Monday, August 25, 2008

The Cello top 10.

I really hate top ten lists. They are usually so subjective that they are virtually useless. Yesterday I was looking at a list of cinematic Olympians that forgot Johnny Weissmuller, Buster Crabbe, Sonja Hennie, and Harold Sakata (Odd Job from the movie Goldfinger). Obviously the people that made up the list did no research and were so young they never watched black and white movies because Johnny Weissmuller was the Michael Phelps of his era and won a total of five gold medals for swimming in two different Olympics. Buster Crabbe won a gold and a bronze for swimming. Sonja Henie won three gold medals for individual women's figure skating. Harold Sakata was an Olympic weightlifter and won a silver medal for the US team. I can understand missing Oddjob but Sonja Henie? She was one of the greatest women figure skaters of all time. And how could they miss Johnny Weissmuller? Everybody played Tarzan but it was Johnny Weissmuller's Tarzan that set the standard. I mean who hasn't the Tarzan yodel?

Anyway I'm babbling on about top ten lists because I have one. I'm going to try to develop the top performances of specific instruments to support area music teachers. I've done this on DVD for ballet and on DVD for filmed plays to support Humanities and Drama teachers. Now I've got one for Cello. So all you critics can sharpen your pens. Get ready here it comes.

Top ten performance pieces for the cello
Johann Sebastian Bach: Cello Suites number 1-6 by Cellist Pablo Casals
Ludwig Van Beethoven: Sonata in A Major Op. 69
Ernest Bloch: Schelomo, a Hebraic Rhapsody for Cello and Orchestra by Cellist Leonard Rose.
Luigi Boccerini: Concerto in B Flat
Johnnes Brahams: Sonata in E Minor Op 38, Sonata in F Major Op 99
Antonin Dvorak: Concerto in B Minor by Cellist Mstislav Rostropovitch
Edward Elgar: Concerto in E Minor Op 85 by Cellist Jacqueline Du Pre
Joseph Hayden: Concerto in C Major by Cellist Yo Yo Ma
Camille Saint-Seans: Concerto No. 1 A minor Op 33
Dmitri Shostakovitch: Concerto No. 1 Op. 107 by Cellist Mstislav Rostropovitch

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Music of Summer

My most recent musical buy is a grab bag of everything, Classical, Rock, R&B, Country, and Latin but it falls into four broad basic collection themes. For the classical music lovers there are several of the best concert pieces for Cello by the best performers. This is a collection I'm thinking about developing for area music teachers starting with Cello then Piano, Violin, etc. I went through top selling albums in Country and Latin/Mexican. I looked at Historic Rock and Roll to get some artists from the late 70's and 80's I missed before and I purchased some well I guess it's retro extreme metal or whatever.


Impressions - Jacqueline Du Pre plays Elgar Hayden and Beethoven
Britten: Cello Symphony/ Shostakovich Cello Concerto: Performed by Rostropovich.
Brahms: Sonatas for Cello & Piano: Yo Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax
Beethoven: Complete Music for Cello & Piano Performed by Rostropovich
Saint-saens & Schumann Cello Concertos Performed by Rostropovich
Lalo Cello Cello Concerto: Tchaikovsky, Bloch Performed by Leonard Rose.

5th Gear - Brad Paisley
Apostrophe - Frank Zappa
Baby 81 - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Boy is Mine - Monica
Brandy - Brandy
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend - Miranda Lambert
Crazysexycool - TLC
Dancing on the Ceiling - Lionel Richie
Definitive Collection - Sammy Kershaw
En Vivo Desde Culiacan Sinaloa - Intocables del Norte
Enjoy the Ride - Sugarland
Fantasia Pop - Belanova
Forever Your Girl - Paula Abdul
Highway to Hell - AC/DC
Honky Tonk Boots - Sammy Kershaw
Howl Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Icky Thump - White Stripes
If you're Going Through Hell - Rodney Atkins
Julieta Venegas - MTV Unplugged
Let It Go - Tim McGraw
Lumpy Gravy Frank Zappa
Miss Thang - Monica
Oooooooohhh on the TLC tip - TLC
Pure BS - Blake Shelton
Riba: Duets - Reba McEntire
Rio - By Duran Duran
Secrets - Toni Braxton
Seven and the Ragged Tiger - Duran Duran
Si Tu Te Vas - Los Temerarios
Sign - Ace of Base
Still Feels Good - Rascal Flatts
Taylor Swift
Te Quiero - Flex
Toni Braxton
Ultimate Hits - Garth Brooks
Valley of the Damned - Dragonforce
Wierdness - Stooges
We're only in it for the money - Frank Zappa
Yours Truly, Angry Mob - Kaiser Chiefs

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

August 2008 DVD's

The theme for this month is fantasy. Fantasy is not really a traditional Hollywood genre. Mostly I think that's because fantasy is hard to do without special effects and until recently special effects were just too expensive for really high quality fantasy films. Not that it wasn't possible, the Wizard of Oz was a fantasy film, but until recently, I don't think fantasy films were consistent enough to be considered a genre. Also what constitutes a fantasy film? I think everyone would agree that Ray Harryhausen's Jason and the Argonauts is a fantasy film but what about the Bishop's Wife with Cary Grant and David Niven? Are angels interacting with humans fantasy? There are a surprising number of films with angels, (It's a Wonderful Life) a personified death (Meet Joe Black) or the Devil (Bedazzled). But are these truly fantasy films and where does fantasy and science fiction or fantasy and horror divide? Do super heroes qualify as fantasy films? Hm, just a thought.

