korsakov – Christmas Eve: Orchestral Suite (1895)

Christmas Eve (Suite)

I. Christmas Night
II. Ballet of the Stars
III. Witches’ Sabbath and Ride on the Devil’s Back
IV. Polonaise
V. Vakula and the Slippers

A thrilling orchestral suite by Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908), based on music from the 1895 opera of the same name. The plot of the opera follows the short story “Christmas Eve” from Nikolai Gogol‘s “Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka“. The same story also formed the basis of Tchaikovsky’s operas “Vakula the Smith” and “Cherevichki“.

A synopsis of Gogol’s short story is available on Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christma…

Conductor: Neeme Järvi
Scottish National Orchestra

 

BBC News – Chinese smugglers ‘dig tunnel to Hong Kong’

BBC News – Chinese smugglers ‘dig tunnel to Hong Kong’.

BBC News – Edward Snowden Christmas message: End mass surveillance

BBC News – Edward Snowden Christmas message: End mass surveillance.

U.S. condemns Christmas attacks that kill 37 Christians in Iraq – latimes.com

U.S. condemns Christmas attacks that kill 37 Christians in Iraq – latimes.com.

Unique Musical Moments/Great Performences: The Evening Prayer – Kathleen Battle, Frederica von Stade

In the original German, with the English translation:

Abends, will ich schlafen gehn,
Vierzehn Engel um mich stehn:
Zwei zu meinen Häupten,
Zwei zu meinen Füßen,
Zwei zu meiner Rechten,
Zwei zu meiner Linken,
Zweie, die mich decken,
Zweie, die mich wecken,
Zweie, die mich weisen,
Zu Himmels-Paradeisen

Evenings, when I go to sleep,
Fourteen angels with me keep,
Two stand at my head,
Two at the foot of my bed,
Two are at my right hand,
Two are at my left hand,
Two in covers tuck me,
Two at morning wake me,
Two that point the way to rise
To heaven’s paradise.

Though maybe not quite a “Christmas” song, it’s as close to one as I can imagine! These 2 amazing perfomers are superb! We’ve Engelbert Humperdinck to thank for this unique song and melody, from “Hänsel und Gretel.” Just one of many from his brilliant opera.
Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!!

 

Gaudete, Christus est natus! (Rejoice Christ is Born!)

Gaudete, Christus est natus!

[Medieval Christmas Hymn, from an anonymous author.
Performed by the Swedish ensemble Joculatores Upsalienses]

Tchaikovsky Nutcracker Suite – 7 ‘Reed Flutes’ * Volker Hartung & Cologne New Philharmonic

Peter Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite op.71a is brilliantly performed by the Cologne New Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Volker Hartung. Filmed during their annual concerts in Hamburg and Wuppertal, Germany in February 2009 in amazing picture and sound quality, the sound was recorded live by Holger Siedler during their concert at Laeisz-Halle Hamburg, on sunday morning, February 1st 2009.
Enjoy!

 

J.S. Bach Magnificat Ton Koopman BWV 243 Full album Lyrics – ArcaDellaMemoria

BWV 243a http://www.arcadellamemoria.blogspot….ArcaDellaMemoria: Video. Ton Koopman J. S. Bach Magnificat BWV 243 Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra and Choir – Full album Lyricshttp://www.arcadellamemoria.blogspot…. ArcaDellaMemoria J.S. Bach Magnificat BWV 243 Complete 33:44 min. “Live Music” Concerto Orchestra Bach “Classical Music” “Johann Sebastian Bach” ArcaDellaMemoria – Musica dal Tempo “J.S. Bach” Magnificat “BWV 243” BWV 243 ArcaDellaMemoria
“Live Music” Concerto Orchestra Bach “Classical Music” “Johann Sebastian Bach”
eo: http://youtu.be/r4zvjV4_sAY
J.S. Bach Magnificat Ton Koopman BWV 243 Full album Lyrics – ArcaDellaMemoria
Bach Magnificat BWV 243 D major Koopman – BWV 243a Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra and Choir – Full album Lyrics Deborah York, soprano I Bogna Bartosz, soprano II & alto Jörg Dürmüller, tenor Klaus Mertens, bass Ton Koopman BWV 243 not BWV 243. This is BWV 243a, an earlier version with extra four chorals inserted. 

