Category Archives: Personal ruminations & essays

U-Carmen eKhayelitsha

Posted on October 28, 2012 by barczablog

Last weekend I was fortunate to see U-Carmen eKhayelitsha, a 2005 adaptation of Bizet’s opera Carmen. The score is a mix of Bizet & South African music, which is only natural considering that the adaptation is set in a South … Continue reading →

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Latent Frida

Posted on October 20, 2012 by barczablog

I’m wrestling with a few related concepts after being immersed in the wonderful show at the Art Gallery of Ontario Frida & Diego: Passion, Politics and Painting.  They revolve around the degree to which Frida Kahlo was in some respects … Continue reading →

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Solti Centennial

Posted on October 19, 2012 by barczablog

The centennial of Hungarian conductor Georg Solti arrives on October 21st.  As a Hungarian I always found it irritating that he called himself “Georg” rather than “György”.  But of course whenever I say that name aloud –and unless you’re Magyar … Continue reading →

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Thanksgiving and sanity

Posted on October 8, 2012 by barczablog

According to the proponents of Positive Psychology –a relatively new movement in mental health—gratitude is useful if not essential to mental health. Martin Seligman, author of Authentic Happiness, is one of the key figures in this movement that seeks to … Continue reading →

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Father’s Day

Posted on June 18, 2012 by barczablog

Sunday June 17th was the day I watched Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (let’s call it ELIC) for a second time.  I’d seen it Friday night, and reviewed it.  I remarked that for me its chief subject was not 9/11, … Continue reading →

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Meeting Titurel

Posted on April 21, 2012 by barczablog

I wrote this as a Facebook “note” in August 2009, a kind of diary entry seen only by friends.  It came to mind today in an online conversation, and so I decided to revisit these thoughts. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ I am not … Continue reading →

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

The voice among the corn

Posted on April 5, 2012 by barczablog

In big cities development & culture seem to be big powerful forces, beyond either our understanding or control.  Plans are made, enormous amounts of money are committed & spent, and the buildings go up. It happens in smaller towns too, … Continue reading →

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Madman in My Family

Posted on March 24, 2012 by barczablog

No this isn’t an exposé (in case anyone in my family saw the title).  Nor is it a confessional, although I am talking about myself.  I might be a bit whimsical in my use of the word “Madman,” still in … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception, Sports | 3 Comments

Bridal lullaby

Posted on January 24, 2012 by barczablog

Without being able to ask the artist, one sometimes wonders about the depths of meaning one encounters.  Are they intentional creations—where the creator sought for and purposefully aimed at those depths—or, are they serendipitous brilliance?  There’s a third possibility, that … Continue reading →

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Remembering

Posted on November 3, 2011 by barczablog

As I prepare for the Remembrance Day Service in my church (this coming weekend btw) I can’t help thinking of some of the fascinating contradictions associated with the day: contradictions that are inevitable given the depth of emotion stirred by … Continue reading →

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