The other theme for this month is recent award winners and top grossing films. As most of you know that follow my blog or talk to me in the Library I leave recent movies to Blockbuster but at least two times a year I do review recent films to see what I've missed. I have been trying to keep up with Oscar winner's but there is a widening gap between which movies people go to see and movies that win Academy Awards. I'm beginning to wonder if future film buffs will look back at our recent Oscar winners and say 'Huh?'

Black Angel, a Film Noir from 1946, with Peter Lorre Dan Duryea and Broderick Crawford, is one of the oddities in this order along with Doc Hollywood and the films of Esther Williams. Doc Hollywood is one of Michael J Fox's better non Back the Future films while Esther Williams was a major box office attraction of the 40's whose films need to be in any rounded collection.


The Movies
Doc Hollywood: Michael J Fox, Woody Harrelson, and Bridget Fonda. A Doctor crashes in a small town and has to do community service at the local hospital, sweet, funny, and predictable.
Edward Scissorhands: Johnny Depp, Wynona Rider, and Vincent Price a modern fable from Tim Buron about a Frankenstein man-boy in suburbia.
War of the Worlds: Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise give us their take on H.G. Wells.
Junebug: Amy Adams, Embeth Davidtz in a tale of northern sophisticates in South Carolina.
When Worlds Collide: A 1950's disaster movie that won an Academy Award for special effects.
Night at the Museum: Ben Stiller, Mickey Rooney, Dick van Dyke, and Robin Williams. The Museum comes alive at night in a special effects extravaganza.
Fantastic Voyage: Stephen Boyd, Rachel Welch, and Edmond O'Brian are doctors miniaturized and injected into a scientists head to fix a blood clot.
Green Mile: Tom Hanks, David Morse, Bonnie Hunt and others in a tale of death row in the deep south. Too long but some good acting.
TCM Spotlight - Esther Williams Volume 1: Five Esther Williams movies including Bathing Beauty which everyone has parodied.
A Clockwork Orange: Stanley Kubrick Malcolm McDowell in the ultimate youth against society movie. It's still shocking even today.
40-Year-Old Virgin: Steve Carell's first starring effort, funny but raunchy.
7 Faces of Dr. Lao: Tony Randall, Barbara Eden a western fantasy where Tony Randall plays six of Dr. Laos seven faces.
Adventures of Baron Muchausen: Several Monty Python graduates along with everybody else in a visual feast of the lying fantasies told literature's Baron Von Muchausen.
Angels in the Outfield: Paul Douglas is perfect, Janet Leigh is miscast in this neat little movie from the 50's.
Angels in the Outfield: Danny Glover and Tony Danza in a kid friendly re-make.
Aviator: Martin Scorsese directs Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Blanchett in the life of Howard Hughs.
Batman Begins: Christian Bale, Michael Caine Liam Neeson. Katie Holmes, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman. Great cast to restart the franchise.
Beast from 20,000 Fathom: Dinosaurs thawed after an A-bom terrorize an amusement park. I just cannot resist Ray Harryhausen animation.
Black Angel: First rate film noir mystery with Dan Duryea, June Vincent, Peter Lorre, and Broderick Crawford.
Brokeback Mountain: Ang Lee's controversial Western with Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Tim Burton's version with Johnny Depp.
Chronicles of Narnia: the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. Oscar winning version of the C.S. Lewis book with great special effects.
Crash. Thandie Newton, Matt Dillon, Don Cheadle, and Sandra Bullock. Won Best Picture.
Dark Crystal: Frank Oz and Jim Henson create a fantasy muppet adventure for children and adults alike.
Departed: Martin Scorsese directs and all star cast including but not limited to Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Matt Damon playing Irish gangsters in Boston.
Devil Wears Prada: Meryl Streep Anne Hathaway, and Stanly Tucci. Meryl Streep is the editor of a fashion magazine and the Boss from hell.
Dreamgirls: Jamie Foxx, Beyonce Knowles, Eddie Murphy and Danny Glover an adaptation of the 1981 musical that is pure entertainment.
Excalibur: Fantasy version of King Arthur with early appearances by Gabriel Byrne, Liam Neeson, and Patrick Stewart.
Good Night, and Good Luck: George Clooney and Robert Downey Jr. Dramatization of Edward R. Murrow and CBS during the Joseph McCarthy Era.
Hitch: Light Romantic Comedy with Will Smith, Eva Mendes, Kevin James, and Amber Valleta.
It Came from Beneath the Sea: More Harryhausen, this time its a giant Octopus.
Krull: Peter Yates must take the gizmo and kill the bad guy to rescue Lysette Anthony.
Ladyhawke: A medieval fantasy with Rutger Hauer, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Matthew Broderick.
Little Miss Sunshine: An award winning family road trip with Steve Carell and Alan Arkin.
Longest Yard: Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, and Burt Reynolds in a remake.
Preachers Wife: Whitney Houston and Denzel Washington in an updated version of the Bishops Wife.
Pursuit of Happyness: Will Smith and Jaden Smith, a very watchable and highly rated family affair.
Saturday Night Fever: The John Travolta classic with music by the Bee Gee's
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Star Wars Episode III Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars Episode V Empire Strikes Back
Superman the Movie: Christopher Reeves, Marlon Brando, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman, Jackie Cooper, Glenn Ford and more. Need I say More.
Time Bandits: Various Monty Python Alums plus Sean Connery, for those who want something completely different.
Venus: The award winner with Peter O'Toole and Jodie Whittaker.
Volver: Pedro Almodovar directs Penelope Cruz in an award winning mixture of comedy and drama.
War of the Worlds: The Steven Spielberg version with Tom Cruize.
Wedding Crashers: Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn Christopher Walken, and Rachel McAdams in a raunchy romantic Comedy.
X-Men Trilogy Pack.