#likely hindemith thing to happen

[grntaire]

HELLLLLL YEAH!!!!!!!

[doctorwhoisadhd]

‘at least its not the damn hindemith’ <- things i would say while playing tha cello

we are all united in our hatred for playing paul hindemiths works unfortunately 😔

[so-i-did-this-thing]

hi. i have two questions. firstly, is awesome to see you're a professional oboeist- i also play the oboe (and flute.) my teacher is the former first oboe and cor anglais from the lso (it's him on star wars!) and i wanted to ask what your favourite piece to play is.

secondly, i am a young trans person, and i came out to my mother (it's just us) when i was 11. she thought it was a phase then, and still does now i think, despite a diagnosis of gender dysphoria, a serious related eating disorder, depression and attempts at my life. i'm just turning 16 in a month, which means i might be able to start considering hormones (by the way. you give me hope). however, she constantly says things like, trans activists are causing gender clinics to be shut down, and harassing people for not conforming, and...a lot about the mysterious militant trans activists. how true is this? should i give up hope on her ever respecting my identity and pronouns, despite her organising my appointments with the gender clinic?

Heya! I know so many trans oboists, welcome to the club! Super cool about your teacher -- my own brush with fame is I used to attend John Mack's oboe camps for many years before he passed.

1) My favorite symphonic pieces are the Hindemith Symphonic Metamorphoses and the Bartok Concerto for Orchestra. My favorite chamber would be the Poulenc Trio for oboe, bassoon, and piano.

2) Militant trans activists asserting the gender binary and closing the very clinics that serve trans people... yeah, that is a myth.

But what is happening in many places is a legal effort to severely restrict, and even ban, gender affirming care for trans people, especially minors. And this is coming from conservative, cisgender parties, with the occasional trans person or detransitioner in their pocket. (Sad, but true.)

3) If you want to see what the path to medical transition could look like for you, see what gender affirming care looks like in your area, look for local news stories, and get a feel for what laws are being proposed. It is not an easy road -- you will be open to a lifetime of risk (moreso from transphobes than medical complications), and only you can decide what is best for you.

4) As for moms turning around -- my own mother set my transition back 11 years with her initial and constant disapproval, but she's now the sort of mother who paid for my top surgery and is helping me flee Florida’s transphobic laws. So, folks absolutely can change, and being firm with your identity and boundaries helps a ton here, as does picking your battles (my mom still struggles to remember my new name).

Glad I could help in some way! :)

[michael-weinstein]

My Bayreuth Problem

When I was nearly 14, I travelled to Germany for the first time. It was to be a Bar Mitzvah Wagner pilgrimage to Bayreuth with extra days in Nuremberg and Munich. Bar Mitzvahs happen at the age of 13, but the trip (me and my dad) was delayed because of my mom’s cancer (long story short, we discovered it when it wasn’t too late, and after several months of chemo, she recovered). Meanwhile I was getting recordings and scores of all the Wagner operas (that is, from The Flying Dutchman on), and was getting pretty hyped.

Apparently the hype was too much, because when I arrived I was dissapointed. I consciously went to Bayreuth before the festival was underway, but I couldn’t visit the Festspielhaus, though my dad and I did spend quite of an amount of time at the front, taking photos, and listening from outside to an orchestral rehearsal of the second act of Walküre (not that I knew it). Wahnfried came, and went, and it was only a bit interesting to see the Margravial Opera House (newly reopened from UNESCO renovations). Nuremberg was okay-ish (not that you need to know a lot about it), though there was an amusing incident in discovering that the Documentation Center of the Third Reich, built on the former grounds of the infamous rallies, was off the track from the road named, of everything, Yitzhak Rabin Strasse (Rabin was one of Israel’s most famous leaders, and his asassination is highly important for understanding Israeli politics today). We spent a rainy day in Munich (it was the day following Germany’s loss to South Korea in the FIFA World Cup), saw the day before the memorial cross at Lake Starnberg where King Ludwig II died (it’s a mystery, google it up). Also, it was my first experience of an actual forest! It was pretty dark, and the trees were very high.

But perhaps the interesting visit - perhaps the most important in view of what I’m about to talk about - is the one that my dad and I did as soon as we rented a car at the Munich Airport: we went to the Dachau concentration camp. We both agreed that Dachau should be our first destination as soon as we get a car, for 2 reasons: to remember who I am, and the disastrous effect of Wagner’s polemics (if not even his music). We also planned to have a detour to Regensburg, but we were falling behind schedule so we decided to head directly to Bayreuth.

