Category Archives: Opera

Beethoven 250: interpreting Sonata #9

Posted on November 14, 2020 by barczablog

There are at least two ways to understand music. We listen. Perhaps you hear a performance on some device such as your smartphone, your TV or a computer, or even in a live setting such as a concert or a … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Popular music & culture, Sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Brand new sound: a moving experience

Posted on November 1, 2020 by barczablog

I stumbled upon something quite by accident and want to share the good news. No I can’t take credit. We’re fixing some old windows, and needed to work with the contractor, who was blocked off by the way the furniture … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, domestic & wild, Art, Architecture & Design, Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, University life | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Aversion to the e-version

Posted on October 22, 2020 by barczablog

Confession: this is a meta-review, a preamble to what’s ahead. I’ve been reading lots of books, and will write about them in the next little while. Once again the pandemic seems to be changing our rules. I saw Singin’ in … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Dance, theatre & musicals, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Yes we can

Posted on October 2, 2020 by barczablog

Is he really gone? Alexander Neef may be in Europe with the Paris Opera but it was already a promiscuous relationship, this General Directorship of the COC. Neef was working for his Toronto audience while at the same time taking … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Neighbourhood impacts

Posted on September 14, 2020 by barczablog

I was looking in the Canadian Opera Company’s latest publication, a shiny offering that arrived in the mail less than an hour ago, with the title “Audience Impact Report.” Speaking of impacts the mailing included the obligatory return envelope & … Continue reading →

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Service or Business? the election selection

Posted on August 29, 2020 by barczablog

We’re helpless in the face of a mystery virus. It seems that everywhere you turn in the media, conspiracies are all around us. The gentler word is “hoax”, that stops short of the kind of thing one sees with ideas … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics, Popular music & culture | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

TSO Thais: via Massenet & Anatole France

Posted on August 12, 2020 by barczablog

The Toronto Symphony concert performance of Thaïs, recently released on Chandos, has me wishing we could see & hear more from Jules Massenet, the opera’s composer.  I begin to understand why the late Stuart Hamilton in his time with Opera … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Music and musicology, Opera, Reviews, Spirituality & Religion | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Beethoven discovery, aided by my dog

Posted on July 22, 2020 by barczablog

I’m framing this analysis around Sam my dog. She’s a 13+ year old rescue, and in my opinion amazingly well-behaved. Sometimes she’ll occupy the ottoman beside the piano, allowing her to read along with me if she so desires (no … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, domestic & wild, Books & Literature, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

An agnostic musing about leadership & talent

Posted on July 22, 2020 by barczablog

As I was tidying my office today, I fell into a book. You know how it is. You open it and are seduced or abducted, suddenly lost to yourself, deep in the book. While Jim Fisher’s The Thoughtful Leader: A … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception, University life | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Douglas Chambers: The Reinvention of the World

Posted on July 18, 2020 by barczablog

I have been stuck on this one for awhile, not knowing quite what to write. I’m trying to avoid being a downer, but it’s hard to see the silver lining when you’re deep in the dark clouds of a pandemic. … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Dance, theatre & musicals, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, University life | Leave a comment