Category Archives: Essays

From C to shining C

Posted on May 22, 2012 by barczablog

No this isn’t about Pavarotti or tenors. Today I finally closed the circle on Beethoven’s sonatas.  I’d played thirty-one of his thirty-two in a sequence following the first two posts I made, after hearing about Stewart Goodyear’s Beethoven Marathon. For … Continue reading →

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“First, it is ridiculed”

Posted on May 3, 2012 by barczablog

Stewart Goodyear posted the following quote on Facebook today: “First, it is ridiculed….; Second, it is violently opposed; Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.” -Arthur Schopenhauer Goodyear probably meant to speak of his Beethoven Marathon but I am borrowing … Continue reading →

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Handel and Zhang: great minds thinking alike

Posted on April 28, 2012 by barczablog

I’m writing about two men who made some odd choices, showing a parallel brilliance even though separated by centuries. George Frederic Handel was simply trying to make a living, a composer whose works were sometimes welcomed, sometimes not.  Semele, with … Continue reading →

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The healing power of Beethoven

Posted on April 21, 2012 by barczablog

I am writing after the fact, a little shocked by something I lived through, and want to testify to the healing power of music.  It shouldn’t be a surprise.  Conductors & musicians live remarkably long lives, likely rejuvenated by the … Continue reading →

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CAGE MATCH (!)

Posted on April 14, 2012 by barczablog

The title, all in caps, is meant to invoke the voice of Tom Allen from CBC, as he used to say it on a program, that, alas is no longer part of Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)’s schedule. CBC keep changing … Continue reading →

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Rapt

Posted on March 31, 2012 by barczablog

There’s a first time for everything.  I visited the Air Canada Centre for the first time today.  I’ve only seen the Maple Leafs at Maple Leafs Gardens.  In most cities where the “new” arena opened in the last millennium, one … Continue reading →

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Marathon stamina

Posted on March 29, 2012 by barczablog

In June, Stewart Goodyear will be performing all 32 Beethoven piano sonatas in a single day, under the dual auspices of Luminato & the Royal Conservatory of Music.  I heard about this undertaking on Karenoke , where the pianist has … Continue reading →

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Armide returns to Toronto

Posted on March 15, 2012 by barczablog

Opera Atelier’s production of Lully’s Armide is coming back to Toronto, the first stop in an international tour.  After a week in Toronto, May takes them to Royal Opéra, Versailles, followed by a summertime sojourn at Glimmerglass Festival in New … Continue reading →

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A contrasting pair

Posted on March 9, 2012 by barczablog

The Canadian Opera Company will be offering a pair of one act operas in their spring season that have some things in common. Both works are set in Florence. Both works are based on literature Both have a character named … Continue reading →

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COC Parsifal

Posted on February 25, 2012 by barczablog

Richard Wagner figures prominently in the Canadian Opera Company’s plans.  Two Wagner operas, not one were announced for the future. You may have missed any mention of the second opera.  The announcement of the 2012-2013 season (a year of world-wide … Continue reading →

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