Here I am, 2 and a half years later, understanding that though I love Wagner, I don’t need Bayreuth for it. Besides, one of the things I realized is that Wagner makes you more extreme, and for a middle-of-the-road, all-accepting person like me that’s not a good thing. Bayreuth always attracts either the neo-Nazis or the hardcore-Marxists. And in either case, they are white, either Christian or atheist, male and above 40 (50 makes a better number on paper, but let’s try to be realistic, if it is). Obviously I’m generalizing, but it’s necessary for me to fight “Wagneritis” (as Artur Rubinstein so memorably called it, and he was a Wagner fan by any means). And the Wagner family itself is not exempt from this either; Wagner’s own terrible genetics are continued through the generations, whether through the direct family members Siegfried, Wieland, Wolfgang and Katharina, or their spouses Cosima (Wagner’s wife), Winifred (Siegfried’s), Gertrud (Wieland’s) and Gudrun (Wolfgang’s second wife).

Siegfried Wagner wrote in his testament that there need to be 3 more generations until the Festival can be released from its Wagner-exclusivity. It’s already time for it. In fact, back in 1966 Pierre Boulez (who was making his Bayreuth debut conducting Parsifal) was discussing plans with Wieland to expand the festival, and Sir Georg Solti (who only conducted there once, the Ring cycle in 1983), after discussing the bad quality of singers, likewise asked the same from Wolfgang:

What, then, should Wolfgang Wagner do? Close the Festspielhaus? On the contrary, he ought to open it further. Wagner intended it as a center not only for his works but for German opera in general. Why not perform Weber’s, Strauss’s, Henze’s operas, Pfitzner’s Palestrina, Hindemith’s Mathis der Maler? Abolish Wagnerism as a religion and let some fresh air into the theater, as Wagner wanted. Try to rejuvinate the audience. The Wagner Festival as such has outlived its time, and new thinking is needed.

So I know what I want to do when the Bayreuth festival gets some “fresh air”. Ideally it should be the very first concert, but I don’t mind anything as long as its early enough to effective. If I ever become a conductor, my plan is to conduct Mahler’s 6th symphony. This audience, and this family, need a slap of ice to their faces, they need to wake up and understand there are things beyond Wagner, stagings, opera and singers. They have become so enthused in their delusion in this town, place and festival, but their true, fanatic (even dark) nature will be revealed in the marches of the 1st movement and the finale, and the macabre scherzo. One could say that this is the victory of the spirits of Mahler, the Second Viennese School and Shostakovich, but that would be a downright lie, because each had at least appreciated if not even loved Wagner to an incredible degree.

But they showed they didn’t need Bayreuth for this. Mahler did his most forward-looking and most celebrated Wagner work in Vienna (most notably his Tristan production with Alfred Roller). He was never invited to Bayreuth, most likely because he was Jewish, but even if he was he wouldn’t have fit there artistically. Likewise, Schoenberg loved Wagner deeply, but preferred to learn from what Wagner did in Tristan and Parsifal and stretch it from there to the next level. As for Shostakovich, the sheer fact that whatever he went through in his difficult life, he never left the Soviet Union when he had the chance to speaks for itself (and it’s not because he necessarily supported the authorities).

Likewise, I’ve come to conclude that I don’t need anybody to tell me what Wagner is, and I don’t need Bayreuth for the ultimate Wagner experience. I can do Wagner wherever I want, whether it’s on both coasts of the United States, London, Paris, Berlin, Munich, Dresden, Leipzig, Frankfurt, Vienna, Italy, Salzburg, Greece, elsewhere in Europe or even (gasp) in Israel itself. And please think of me when a Mahler 6 happens in Bayreuth. I’ll do my best to be there.

[brookeeins-blog]

Post #9

1. This happens when I try to watch the video 

Can you post the title to the video so I can search for it? Or can you post a new link? 