 

Arthur Fiedler & Boston Pops Medley – Here We Come A-Caroling/O Tannenbaum/I Saw Three Ships (1972)

“Here We Come A-wassailing” (or Here We Come A-caroling) is an English traditional Christmas carol and New Years song, apparently composed c. 1850. The old English wassail song refers to ‘wassailing’, or singing carols door to door wishing good health, while the a- is an archaic intensifying prefix; compare A-Hunting We Will Go and lyrics to The Twelve Days of Christmas (e.g., “Six geese a-laying”). According to Readers Digest; “the Christmas spirit often made the rich a little more generous than usual, and bands of beggars and orphans used to dance their way through the snowy streets of England, offering to sing good cheer and to tell good fortune if the householder would give them a drink from his wassail bowl or a penny or a pork pie or, let them stand for a few minutes beside the warmth of his hearth. The wassail bowl itself was a hearty combination of hot ale or beer, apples, spices and mead, just alcoholic enough to warm tingling toes and fingers of the singers”.

“O Tannenbaum”, or, in its English version, “O Christmas Tree“, is a Christmas carol of German origin. A Tannenbaum is a fir tree (German: die Tanne) or Christmas tree (der Weihnachtsbaum). Its evergreen qualities have long inspired musicians to write several “Tannenbaum” songs in German. The melody is an old folk tune (Lauriger Horatius). The first known “Tannenbaum” song lyrics date back to 1550. 

“I Saw Three Ships” (Come Sailing In) is a traditional and popular Christmas carol from England. A variant of its parent tune “Greensleeves”, the earliest printed version of “I Saw Three Ships” is from the 17th century, possibly Derbyshire, and was also published by William B. Sandys in 1833. The lyrics mention the ships sailing into Bethlehem, but the nearest body of water is the Dead Sea about 20 miles away. The reference to three ships is thought to originate in the three ships that bore the purported relics of the Biblical magi to Cologne Cathedral in the 12th century.

 

Turist în Făgăraș: Țara Făgărașului- Calbor, satul fântânii reci

 

Turist în Făgăraș: Țara Făgărașului- Calbor, satul fântânii reci.

CEATA DIN ARPASU DE JOS-FECIOREASCA FETELOR 06 01 2011

Fecioreasca fetelor de la Crihalma & Fecioreasca feciorilor de la Ticusul Nou

Deus In Adjutorium – Monteverdi Vespers 2007

Madrigal: Concert de Craciun/Romanian Carols Concert

Madrigal: Concert de Craciun/Romanian Carols Concert

 

Igor Zhukov plays Tchaikovsky “Christmas”

 

