And Music Shall Untune the Sky, again / Kubrick
I was pleased to discover that one of my few favourite bands, Symphony X, released an album after five long years. Their previous album was entitled "The Odyssey," and their newest offering, "Paradise Lost," so you can see the appeal :-) Besides, they are one of the few original prof-symphonic-metal acts out there who are original. They also have an unparalleled sense of orchestration, besides being consummate musicians. I will post their opening track, "Oculus Ex Inferni" to give you an idea of their sound, even though it is less "rocky" soon enough
I bought the CD from the HMV on Sparks street here in Ottawa, which is a picturesque pedestrian street. While there, I also at long last purchased a CD by Saint-Saens, an underrated classical composer if there ever was one. Despite my exigent poverty, I also purchased two DVDs: Hitcock's Psycho and Kubrick's 2001, the latter being my favourite film of all time.
Speaking of Kubrick, I finally watched his Barry Lyndon, based on Thackeray's little known novel (this is the same Thackeray who wrote "Vanity Fair," which was later strangely and not ironically adopted as the title of a magazine). Although I still don't consider it vintage Kubrick, I later appreciated the cinematography and generally artistic value of the film. The adapted score, especially Handel's Sarabande, was very effective.
(Spoiler warning!) Last but not least, this the film marked the first time I was genuinely choked up during a movie: the funeral scene of Lyndon's young son compelled me to pause it momentarily and walk away. I think it was a combination of the story, the music, and the imagery that got to me. As I said before, I do not get emotional during movies, so Kubrick knew what he was doing!
I'm currently still recovering from a long year but am also desultorily working on a paper about one of Roman Jakobson's ideas. Hopefully I will have that finished by the end of the month. I will open the vault and edit an old Shakespeare paper I wrote over two years ago and submit it for publication. Not sure if the latter is very good, but by golly, it sure beats a lot of the utter dreck that passes for Shakespeare scholarship these days.
I bought the CD from the HMV on Sparks street here in Ottawa, which is a picturesque pedestrian street. While there, I also at long last purchased a CD by Saint-Saens, an underrated classical composer if there ever was one. Despite my exigent poverty, I also purchased two DVDs: Hitcock's Psycho and Kubrick's 2001, the latter being my favourite film of all time.
Speaking of Kubrick, I finally watched his Barry Lyndon, based on Thackeray's little known novel (this is the same Thackeray who wrote "Vanity Fair," which was later strangely and not ironically adopted as the title of a magazine). Although I still don't consider it vintage Kubrick, I later appreciated the cinematography and generally artistic value of the film. The adapted score, especially Handel's Sarabande, was very effective.
(Spoiler warning!) Last but not least, this the film marked the first time I was genuinely choked up during a movie: the funeral scene of Lyndon's young son compelled me to pause it momentarily and walk away. I think it was a combination of the story, the music, and the imagery that got to me. As I said before, I do not get emotional during movies, so Kubrick knew what he was doing!
I'm currently still recovering from a long year but am also desultorily working on a paper about one of Roman Jakobson's ideas. Hopefully I will have that finished by the end of the month. I will open the vault and edit an old Shakespeare paper I wrote over two years ago and submit it for publication. Not sure if the latter is very good, but by golly, it sure beats a lot of the utter dreck that passes for Shakespeare scholarship these days.
posted by Pious Labours | 3:50 p.m.
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