2. After reading these stories I see a lot of similarities between these musicians and scientists living in Nazi Germany. Like the scientists we read about in Dr. Dyer’s class, many of the musicians in today’s readings tried to remain as aloof as possible when it came to political opinions. They weren’t openly anti-nazi, and only obliged to Nazi requests when they felt there was no other option. Additionally, when they did perform or compose under the request of the Nazi party, their intent was to make good music more than it was to please the party. This is very similar to scientists at the time who was doing science for the sake of science, not for the sake of the war of Nazi intentions. Being a musician, like being a scientist, is a job full of passion, so I think it was more about following that passion than being tied to a particular political party. All 5 of the musicians we read about seemed to be stuck in this place of wanting to perform and conduct for the sake of music, but if I had to pick one who is most guilty of collusion I think it would be Herbert Von Karajan. I say this because although he married a woman who was part-Jewish and had some other Jewish friends, he succumbed to the Nazi party the most. He actively joined the party twice and was a proud composer for them. The only reason he was released from his musical duties in the Third Reich was that Hitler simply didn’t like one of his performance, not because he was resistant to follow all of their orders and requests like the other musicians. Going off that, I think the most innocent of these 5 composers is Paul Hindemith. His views were more to the left and he only obliged to orders of the Nazi party when it was forced. The Nazi party often wrote bad things about him in the press, but that didn’t stop the way he was composing. The only reason his music was ever used by the Nazi party was simply that they liked the way it sounded, not because it was written directly for them. Hindemith is a good example of a composer who did music simply for the sake of music. He had a hard time getting a job because of his differing views from the Nazi party, but that didn’t stop him from composing the music he loved. 

[jakeg27-blog]

Blog Post #11/#12: To Wagner, Or Not To Wagner

I do not believe that Wagner’s music should be censored or considered taboo. If we are to for the moment ignore Wagner’s own antisemitism and just consider the Nazi appropriation of the art, I do not think it is right to let the association of the two destroy a significant artist’s work. Wagner appealed to aspects of human nature that Hitler felt particularly stronger than others, but that does not change that many of his appeals are still to human nature. We have seen where anger and a lust for nationalistic strength drove Hitler. We all at some point have experienced the same emotions of anger or grandiose that Hitler and Wagner felt, but expressed them in very different ways. To let Hitler’s own appreciation for the music is, in my opinion, a denial of self and what treachery we are individually capable of. It is to pretend we are above human nature, which simply is not true and a dangerous thing to pretend to be. I do not believe we should allow the past to take hostage of our present. We will remember what happened and respect it, but we will also learn from it. Wagner did not write solely for antisemitism. Although elements of it did find his way into his work, Wagner created art for emotion and meaning. While we cannot sympathize with his antisemitism, we can relate to the emotions he has felt and he has conveyed for our own purposes. This same concept applies to anything Hitler associated with the Nazi regime. Art is art, and even the worst perversions of it can offer to us something, whether it be a lesson or understanding.

These comments, however, are strictly for a generic audience who may feel concerned by the use of Wagner by Hitler or just Wagner’s own sentiments. In the instance of an audience that is adversely affected by antisemitism or has suffered from the Nazi regime and has associated Wagner very closely with it, I would entirely respect that these audiences choose not to listen to it. While I would encourage these groups to separate the music from the personas, I can very easily understand how the association or Wagner’s own antisemitism could ruin all his work. In short, the music should not be outright banned in Israel, but it should not be commonplace either so that those who do not wish to listen to it are not required to. Avoiding performances at the expense of taxpayers would also be ideal, until public opinion has largely shifted on it. I feel that Barenboim’s own manner of going about performing Wagner was perfect, and that his sentiments on treating Wagner as a taboo gives Hitler a sort of last word is correct. Out of the short, personal interviews I was actually quite surprised by the number of people who did not raise much of an issue with Wagner, particularly those that had been directly affected by the Nazi regime. It begs the question about who is really perpetuating this issue – people with legitimate concern and those that have experienced Wagner negatively, or people that like to stir up controversy? Most likely it is both, but to what degree I am unsure and would not feel comfortable making any sort of guess. The case of Wagner’s grandson Gottfried is quite interesting, but it seems that there might be more at play than a personal desire of his to “spread the truth,” considering how he was disowned from the family and believes so vehemently in what he says that he lectures on it around the world. I agree with the author’s sentiment that censoring Wagner will do little good, and despite his attempts at trying to heal the issues Wagner created, Gottfried is only worsening them.

