Category Archives: Psychology and perception

“Location location location”

Posted on April 18, 2015 by barczablog

The saying goes like this: “‘There are three things that matter in property: location, location, location.’” It’s also true in theatre. I have a subscription to the Canadian Opera Company, a pair of seats in the second row. When I … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception | 2 Comments

Maleficent’s traumas

Posted on November 24, 2014 by barczablog

Spoiler alert: this discussion requires me to give away a bunch of plot points, so if you haven’t seen this film & want to, don’t read this OR don’t complain if I give it all away.   (OH AND YOU … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Psychology and perception | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Angriest Man

Posted on August 8, 2014 by barczablog

When I was a child the word was “mad”. I get mad. You get mad. Later I decided I was mis-using “mad” because there was a better word: “anger”. It’s a subtler thing, a more adult thing, or so my … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Psychology and perception, Reviews, Spirituality & Religion | Leave a comment

Yapping dog

Posted on June 6, 2014 by barczablog

I m far away. Far from home. Far from work.  I’m on vacation, musing about where this compulsive blogging fits in. Everything in a blog is necessarily about the person writing. Sure, the topic may be foreign cars or foreign … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, domestic & wild, Music and musicology, Opera, Popular music & culture, Psychology and perception | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Recreation

Posted on June 3, 2014 by barczablog

Eleanor Farjeon used a word in one of her lyrics, a word that always catches my eye. She is not a one-hit wonder.  She’s a two-hit wonder, and her hits are hymns. Farjeon’s contribution was lyrics rather than music. While … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Music and musicology, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception, Spirituality & Religion | Leave a comment

Back to school: open-hearted, open-minded

Posted on January 17, 2014 by barczablog

I’m inspired by last night’s announcement of Canadian Opera Company’s 2014-2015 season.  Anyone bumping into me today will see that my appetite is indeed so whetted that they might prefer to run in the opposite direction.  I can’t help myself. … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception | Leave a comment

Reinventing the audience

Posted on November 5, 2013 by barczablog

No, I am not reinventing,  I am the anthropologist busily observing, and seeking to articulate something that’s out there among the specimens.  Humanity –at least the western version thereof—are busily changing the social consensus. Surely the changes have been underway … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal ruminations & essays, Popular music & culture, Psychology and perception | 2 Comments

Trajectory to Elysium

Posted on August 20, 2013 by barczablog

I try not to give away the plots of films I review.  As I write my second piece within a week of seeing Elysium, I don’t want to spoil the story for anyone who has not yet seen it. The … Continue reading →

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

Worship through Music, or “This is your soul on music”

Posted on August 10, 2013 by barczablog

This is a blog version of a message I delivered August 4th 2013. The readings (read by someone else) were Joshua 6: 1-21: one of scariest displays of the Old Testament God’s power, music is central to this moment. Psalm … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception, Spirituality & Religion | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Parlour trick

Posted on July 14, 2013 by barczablog

A few days ago I wrote about ear-worms, as an example of photographic (or “eidetic”) memory, and said there’s another kind as well.  I don’t mean to limit things by saying there’s one other kind, when there may be more … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception | 1 Comment