Mozart – 3 German Dances, K. 605

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart‘s Three German Dances (Teutsche), K. 605, are a set of three dance pieces composed by Mozart in 1791. Most of Mozart’s German Dances were written whilst he held the position of Kammermusicus (Imperial Chamber Composer) in Vienna. Mozart had been appointed to this position on the 1st December 1787 by Emperor Joseph II. The position was offered following the death of the former Kammermusicus, Christoph Willibald Gluck on 15 November 1787. In the position Mozart earned 800 Florins a year. One of the main obligations of his position was to write music for the court dances and balls that were held in the Redoutensaal (Public Ballrooms) of the Imperial Palace in Vienna. Mozart was an enthusiastic dancer, and produced many dance works, including ten sets of German dances. The first set was written in February 1787, before Mozart’s appointment to Kammermusicus. The other sets, excluding K. 611, were written between December 1787 and 1791, during which Mozart also wrote well known pieces such as Symphonies 40 and 41, and his opera Così fan tutte. These were mostly written in sets of six, with one set of four and one of twelve. Mozart composed this set of three Teutsche (German Dances) in the early months of 1791. The three dances of K. 605 are usually listed with the six dances of K. 600 and the four of K. 602 as Dreizehn deutsche Tänze (Thirteen German Dances). The pieces first appear on 12 February 1791 on Mozart’s List of all my Works, and are the penultimate set of German Dances that Mozart would compose before his death on 5 December 1791. The dances are scored for piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani, violins I and II, violoncellos, and double basses. The third dance uniquely adds two posthorns and five sleigh bells tuned to C, E, F, G, and A (in ascending order). As the name “Three German Dances” suggests, this set of dances includes three individual dances. Each dance changes in instrumentation; only the violins play in all three dances. Each dance varies in character because of this, and each includes various features:
-Dance 1: The first dance begins with a series of repeating phrases that have a rich texture and are emphasised by the violins. Small, light fanfares can be heard throughout the piece being played by the trumpets. At the end of the dance the main theme from the beginning of the dance is repeated in a characterful ending.
-Dance 2: The main tune is once again played by the violins at the beginning, and this main tune is repeated, as is the next phrase. However, this repeat is played at a lower dynamic. The main tune then passes on to a characterful woodwind section. This is followed by an almost waltz-like phrase which has a clear, steady beat that could have easily been danced to.
-Dance 3 Schlittenfahrt: This dance may have been written independently of the others, as it is very different in style. Schlittenfahrt means “Sleigh Ride“; the use of sleigh bells in the piece clearly emphasises this. Before the sleigh bells enter, there is a series of repeating phrases that pass between the trumpets, woodwind and violins. The topography of the dynamics of the tuned sleigh bells make the piece seem like a sleigh ride, as the dynamics rise and fall like a sleigh would over snow. This is followed by a beautiful but simple trumpet solo that gives a very peaceful and clear atmosphere to the piece, like a winter’s day. The original repeating phrases then return, but end with a majestic fanfare from the trumpets that passes to the other instruments, then returns to the sleigh bells and trumpet solo again. The piece ends with a diminuendo of the trumpet solo.
—————————————-­————————————-
FREE .mp3 and .wav files of all Mozart’s music at: http://www.mozart-archiv.de/
FREE sheet music scores of any Mozart piece at:http://dme.mozarteum.at/DME/nma/start…
ALSO check out these cool sites: http://musopen.org/
and http://imslp.org/wiki/
—————————————-­———————————
NOTE: I do not know who the performers of this are, nor the place and date of recording!!! Any suggestions are welcome.

 

Leonard Bernstein – Mozart Schlittenfahrt (Sleigh Ride) 1967

Leonard Bernstein – Mozart Schlittenfahrt (Sleigh Ride) 1967
Leonard Bernstein & New York Philharmonic Orchestra – Mozart Schlittenfahrt (Sleigh Ride) 1967 

Die Schlittenfahrt (Sleigh Ride) is the popular name given to the third of the Three German Dances K. 605 composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

 

Bach – Cantate BWV 190 – Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied (Sing to the Lord a new song )

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH BWV 225 Sing to the LORD A NEW SONG LYRICS

Sing to the Lord a new song 

Sing to the Lord a new song, the congregation of saints praise him. Israel rejoice in him that made him.The children of Zion rejoice in their King sei’n, Let them praise his name in the series, with timbrels and with harps they want to play him. 

As a father pities 
God, you also receive our on, 
About his young infants, 
So the Lord is doing all of us, 
So we childlike fear him pure. 
He knows our frailty, 
God knows we are only dust, 
Because without you nothing is done 
With all our stuff. 
Just as the grass from the rake, 
A Blum and falling leaves. 
The wind only blows over it, 
So it is no longer there, 
Drum you be our shield and light, 
And do not deceive us our hope, 
So you’re going to make it further. 
So man passes away, 
Its end, which is close to him. 
Blessed is the only stiff and strong 
Relies on you and your bounty. 