Furtwangler’s experience with the Nazis showed that he was a man who would follow what he believed in and not let it be swayed politics. This in itself is a very respectable mindset, given how many people let the two things muddle together. Although he was a part of the country, he did not acquiesce to the Nazis, to the point where he even resigned and disobeyed orders. There were some concessions he had to make to the regime, but his actions were much better than many of those around him. I think he was much better than most of the scientists. Strauss’ experience is especially tragic. He used the Nazis as a means to an end (funding art), but it unfortunately ruined many things for him. In this case, he was not much better than the scientists, but since his work did not actually contribute to the war effort in the way the sciences would have, he is partially off the hook. Karajan does not seem nearly as innocent as the former two, as he went to the lengths of joining the Nazi party. His choice, however, to have a Jewish wife, does not make his politics black and white. Orff did not seem to be a particularly active or understood figure, and I agree with the author that he was an enigma. I could only compare Orff to perhaps an average scientist that was not instrumental in the Nazi regime, but a mere part of it. Hindemith’s case seems very similar to Furtwangler’s, but he seems to have the benefit of not being in the higher echelons of Germany and not being forced to make the same choices Furtwangler did. I would say that him and Furtwangler are among the most innocent, while Karajan is likely the most guilty. Yes, his wife was Jewish, but it was not uncommon for people to still like a Jew personally but hate the Jews as a whole.

[artmutt]

Two Pianists with Two Agendas

A few years ago, we attended the summer music festival in Toronto, and were excited about hearing pianist Jeremy Denk perform. One day, shortly before the concert, I got an email, saying Denk had to cancel, but they had replaced him with Inon Barnatan. I had never heard of Barnatan, and was fully prepared to be disappointed. The couple sitting next to us, realizing they weren’t going to hear Jeremy Denk, said “Well, we could ask for our money back!” By the end of the first half of the program, after hearing Barantan tear through several difficult Romantic works, it no longer seemed a disappointment. I turned to the woman next to me and asked, “Still want your money back?” and she laughed.

So when Inon Barnatan turned up on the season of Northwestern’s Skyline Piano Artist series, I knew we didn’t want to miss it. We hesitated about getting tickets, and got two of the last tickets in the house. The new recital hall in the Bienen School of Music Building is lovely, and quite intimate, with a back wall of windows looking out on the lakefront. On a clear night, you can see the lights of the city of Chicago.

Barnatan is not very big, but he plays like a giant. The first half of his program was made up of short works from the Baroque era and the 20th century, in a kind of suite. Works by Bach, Handel, Rameau, and Couperin were followed by pieces by Ravel, Adès, Ligeti, and Barber. Hearing the hell-bent-for-leather way that Barnatan tore through the concluding Fugue from the Barber Piano Sonata made me wish he had performed the entire sonata. Well, perhaps he will the next time I hear him play.

This intriguing first half was followed by the Brahms Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel, Op. 24. I love the late Brahms piano music (Op. 116 - 119), but there’s also something special about Brahms the young firebrand, that Clara Schumann said was one of the finest pianists she had ever heard. These variations are studies in virtuoso pianism, and yet, about halfway through, a voice that is unmistakably Brahms sings out, and you recognize that his compositional voice was there from the very beginning.

Two weeks and two days later, we heard French pianist Cédric Tiberghien at Symphony Center. I had heard him in a previous visit to Chicago, and had been impressed by his technique and interpretive insights. This program was intended as a kind of homage and memorial, marking the centennial of the end of World War I. All of the works on the program dated from the time of the War, by composers from European nations directly involved in the conflict. All this was explained in the program, and then by M. Tiberghien from the stage. 

And just for the record, performers really shouldn’t do that. I know, they’re trying to be friendly and “welcoming” and demystifying of the music. But stage mics never seem correctly balanced, either over or under amplified. Add someone with a French accent, and much of his speech was illegible from our seats in the lower balcony. Domage.

The playing needed no apology. He began with a passionate reading of Scriabin’s late, mystical Vers la flame, all pulsing repeated notes and tonally ambiguous harmonies. This was followed three lovely Improvisations for the left hand by Frank Bridge. Every time I hear Bridge’s music, I get a sense of why Benjamin Britten became the brilliant composer he did, and why he wanted Bridge as his teacher (since his parents wouldn’t let him go to Vienna and study with Alban Berg).

The first book of Claude Debussy’s Études followed. These are some of my favorite pieces for the piano, and I have a number of interpretations stored in memory. Tiberghien’s versions easily matched those. The Études, at best, sound like they are being made up on the spot, and Tiberghien caught that sense of playfulness and spontaneity so essential to the music. Even more, his reading of Pour les sixtes was meltingly beautiful, just as it should be.

