ENDNOTES, December 2021

Posted on December 1, 2021 by leslie

Path in Marline Wood, Sussex, credit Wikipedia

ENDNOTES, December 2021

In this edition: Elgar, Ireland and Holst from the English Music Festival;   Fairy Tales for saxophone and piano; reviewed by Stuart Millson

The Autumn English Music Festival, held at St. Mary’s Church, Horsham, was memorable for four performances in particular: a moving, deeply-studied account of Elgar’s Violin Sonata of 1918; Ireland’s Violin Sonata in D minor (1908-9); songs for tenor and piano by Gustav Holst; and a too-rarely-heard rendition of Madeleine Dring’s almost cabaret-like John Betjeman settings. On the afternoon of Saturday 13th November, violinist Rupert Marshall-Luck took to the platform at St. Mary’s, accompanied by pianist, Nathan Williamson, with a programme of music that included Vaughan Williams’s The Lark Ascending, the Legende by Frederick Delius and the charming “salon” pieces by Elgar, Salut d’Amour, Chanson de Nuit and Chanson de Matin – all played with depth, charm and beauty – but all exceeded by the complete immersion of the artists in Elgar’s sublime Violin Sonata, a product of the composer’s stay, late in the First World War, in secluded woodland in Sussex.

Continue reading →

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George Parkin Grant as Educator

Posted on November 24, 2021 by leslie

Max Bruckner, Final Scene of Gotterdammerung, credit Wikipedia

George Parkin Grant as Educator

by Mark Wegierski

Conservatives in Canada face a dilemma. In 1965, in his famous book Lament for a Nation: The Defeat of Canadian Nationalism, Canadian traditionalist philosopher George Parkin Grant pointed to the “impossibility of conservatism” in Canada. His writings have proved increasingly prophetic. Nevertheless, there are some thoughtful conservatives left in Canada, who could be called “George Grant’s children.” Their lives in Canada have been difficult – certainly at the psychological level – as they have been profoundly alienated from virtually every aspect of the current-day Canada, not least from the current-day Conservative Party of Canada.

Conservative leader Erin O’Toole failed to win the federal election of September 20, 2021. The Liberals were able to win a minority government (a plurality of seats) in the House of Commons, which will probably be supported by the New Democratic Party (NDP) which is even further left. A Liberal-NDP coalition would be yet another blow to traditional Canada. The ambition of the woke Left is evidently to move Canada to “Year Zero” – where literally nothing from the Canadian past is regarded as worthwhile. Continue reading →

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Dune

Posted on November 17, 2021 by leslie

Dune, Frank Herbert, 1965, credit Wikipedia

Dune

Mark Wegierski considers Frank Herbert’s masterwork

In 1985, left-wing science fiction author Judith Merril complained that most science fiction was permeated by a typology of “feudal values plus high-technology”. In truth, however, this combination makes for one of the most creative and interesting paradigms of science fiction. Witness Frank Herbert’s novel Dune, published in 1965 then made into a film by David Lynch in 1984. Many alterations were made by Lynch to the original vision of the book — for example, in the book, Baron Harkonnen is a kind of “Mephistophelean” figure but in the film is portrayed as a hideous horror-flick “monster”. Lynch also introduced various elements of horror that are simply not found in the book. And the black rubber still-suits (desert gear) are laughably wrong. In December 2000, there was a new rendering of Frank Herbert’s Dune, as a six-hour television mini-series on the U.S. Sci-Fi Channel. This was a more faithful adaptation of the book. And this year, a new film of Dune (Part One), by Denis Villeneuve, is being released.

The noble vision of Frank Herbert, although set in the far future, is based on varied elements of the historical and religious past of humankind — for example, ideas of political messianism, the rise of Islam, the theme of healthy barbarians against a decadent empire, etc. The linkage of “feudal values” with “high technology” does not reduce the book’s vision to the category of a “fairy-tale.” Continue reading →

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The Incomparable Gilbert Highet

Posted on November 11, 2021 by leslie

Thomas Couture, The Romans and their Decadence, credit Wikipedia

The Incomparable Gilbert Highet

R.J.Ball, The Classical Legacy of Gilbert Highet, Lockwood Press, 2021. Pp. I-IVI; 1-104. $34.95, reviewed by Darrell Sutton

Great scholars need biographers to tell their stories, to disclose information that would not be made available otherwise. In recent times, publicized accounts of the lives of classical scholars have appeared every so often, exposing their lifestyles and fecund minds to exhaustive but narrow analyses in the broader discipline of wissenschaftsgeschichte, a burgeoning field of study. Historians recover suppressed truths. They search musty attics, rummage through second-hand bookstores, explore letters/diaries in archives, and inspect files in squalid library basements. The profit is usually worth it, with the benefits outweighing the drawbacks.

