Author Archives: barczablog

Florence Foster Jenkins, everywoman

Posted on August 21, 2016 by barczablog

When I was a child I was introduced to the singing of Florence Foster Jenkins, on a record called “The Glory (??) of the Human Voice”. There was a kind of illicit pleasure in listening to her singing, because She … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays | 5 Comments

60th Anniversary of Hungarian Revolution: Two Commemorative Concerts

Posted on August 14, 2016 by barczablog

CANADIAN-HUNGARIAN ASSOCIATION FOR MUSIC PERFORMANCE COMMEMORATES THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE HUNGARIAN REVOLUTION WITH TOP CANADIAN ARTISTS This year marks the 60th Anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution.  The influx of approximately 40,000 Hungarians in 1956 influenced society so much that … Continue reading →

Posted in Press Releases and Announcements | Leave a comment

A Tale of Two Cities: the opera

Posted on August 7, 2016 by barczablog

Charles Dickens’ novel A Tale of Two Cities (shall we call it TTC for short?) has now been adapted by composer Victor Davies and librettist Eugene Benson as an opera, and given its world premiere production by Summer Opera Lyric … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera | 1 Comment

CBD, part the second

Posted on August 5, 2016 by barczablog

After writing two pieces last night (one about the AGO, one about a trip to a dispensary to get CBD), I decided to take one of the pills, a gel capsule containing cannabidiol (aka CBD). Please note, this is just … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Health and Nutrition, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception | Leave a comment

Gates yea, Martin nay

Posted on August 4, 2016 by barczablog

I wanted to like it. As a child and teen, Lawren Harris was one of my favourite artists.  Steve Martin was and is one of my favourite comedians, actors, and writers. But when I got to “The Idea of North: … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Architecture & Design, Books & Literature, Opera, Popular music & culture | 2 Comments

CBD, part the first

Posted on August 4, 2016 by barczablog

A loving family member cajoled me to try something new today. My chief pain management strategy for dealing with my arthritic symptoms could be summed up (before tonight) with the following quote: “Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt. It’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Health and Nutrition, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception | 1 Comment

The Coronation of King George II

Posted on July 27, 2016 by barczablog

This was the most fun I’ve had at a concert since the epic minimalist concert (oxymoron?) in August 1st 2013. Then as now I believe we were seeing Toronto Summer Music Artistic Director Douglas McNabney pushing the envelope of what’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Popular music & culture, Reviews, Spirituality & Religion, University life | 1 Comment

Jamie Barton in Recital

Posted on July 26, 2016 by barczablog

Toronto Summer Music continued their tradition of featuring a female vocalist.  In 2014 it was Sondra Radvanovsky, while in 2015 it was Karita Mattila.  Each of those two concerts represented a coup, and was a highlight of that year, nevermind of … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | Leave a comment

Finding Dory and the symbolists

Posted on July 24, 2016 by barczablog

These days I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by emotions. I’ve had a death in the family (not a tragedy, when someone lives to a ripe old age, but still, it has stirred up a lot of feelings for me … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Cinema, video & DVDs, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Reviews | Leave a comment

Lucretia: a messed up kind of story for a messed up time

Posted on July 23, 2016 by barczablog

Sometimes one escapes from the real world in the theatre, diverted from life. And sometimes theatre is such a perfect mirror that it reminds us of the craziness we’re seeing everywhere else. That latter choice –finding the craziness of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Opera, Reviews | 3 Comments