This was followed by twelve very difficult but brief pieces (also called études) by Polish composer Carol Szymanowski. I didn’t know these works, and it was sometimes a touch tricky to tell where one work ended and the next began, but they certainly made a strong case for Szymanowski’s value and interest as a composer. There was never a dull moment.

Following intermission (and yes, this was a long program), we got the 2nd Book of Debussy Études, again gorgeously played, and finally a long suite of pieces by Paul Hindemith called In einer Nacht, Op. 15. I thought I was pretty familiar with Hindemith’s output, but this showed me clearly I’ve missed some things. Written the year after the War ended (1919), these dark, moody, slightly Expressionistic pieces seemed to embody the sense of defeat that Germans must have felt at the end of the War. Certainly, it would be the sanctions imposed in 1919 that would bring about the runaway inflation in Germany, and the sense of loss and privation that many feel created the groundwork for Hitler’s rise to power in the 1930s. But that future hadn’t happened yet, and the young Hindemith (he was 24 when he wrote these pieces) could still enjoy a Foxtrot when he wanted. 

All told, a remarkable collection of pieces, played by an equally remarkable musician. Hopefully he’ll be back again soon.

[hellochinups]

lions & butterflies

i am actually impressed by how good my tone quality has gotten 

like i have old recordings of myself and now i’m reeling in disgust

who is this old me playing this o m g 

my biggest pet peeve is people who don’t have solid opinions 

biggest irritation: having to argue with someone about where to eat

why is everyone’s opinion “no preference”? i mean i get it happens occasionally but all the time? 

people without opinions seem so inauthentic 

like you can actually be a compromiser while keeping your opinion...

on a positive note, it means i always get my top choice (so, can’t complain there)

i have mastered the art of overnight oats 

no one is better than me at this oatmeal + greek yogurt thing

essay progress: it’s chugging along 

it’s actually much better written towards the end 

i have this one line i am so proud of, i’d tattoo it on my arm

ok that’s a little extreme but i’m a exaggerator

life lesson: life is more fun when you enhance all your experiences 

musical choices: hindemith + revival 2k17

[tommyoboe]

YEAR 3 - WEEK 10.

Well then.

Ten weeks now I have been back in my beloved city of Birmingham, and it’s now at this point where I reflect on the term and how things have changed since summer, now a very distant dream like thought.

This has been the longest I’ve gone without seeing my family back home in Hull, and it’s a difficult fact as over the last two and a bit years I have suffered with a fair amount of homesickness, but at the same time, and my mum agreed with me over a phone call the other day about this, I think it’s done me a lot of good.

I feel a new sense of independence and determination to go out and get what I want and to achieve my goals in full, this is the best place for me right now. With that in mind I intend to make as much use of this city as possible in the next year and a half, and if that means sticking around more and taking opportunities here, then that is what I shall do.

The start of my new bar job last month was another factor I considered in staying here in Birmingham on a more long term basis, which I had to say was improving gradually with time, with some fun dancing on tables at Monday’s staff meeting (fun but trashy as fuck). But by the time Saturday came round I was filled with my usual dread as I prepared to make the cold dark lonely journey over there, so much so that after an emotional chat with Cameron (emotional for other reasons too) I decided to pack the whole thing in. I wasn’t happy; it was taking over my thinking; I couldn’t concentrate and be happy doing the things I love. And although after a knackering, back aching shift where I was shouted at like the poor child (borderline dog) of a parent who should frankly not be a parent, to my slight surprise but happiness I was let go anyway for my lack of availability and commitment in the lead up to Christmas: fair enough, although when she pulled out the ‘I’ve got to think of the business’ card and then the fucking cheeky (not my kind of cheeky) ‘you clearly don’t need this job’, I had to restrain myself from saying something I’d later regret. Cheek of that though, very below the belt. Of course, my lovely smiling exterior prevailed. Oh, I’m so good at that.

But regardless, today I woke up after not a lot of sleep but feeling mentally refreshed and ready to fully pursue my dreams and ambitions (cliché but true), and the motivation now to look for music related work is almost literally burning inside me - I’m so excited! The future’s bright.

With that behind me I also realised I’ll get longer at home over Christmas, and this is one of the most wonderful thoughts of all. I’m actually at the point where I get super giddy thinking about seeing my family and friends back home again; so many good times are going to be had! And ending City of Culture 2017 in the beautiful city itself will be the biggest delight.