Gossip and scandal are rarely far from an academic’s life. Gilbert Highet, however, a noted classicist, was an exception. Well-dressed, decorous, and refined in his speech, he stood out among the professors of his day. And as a classical scholar, he represented his field properly, in a way that befitted a public intellectual. Continue reading →

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Grandma’s House

Posted on November 9, 2021 by leslie

Sid Vicious, credit Wikipedia

Grandma’s House

by Bill Hartley

There is a listings magazine distributed around the pubs and clubs of North East England called NARC. It’s a good guide to what’s going on and is packed with news and reviews about the Arts and much else. The magazine allows performers, bands and their recordings exposure which they might otherwise struggle to attain.

What soon becomes noticeable is the frequent references to ‘Punk’. Those with a long enough memory will recall a raw musical genre which leapt out of the 1970s, simulating outrage in the British tabloids with its cheek and offensiveness. That kind of energy and rebelliousness couldn’t be sustained indefinitely and eventually Punk faded away, to be followed by Post Punk, New Wave and Alternative Rock; labels hung on bands by music journalists keen to keep abreast of a vibrant and fast evolving musical scene. Evolution is the way it’s supposed to go with popular music though in NARC there seems little evidence of this. The magazine hangs the Punk label on so many bands that it seems as if it’s just an attempt to generate a sense of excitement, which on closer examination seems elusive. Continue reading →

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Why we Fright

Posted on November 8, 2021 by leslie

Daumier, La République

Why we Fright

Guillaume Faye, Prelude to War; Chronicle of the Coming Cataclysm, Arktos, 2021, 497pp, reviewed by Leslie Jones

Introduction

According to ‘Archeo-Futurist’ Guillaume Faye, Islamic culture is sui generis. Inherently totalitarian, its driving force is expansionism, the religious obligation to create a global caliphate. Faye agrees with Samuel P Huntington that the ideological conflicts between capitalism and communism have been superseded by a clash between Islamic and non-Islamic societies. The conflict between bourgeoisie and proletariat has given way, in turn, to a new type of class struggle. For the ‘bohemian bourgeoisie’ despise the autochthonous working class and are in an unholy alliance with ‘immigrant colonisers’. Predominantly bourgeois, the left has little contact with immigrants, bar cleaning ladies. ‘Foreigner-free’ schools reinforce its insularity. Only the native working class must endure the insecurity and lawlessness of les banlieues, caused by mass immigration. Yet, for the ‘post Marxist bourgeoisie’, which embraces cosmopolitanism and xenophilia, immigrants are the real victims.

Alain de Benoist maintains that mass immigration has provided cheap labour and a new ‘reserve army of capital’.[i] Faye concurs. One thing, however, remains constant. Material possessions are all important to the bourgeoisie, more important even than ‘the salvation of its own people’. Continue reading →

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The Rake’s Progress

Posted on November 4, 2021 by leslie

Igor Stravinsky, credit Wikipedia

The Rake’s Progress

The Rake’s Progress, from Glyndebourne Touring Opera, Glyndebourne, Wednesday 27th October 2021, reviewed by David Truslove

In this latest revival of Stravinsky’s only full-length opera most of the cast members were not even born when the now celebrated John Cox/David Hockney collaboration was unveiled at Glyndebourne in 1975. Many revivals later, the 2010 run prompted Richard Morrison of The Times to observe that the production is ‘now so old that it probably qualifies for a blue plaque’. It’s certainly the oldest of any surviving UK opera production, and Hockney’s set and designs (replacing those by the cartoonist Osbert Lancaster) have toured the world. An outstanding achievement yes, but is there a hint in Morrisons’ quip of this staging becoming a tourist attraction? In his 2010 review, he was more impressed with the production’s ‘fabulous designs’ than he was with the performance.