Praise the Lord for his mighty acts, praise him according to his excellent greatness! 
Everything that has breath praise the Lord Hallelujah! 

English: Sing ye the Lord a new refrain, the assembly of saints shoulderstand be telling his praises.Israel joyful be in him who hath made him. Let Zion’s children rejoice in him who is mighty Their king, let them be praising his name’s honor in dances, with timbrels and with psalt’ries unto him be playing. 

Chorale (Chorus II) 

As a father doth mercy show 

Aria (Chorus I) 

God, take quiet Further now our part, 
To his own little children dear, 
Thus doth the Lord to all men, 
If pure as children we fear him. 
He sees our feeble powers, 
God knows we are but dust; 
For, lacking thee, naught shall we gain 
Of all our Endeavors synthesis. 
Just as the grass in mowing, 
Or bud and falling leaf, 
If wind but o’er it bloweth, 
It is no longer there, 
So be thou our shield and true light, 
And if our hope betray us not, 
Thou wilt Malthus henceforth help us. 
E’en so one’s life is passing, 
His end is near to him. 
Blest he Whose hope Both strong and firm 
On thee and on thy grace doth rest. 

[Ps 150:2 and 6] (Chorus I, Chorus II) 

Praise ye the Lord in all his doings, praise ye him in all his might and majesty! 

(Chorus I and II) 

All things Which do draw breath, praise ye the Lord, hallelujah!

 

Christmas 2011 @ Chijmes — Part 1- 7. Do You Hear What I Hear – Noel Regney and Gloria Shayne

Christmas Concert 2011 by Cathedral Choir of the Risen Christ @ Chijmes, Singapore

 

George Frideric Handel – Messiah “Hallelujah”

George Frideric Handel – Messiah “Hallelujah”
George Frideric Handel – Messiah “Hallelujah” 

Chiese campestri in Sardegna

QUOTATION: Joseph Conrad ABOUT UNLAWFUL AMBITIONS

All ambitions are lawful except those which climb upward on the miseries or credulities of mankind.

Joseph Conrad (1857-1924) Discuss

 

All ambitions are lawful except those which climb upward on the miseries or credulities of mankind.

 

This Day in History — History.com — What Happened Today in History

 

This Day in History — History.com — What Happened Today in History.

Today In History. What Happened This Day In History

 

Today In History. What Happened This Day In History.

THIS DAY IN THE YESTERYEAR: HIROHITO BECOMES EMPEROR OF JAPAN (1926)

Hirohito Becomes Emperor of Japan (1926)

Hirohito was the longest reigning Japanese monarch, ruling from 1926 to 1989. During his reign, militaristic Japan entered World War II and bombed Pearl Harbor. After the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, Hirohito pushed for surrender. He then broke the precedent of imperial silence by making a national radio broadcast to announce Japan’s surrender. After World War II, Hirohito changed the importance of the monarchy when he renounced what? More… Discuss

 

NEWS: TEST DEVELOPED TO PREDICT ALTITUDE SICKNESS VULNERABILITY

Test Developed to Predict Altitude Sickness Vulnerability

Most people who ascend to altitudes above 8,000 ft (2,400 m) gradually adapt to the reduced oxygen concentration and low atmospheric pressure, but some have a severe reaction that can be fatal unless they return to low altitude. Until now, there was no way of determining who would be vulnerable to altitude sickness, but researchers have developed a new test that seems to identify such individuals. At the moment, the test can only be administered after a person has spent at least four hours at high altitude, but the research team hopes to reduce this in the future. More… Discuss

 

ARTICLE: THE MIRROR TEST

The Mirror Test

This test is used to determine whether an animal recognizes itself in a mirror—an indicator of self-awareness. It was developed in 1970 by psychologist Gordon Gallup, Jr., who was inspired by Darwin‘s account of an encounter with a captive orangutan that saw itself in a mirror and seemed to show recognition. Gallup refined the test by placing marks on his subjects and then observing their responses to the marks upon seeing their reflections. Which animals typically pass the test, and which fail?More… Discuss
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