Author Archives: barczablog

Still Alice’s Alzheimer’s

Posted on October 3, 2015 by barczablog

There’s a film from a few years ago called Away From Her, starring Gordon Pinsent & Julie Christie. IMDB tells me it was made in 2006. I waited quite awhile to see it because the subject was very close to … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception, Reviews | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Questions for Lisa Campbell, Cannabis Activist

Posted on October 2, 2015 by barczablog

Lisa Campbell has been the Outreach Director for Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy since 2013. As the former Trip! Project Coordinator and having worked as the manager of a needle exchange, Lisa has worked with a diversity of young … Continue reading →

Posted in Interviews, Politics, Psychology and perception | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Soundstreams: Beyond the Aria but not beyond Virtuosity

Posted on September 30, 2015 by barczablog

Tonight in a Soundstreams concert titled “Adrianne Pieczonka: Beyond the Aria” we saw and heard two great operatic artists go beyond their usual boundaries, using their instruments in unexpected ways.  Soprano Pieczonka was joined by mezzo-soprano Kristina Szabó in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Opera, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Love Shards of Sappho at RBA

Posted on September 29, 2015 by barczablog

Today’s free noon-hour concert in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre (the upper lobby of the Four Seasons Centre) offered a rich pairing of matched works, presented by the Array Ensemble & a pair of sopranos.  Today feels especially like a preparation … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Opera, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

10 questions for Phillip Addis: Pyramus and Thisbe

Posted on September 29, 2015 by barczablog

Canadian Baritone Phillip Addis “is praised for his creamy, bright, smooth voice as much as for his spell-binding, daring, yet sensitive interpretations. A rising star on the international stage, Addis has performed in opera, concerts and recitals throughout Canada, the United … Continue reading →

Posted in Interviews, Opera | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Gábor Maté: Ayahuasca and the authentic self

Posted on September 28, 2015 by barczablog

Sunday morning instead of church I went to hear Doctor Gábor Maté address a mixed crowd at the George Ignatieff Theatre. Maté has a huge following from his writings & lectures exploring such pathways as the role of trauma & stress … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Thoughts of youth and mentorship open Toronto Symphony’s 2015-16 season

Posted on September 25, 2015 by barczablog

One of my favourite things about Toronto Symphony concerts is the steady stream of gratitude in the speeches that usually precede performances.  While opening night may be weighed down with ritual, the language was sincere, tonight’s season opener at Roy … Continue reading →

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Another Country: another century

Posted on September 23, 2015 by barczablog

Last summer I mentioned the Pride-themed display & sale at Bay St Video, when, in addition to HBO’s Behind The Candelabra (2013), the Michael Douglas / Matt Damon vehicle about Liberace, I picked up Another Country (1984). I’d been captured … Continue reading →

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You may say I’m a dreamer

Posted on September 22, 2015 by barczablog

It may be election time, but it isn’t a time of vision as far as I can see. The two big contenders to replace Harper –the Liberals & NDP—are offering a few key policy choices on child-care, marijuana, restoring the … Continue reading →

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TSO – tiff Vertigo: so old, so new

Posted on September 21, 2015 by barczablog

I saw precisely one film at tiff this year, a movie conceived when I was a toddler. While you might know it as “Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo”, I would be more inclined to call it “Bernard Herrmann’s Vertigo”, especially when given … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Music and musicology, Reviews | 1 Comment