Inspired by Hogarth’s 18th century engravings, there’s no denying the genius of Hockney’s cross-hatched patterns which still hold the eye whether in picture book trees, striped wigs or even a stuffed auk. The animation of drawings and designs artfully mirrors the restlessness of Stravinsky’s operatic farewell to neo-classicism, their restricted palette nicely balanced by the score’s primary colours. More vitally, the fabrics, whether canvas or cloth, capture the spirit of 18th century pastiche that is at the very heart of Stravinsky’s work, itself both an emotional pendulum and a patchwork of musical sources shoplifting the late operas of Mozart. For those over-long pauses between scenes there’s much to enjoy too in the ‘schoolboy’ scribbles decorating the backcloth. Continue reading →

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ENDNOTES, November 2021

Posted on October 31, 2021 by leslie

Max Bruckner (1836-1918), Walhalla, credit Wikipedia

ENDNOTES, November 2021

A tribute to Bernard Haitink, KBE, CH, 1929-2021. Stuart Millson on one of the great conductors of our time – a renowned interpreter of the works of Bruckner and Mahler

The recent death of Bernard Haitink – the legendary Dutch conductor, famed for his interpretations of the late-romantic repertoire – represents the passing of a generation in classical music. Haitink, although not one of the autocratic conductors of the recent past  such as Karajan or Bernstein, was part of that intensely serious, inscrutable, disciplined, white-tie-and-tails generation which produced the defining discography – Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler et al – dominating the record shelves of the 1970s, ‘80s and ‘90s; shaping our understanding of classical music and European high-culture.

From his earliest days with the orchestra of Netherlands Radio, through his famous years with the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, to a productive time in London with the LPO, Royal Opera House and the Philharmonia; then star appearances with the Chicago Symphony and Lucerne Festival orchestras in his late career, the unassuming Dutchman built up a legendary status with audiences. The wild acclamation he received from the Proms audience, although acknowledged and enjoyed, sometimes prompted a wince of embarrassment from Haitink – keen to curtail the clapping, eschew hero-worship and get on with the music. Continue reading →

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Liberty’s Identity Crisis

Posted on October 28, 2021 by leslie

Stop the Steal protest, credit Wikipedia

Liberty’s Identity Crisis

by Monty Skew 

Liberty is the leading human rights advocacy group in Britain. Readers, especially those concerned for democracy, may be interested in Liberty’s briefing before the Voter ID Bill. A recent letter from a variety of civil society groups, co-ordinated by Liberty, objected to the Voter Integrity Bill currently before Parliament. The Bill would make it mandatory for photo ID to be shown before casting a vote.

There are many reasons for opposing voter ID. It is not part of the British democratic tradition and even Tory MP David Davis has opposed the proposal. If implemented, it could be used for more than voting. Northern Ireland was for many years a hotbed of electoral fraud. Sometimes more people voted than were on the electoral register. The slogan was ‘vote early vote often’. The province was the first area in Britain to be allowed PR proportional representation for European Parliamentary elections. Soon afterwards photo ID was introduced for all elections in NI. Voter fraud has virtually disappeared although there have been cases of dead individuals ‘voting’. Continue reading →

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Madama Butterfly from WNO

Posted on October 15, 2021 by leslie

Leopoldo Metlicovitz, 1904, credit Wikipedia

Madama Butterfly from WNO

A bold new Madama Butterfly by Giacomo Puccini, from WNO in Cardiff, at Wales Millennium Centre, Saturday 2nd October 2021, reviewed by David Truslove

Welsh National Opera’s return to live performance ushers in Lindy Hume’s strikingly modern Madama Butterfly. Silk screens and sliding panels associated with Joachim Hertz’s traditional staging, in place since 1978, now move aside for Isabelle Bywater’s dazzlingly white cubes set on a revolve. This neon-lit slice of minimalism does for Butterfly’s executive suite. Bedroom and shower loom over kitchen and utility room, a deliberately misshapen apartment conjuring not so much comfortable domesticity, but chilling alienation. Its strong visual impact artfully situates the audience as voyeurs to Butterfly’s naivety and disintegration which Hume likens to an “exquisite sadism”.

Given the heated discussions whether much-loved operas should be jettisoned if they affront modern sensibilities, Hume has removed specific Japanese references and historically contentious imperialism. Everything is rerouted to engage with contemporary obsessions on coercion, sexual exploitation and human trafficking. She has ditchedNagasaki for a more culturally neutral space, creating what she loftily claims is an alternatively “imagined biosphere”, an unspecific location in a “dystopic near-future version of our own society”. By these means she smooths away cultural stereotypes that have enraged those who, like the musicologist Susan Clary, want to “pin this opera up in the museum of strange cultural practices of the past”. Continue reading →

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