And although I’ll be busy with essays and practice over Christmas, to do it all in the comfort of my true home (although Birmingham is definitely my second home now) and feel like I’m actually on a break will be just lovely. Thinking about simple nights with my parents watching the soaps and having a good laugh on our separate sofas in itself fills me with warmth. (Yes, this is the soppiest I’ll get. I think.)

I can’t wait to catch up with everyone back home too! So much has happened  that I need to be filled in on, and I can safely say the same applies to me and my stories from the term. My mum seemed surprised and amused when I said I’d gone for Japanese food alone Monday night before my work meeting. To be fair, I was too.

I guess I have changed a bit in the last couple of months, but at the same time, I’ll always be the same sarcy (occasionally likeable) fucker that I’ve always been.

I did see some light in the midst of this stressful term on Monday though, when my teacher Jenni excitedly broke the news to me that I would be receiving a huge grant practically covering the whole cost of a brand new oboe. I had to reread the email sent to both of us a good ten times before it fully sank in; it was just the best feeling knowing that taking this step in the near future will hopefully elevate my playing and move things forward in a big way. Conveniently Crowthers of Canterbury were coming on Wednesday for us oboists to try some of their instruments. With this in mind I took two quickly and tried them the next day in orchestra rehearsals, and as my fellow players in the wind section and I noted, the difference was great. Going back to my current oboe that afternoon felt like a quite a hit after the sounds I made in the morning. But yeah, that’s going to be a wonderful step in the right direction!

As well as my private teaching this week, where my current student’s friend started with me from scratch (that was fun, and I think she enjoyed it too so yippee!), I had my teacher training assessment for the programme I’ve been undertaking this term along with all my other commitments, and that as well was really fun. I didn’t feel too nervous going off to teach three beginners for twenty minutes, knowing anything could happen and I’d just roll with it, and that’s exactly what I did, and yeah, it was great. I got excellent feedback and beneficial tips for improvement, which I’m eager to apply to my own students and hopefully more that I eventually acquire. I came away from it inspired to look into all sorts of teaching opportunities, so fingers crossed something comes up!

The latter half of the week was dominated with the viola (who would have thought) as the conservatoire was hosting the Cecil Aronowitz International Viola Competition this week, and I became part of the orchestra for the final of this prestigious event. I love orchestral projects, and despite the mental challenge of performing five viola concertos, one after the other, two of them the same pieces, this one was no different and just about everything pulled together just in time for the concert. I had some fabulous oboe bits, including one ‘ducky’ low bit in a fugue section in Hindemith’s Der Schwanendreher, which was just such fun. Oh, I’d love to do that all the time. One day…

Other highlights this week have included getting a food delivery from back home including lots of biscuits and wine (yes then); fancy curry with Cameron on Tuesday and (much needed) drinks with friends after Friday’s concert. And to end the week I’m off to Cameron’s for stew and chill (is that a thing…well, I guess it is now).

Feeling super refreshed and ready to take on the last few weeks of term!

The future really is bright.

T

[somelittlewhitelies]

1 thru 75 except 57 lol

1. Are you a side, back, or front sleeper? Side sleeper, definitely

2. When you hum random music what song is it? Probably something from Hindemith’s Symphonic Metamorphosis

3. Explain your username. I was 15 when I came up with it and I’m too lazy to come up with something better

4: Explain my username. What?

5: How did you fall into the tumblr hellpit? My friend k8 talked me into it

6: What fan interest of yours would you least prefer to explain in your workplace? Gymnastics

7: What fan interest or yours would you most enjoy explaining in your workplace? The X-Files lol

8: Last song you listened to? “Hell on Wheels” by Cher

9: Weirdest thing on your dash today? I don’t know, I scroll through my dash mindlessly the few times I actually get on anymore

10: In a perfect world, what animal would you most like to adopt? A cat

11: What animal would you most like someone else to adopt? Dogs?

12: What’s something trivial you have strong opinions about? No bake cheesecakes. Because they’re not actually cheesecakes. They’re just shitty, refrigerated desserts.

13: What would your super-villain finishing move be? Idk laughing?

14: Explain your icon. It’s my mouth

15: You meet your true love(s) today. Possibly again. Describe your ideal hilarious romcom meetcute. (can be aromantic). Umm we run into each other in line somewhere, we start talking and hit it off? Idk I’m so bad at this

16: Your comfort food, and why. Mac and cheese because why the hell not. Alternatively, the student special from Sitar because my roommate and I get it when we both have shitty days. 

