You say Carmina, I say Carmana...

[altariel]

Let's Carl the whole thing Orff. Last night edge_of_ruin and I were part of a vast and sprightly alto contingent in a performance of Carmina Burana, admirably cheered on by merrymaia. We made a big noise. Reading the programme and poking around the internet (that's called research in the profession), it turns out that Carmina Burana (which was first performed in Germany in 1937) was simultaneously praised by the Nazis and also denounced as decadent and too much like jazz. Who knows? Anyway, I joined in the singing like it was an anti-fascist piece.

Meanwhile, at home, Mr A. was striking a less ambivalent blow against the forces of evil - the BNP stuck a leaflet through the door, so he ran out to return the leaflet. The young man refused to take it back, so Mr A. rolled it up and threw it at him, hitting him bang in the middle of the forehead. I predict a riot.

We were in Rome until Monday, and since then I have been teaching (five hours on Wednesday, urgh), but here is a photo until I have time to write up something longer.





Happy St Patrick's Day to you all!

Comments

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I was very proud of his shot. Last time they leafletted us, I just shouted inarticulately at the very young man who'd delivered it. (My dad would have brought him inside, sat him down for a couple of hours, and probably converted him to Catholicism.)

We had a fantastic time in Rome, thank you!

[lame-pegasus.livejournal.com]

*snorts with laughter*

Did you reside in the Circus Maximus?

[altariel.livejournal.com]

Hm, I did think the beds were a bit mossy... ;-D

[lame-pegasus.livejournal.com]

And the LIONS!

[altariel.livejournal.com]

Oh I live in rough bit of town anyway ;-D

[altariel.livejournal.com]

We had a fantastic time! :-D

[trixieleitz]

...this was actually in the program?

Aww, darn! ;)

I love Carmina Burana. I bet it's huge fun to perform :)

[rcfinch.livejournal.com]

Did your hotel room have a roof, or was it in the open-air part?

I love Orff's Carmina! Do you know his De temporum fine comoedia?

[altariel.livejournal.com]

So sorry to have taken so long to reply to this, it's been frantic since I got back from Rome! I have only know Carmina, is De temporum fine comoedia one of the ones that is intended to be in a sequence with Carmina?

[rcfinch.livejournal.com]

No, that would be the Trionfi tryptich (the others are the Catulli Carmina and something with Aphrodite in it). De Temporum stands alone. It's a stage work with choruses in Greek and Latin.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I might see if Naxos can help - or do you have a favourite recording?

[rcfinch.livejournal.com]

I have an old LP, a recording of the premiere at the Salzburger Festspiele, 1973, conducted by Herbert von Karajan (Deutsche Grammophon, 2530 432). If there is a CD, I've never seen it.

[the-wild-iris.livejournal.com]

Your hotel must have offered the authentic ancient Roman experience. Did it come with those iron chairs heated (strongly) from underneath?

It sounds like a great concert. Glad it went so well. And congratulations to Mr A for his valiant defence of your hearth. I could imagine a riot in Cambridge in which the opposing sites throw pamphlets at one another - it seems strangely fitting :)

Streets Full of Water, Please Advise

[executrix.livejournal.com]

...for your NEXT trip.

Groaning happily at the puns, glad that lovely things have been happening.

I downloaded a vid with the relevant bits of "Blake" scored with the relevant bits of "Carmina Burana" but haven't watched it yet.

Re: Streets Full of Water, Please Advise

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I read the pun in the programme and thought, "Gotta post that for executrix..."

Ooh, I'd like a link to that vid, if you still have it!

Re: Streets Full of Water, Please Advise

[executrix.livejournal.com]

I'm having trouble with the link, but thanks for thinking of me! Err, does anyone else have that link? I don't know who the vidder was but it's called "O Fortuna."

Re: Streets Full of Water, Please Advise

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I'll do some googling!

[raspberryfool.livejournal.com]

Meanwhile, at home, Mr A. was striking a less ambivalent blow against the forces of evil - the BNP stuck a leaflet through the door, so he ran out to return the leaflet. The young man refused to take it back, so Mr A. rolled it up and threw it at him, hitting him bang in the middle of the forehead. I predict a riot.

Nice one Mr. A - i'd probably do the same whilst imagining the scrunched-up leaflet was a grenade.

[hafren.livejournal.com]

Oh, well done Mr A! Even better, if next time he returns one he wraps it round a brick first...

