Category Archives: Essays

News of War

Posted on July 31, 2012 by barczablog

Some dates are more important than others in the timeline of a war.  In the War of 1812,  July 30th, 1812 is a relatively trivial date: 200 years ago today. The war had been declared on June 18th. The first … Continue reading →

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Homesick tenor

Posted on July 21, 2012 by barczablog

Early in the act, we have a plaintive moment.  A sailor sings a tune, clearly longing for home and the company he misses there.  The quietness of the big orchestra now playing so gently after its earlier savagery seems to … Continue reading →

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Howling

Posted on July 15, 2012 by barczablog

It’s hot in Ontario.  But then again it’s hot everywhere nearby.  New York? Hot.  Quebec? Not precisely chilly.  You get the picture. Going for a drive in the countryside might seem like a strange thing to do on a hot … Continue reading →

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Magic Helmet

Posted on July 14, 2012 by barczablog

This isn’t one of those stories constructed using “emotion recollected in tranquility” (to use Woodsworth’s charming phrase).  I am shaken by what I’ve seen, my hands still shaking a bit. It’s almost 7:15 as I type this in Word (and … Continue reading →

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Numbers game

Posted on July 12, 2012 by barczablog

Is opera a numbers game?  It depends who you ask. Statistics can describe aspects of any art form.  For example: Guernica is 3.49 meters by 7.76 meters (more than 11 feet by over 25 feet) Syberberg’s film Our Hitler is over 7 hours … Continue reading →

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Ten greatest

Posted on July 9, 2012 by barczablog

Limelight magazine supposedly polled “modern day masters” of the piano, to identify the ten greatest pianists of all time. Here’s their list of ten: 1. Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943) 2. Vladimir Horowitz (1903-1989) 3. Sviatoslav Richter (1915-1997) 4. Arthur Rubinstein (1887-1982) … Continue reading →

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Two Iconoclasts

Posted on July 4, 2012 by barczablog

Canada became a country July 1st 1867: one hundred forty-five years ago.  July 1st is a day to count one’s blessings, to celebrate a compassionate and gentle country, a haven for so many wonderful people, among them great artists. I’m … Continue reading →

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Verdi and Wagner

Posted on July 2, 2012 by barczablog

Is it early to be talking about the 2013 bicentennial of Giuseppe Verdi & Richard Wagner? Not when papers to be presented at conferences next year are already being proposed. Both composers were born in 1813. Let’s get to the … Continue reading →

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Jean Cox

Posted on June 27, 2012 by barczablog

I’ve been thinking about Jean Cox. Cox was a great American heldentenor, who died on Sunday.  By coincidence it’s the same day that Franz Crass passed, and not many weeks after the death of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. I am pondering the … Continue reading →

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The New Everest

Posted on June 8, 2012 by barczablog

In a fascinating article in the New York Times, Anthony Tommasini observed that virtuosi are “becoming a dime a dozen”.   Surely there’s some truth to this.  Tommasini made the analogy to the four minute mile, once thought to be an … Continue reading →

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