17: What type of mad science will you Show Them All with? (ex: mad chemical engineer, mad library scientist, mad linguist). Which of your creations will probably turn on you?

18: Favorite cheesy trope? Idk I’m really distracted and can’t come up with one because my idiot cat keeps trying to eat q-tips

19: Favorite trope nobody writes enough of? Domestic scenes I guess?

20: Rec me a book, comic, or anime, or other piece of media you wish there were more like. Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari

21: Wierdest tumblr drama you’ve been a part of or stumbled across. Idk there’s so mych of it??

22: You know those things from a million years ago your brain suddenly reminds you to feel embarrased/guilty/bad about in full technicolor? Tell me one of them. I told one of my guy friends back in high school that I’d rather vomit than kiss him. Which wasn’t true.

23: What is something you collect? T-shirts, I guess?

24: Pens. Do you know where the one closest to you came from? Would you be distressed if someone took it? My mom bought it, so not at all

25: The last game you played is crossed with the zombie apocalypse and now going down outside your window. How boned are you? Umm terrified

26: What was the last thing that made you cry? I used to be a stone cold bitch who couldn’t cry at anything, but I’ve recently started getting emotional about amost everything lol. So yeah, it was Simone Biles’s performance on Dancing with the Stars about her adoption

27: Most embarrassing/weird/personal body thing you’re willing to talk about. I can’t taste anything on the right side of my tongue

28: Your icon is now the voice of your inner therapist. How is this gonna go? LOL NOT WELL AT ALL BECAUSE IT’S ME

29: Name a kink you only like hypothetically. Monagamy lol

30: Name a kink you find bewildering. Feet???

31: You have acquired: a mouse, a lizard, a rabbit, a spider, a domestic fox. Name them! Who gets to sleep on the bed? Mouse-Cheese. Lizard-Snake. Rabbit-Apple. Spider-AAGGGHHHH. Fox-Ace. The domestic fox sleeps on the bed

32: What was your favorite childhood toy? Do you still have it? Lincoln Logs and yes, some of them 

33: Hit “shuffle” on your media player and tell me your favorite lyric from the song that comes up. “Paranoia strikes deep/Into your life it will creep/It starts when you're always afraid”

34: What fan media (of yours or someone else’s) would you most like to see art/fic for? I don’t know, I like most types of art honestly

35: What do you ship that you think would be hard to explain convincingly to other people? Attempt an explanation. Mulder/Scully? That my only ship right now and it’s not hard to convince people to get on board with lol

36: What meme gets on your nerves? So many

37: Showers or baths? Showers 

38: Who was your biggest childhood nemesis and why? I don’t think I had one 

39: First writing prompt that comes to your head. I am so uncreative and cannot write. 

40: Least favorite color. Orange

41: What was the last thing you got really obsessed with? I’ve recently got re-obsessed with Cher because I realized that she’s gonna die one day and I got scared lol

42: What’s the weirdest experience you’ve ever had on a mind-altering substance? (prescription, recreational, otc, or food) One time in Colorado I took too many hits off a grav and I started breathing colors

43: Shuffle up a random song on your media player. Now tell me what ship/story goes with it. “Landslide” and again, I am uncreative

44: What’s making you happiest recently? :) Spending time with my best friends

45: What’s scaring you these days? :( realizing that I’m probably gonna die alone 

46: Post a funny video for me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMJWL1CczMI

47: Did you ever have a dream/nightmare that stuck with you for years? Nope 

48: What’s a movie you thought you’d hate but you turned out to love? Oh god I don’t know. Probably Inception but I didn’t love it, I just liked it more than I thought I would

49: Tell me a really obscure fact you know. You can replace the strings on a french horn with dental floss if a string breaks and you’re in a pinch

50: Hot or cold? Cold

51: How did your parent(s) punish you as a kid? What do you think of that? I got time out and it was fine

52: What’s something you thought was true about yourself that your feelings have changed on over the years? I used to be a lot more conservative lol

53: Write a story in seven words. The sun shone brightly over the river

54: What is your favorite curse word? Shit

55: Favorite food for every color of the rainbow. ramen, oranges, yams, green beans, bread, indian food, vermuth ( I am so sorry I am dumb)

56: If you were a poltergeist where would you haunt and what would be your preferred style of prank? I would haunt practice room 222 in Moody and shake people’s music while they’re trying to practice

57: What is an art style, craft, or skill that you can’t do, but you really admire in others? I DID THIS ONE

58: What is a skill you have that people probably don’t know about? I’m pretty good at tie-dying?