[jomacmouse.livejournal.com]

Thank you for saying that for me :)

[mikekellner.livejournal.com]

It looks more like ruins than a hotel. I hope you didn't agree to buy it a bargain price.

mk - Who is 0% Irish, but wishes you a Happy Saint Patrick's Day anyway.

[edge-of-ruin.livejournal.com]

It was a good sing ;-)

Mr A's a star and his cooking's guaranteed to make any alto feel vast and sprightly.

[emeraldsedai.livejournal.com]

Gorgeous photo.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

Thank you - all Mr A's work. I'm hoping to post more soon.

[forodwaith.livejournal.com]

Happy saint's day to you as well! Tell Mr A I admire his aim with political propaganda.

This entry made me think of you... tell me, what episodes would you recommend for a Dr Who virgin? I should really check some of the classics out.

[kerravonsen]

Depends (a) what episodes you can actually get hold of and (b) whether you are a Gun or a Frock. 8-P

[forodwaith.livejournal.com]

Your fandom jargon perplexes me. :-P

The local library has a decent collection of episodes with most of the Doctors represented, it seems. I'm tempted to leap in at "The Curse of Fatal Death" simply because I can't resist Rowan Atkinson.

[kerravonsen]

Your fandom jargon perplexes me.
Yes, I was teasing you.

The "gun versus frock" thing has its origins somewhere in the depths of the rec.arts.drwho newsgroup (or perhaps even earlier). It's used to describe adventures (and/or fan preferences). A "gun" adventure has an emphasis on action and plot (toting guns). A "frock" adventure has an emphasis on "girly" things such as character nuances. I'm not sure if costumes and appearance also come under the "frock" umbrella.

The local library has a decent collection of episodes with most of the Doctors represented, it seems.

Lucky you. Just go ahead and watch them all, then. It's probably a randomly representative sample.

I'm tempted to leap in at "The Curse of Fatal Death" simply because I can't resist Rowan Atkinson.

There might be one or two jokes you might not get, but it is really quite funny whether you're familiar with Doctor Who or not, I think. Go ahead, have fun. 8-)

[altariel.livejournal.com]

So sorry to have taken so long to answer this, it's been hectic since getting back from Rome. We tried to come with one for each Doctor, although the early B&W ones (Hartnell and Troughton) might feel very slow and stagey.

Hartnell: An Unearthly Child (the very first episode, but don't bother with the rest of that four-part story, it's rubbish); The Aztecs if you decide the storytelling style is to your taste

Troughton: The Tomb of the Cybermen

Pertwee: Spearhead From Space

Tom Baker: Almost impossible to choose! But: Pyramids of Mars, also The Talons of Weng-Chiang for some (more) glorious Victorian Gothic

Davison: We couldn't agree here, he says The Visitation, I say Kinda... You won't go wrong with a Davison story, to be honest, apart from Time-Flight

Colin Baker: Um, it's kind of going through a bad patch here, although Colin himself is great... The Two Doctors is very jolly, Revelation of the Daleks is cheerfully gruesome, and I haven't recced a Dalek story yet

McCoy: The Curse of Fenric (absolutely, absolutely!), Ghost Light (see my icon)

[forodwaith.livejournal.com]

Oh, thank you -- this is a marvelous list. I'll take notes & see what I can find at the library to start with.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

Keep me posted on how you're getting on! And shout if you want any advance advice on a story.

The BBC website has a witty episode guide here.

[aervir.livejournal.com]

I hope you had a lovely time in Rome. Is there any chance of seeing more gorgeous pictures from your trip?

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I've had a hectic and lovely weekend with guests and I'm just finishing off the last bits of teaching, but there will definitely be more pictures, coming Real Soon Now!

[communicator.livejournal.com]

Happy St Pat's and I wish I'd heard the performance, I love Carmina Burana

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I didn't know you loved CB. We're bound to do it again (this is the second time I've done it with this choir).

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Nice airy accommodation! [envies you for Carmina Burana] And good shot, Mr A!

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

Glad Rome went well; it looks like a very atmospheric hotel. Hope the teaching schedule calms down soon.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

Teaching is technically ended now - just a batch of essays to get back to people. Gah.

[trixieleitz]

...and well done to Mr A! Perhaps he should practice speed-paper-dart-folding.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

What a hero!

O Fortuna!

[(Anonymous)]

http://www.bigad.com.au/movie.html

Dwim

Re: O Fortuna!

[altariel.livejournal.com]

Gah, my antivirus software is resolutely blocking that link!