59: Name a pet peeve you have, and something you do that is probably a pet peeve for others. Loud chewing noises

60: Dragons, dinosaurs, or aliens? Aliens

61: What was the last big fight you had with someone about? My mom about something, I don’t really remember

62: Insult the asker of this question creatively. You’re an inconsiderate son of a bitch (I’m sorry I’m so bad at this)

63: In an ideal world, what would you like done with your body after you die? I’d like my ashes to be put in a pod with a tree seed so that I can become a tree

64: Find me a weird stock photo and post it. 

65: What was your bedtime ritual as a kid? Did you have one? Wash my face, brush my teeth, get in bed

66: What are the three traits you value the most in others? Honesty, loyalty, and humor

67: What are the three most interesting wild animals you’ve encountered in your life? Snake, fox, squirrel? 

68: What is a word you really enjoy saying? Shit

69: Answer number 60 like it was a “fuck, marry, kill” rhetorical. Fuck aliens, marry dragons, kill dinosaurs

70: Describe something that happened to you today as if you were a narrator in a film noir, nature documentary, or 50s teaching video. My cat woke me up this morning by licking my face 

71: Create five new nicknames for yourself as quickly as you can. layruhs, lala, lulu, laura lou, cat mom

72: Shorts, pants, skirts, or other? Pants

73: What’s a song you hate and why? Most country songs

74: If you were a superhero, what would be your one weakness? My knees lol

75: Describe a weird encounter you had with a bug. I accidentally inhaled a gnat a week ago 

y’all this was difficult

[gabemusc304-blog]

Blog Post #11/12

Finishing Wagner/German Composers in Nazi Germany

These days people everywhere get up in arms about anything they can. With Wagner’s music, we get another example of this. Wagner is one of the most influential composers of all time and lived in the 1800’s until he died six years before Adolf Hitler was even born. During Wagner’s time and in the area he lived (Germany and Switzerland), it wasn’t uncommon to be anti-Semitic. There were a lot of people who blamed the Jews for many of their problems and we see it again and again in the history of Europe. I think it is very unfortunate that Hitler and the Nazi regime ended up choosing Wagnerian music to be the sort of musical symbol of the regime. So, just because one bad person used another man’s music to represent something bad, even if it’s really bad, doesn’t mean we can’t listen to it. It’s a classic 21st century possible overreaction with misplaced anger. Granted I do agree that people who went through these horrors in the holocaust, as well as family members of people who did, are permitted (like Levine says in the article) to the emotional responses they have. However, I think the anger/revenge/vengeance emotions is misplaced when directed towards Wagner’s music. This type of thing happens a lot these days; where a group of people misdirect their anger instead of using it to accomplish something or directing towards the actual object that they should. In the situation where you want to perform an opera of Wagner’s, the audience does matter. So it would be tough for Israel to start playing these Wagnerian operas again after banning it for so many years. First, of all it would be hard to get many people to come and watch and second, it might be difficult to find people that want to participate in the opera itself.

In the case of the five musicians who were alive during the Nazi regime, there are definitely some parallels when comparing them to the scientists alive during the regime. One of the first parallels I noticed was the fact that some people were caught in the middle. Like Peter Debye and Planck, Wilhelm Furtwangler was distraught when the Nazis started to kick out Jews from musical performances. He even sent a strongly worded letter to Goebbels which increased his popularity abroad, even though it was obviously an unsuccessful endeavor. Richard Strauss was also alike these types of scientists as he frequently worked with Jewish composers and had many Jewish friends. Although he is known to be an anti-Semite and to have worked with the Nazi regime, he was exonerated for any ties to the regime in his denazification trial. In my opinion, Herbert von Karajan is a lot like Werner Heisenberg. They both were a small part of the Nazi regime in their younger years but grew to defy them as they got older. However, neither of them ever really lost that tie to the regime. Carl Orff is a lot like many of the scientists in Germany that were close friends with Jews and collaborated with them extensively. Comparing them further, Orff ended up having difficulties working and such but was still able to find work. Paul Hindemith is probably the composer of these five that has the least affiliation to the Nazi regime.  Based on these articles, he is probably the least guilty of collusion because of ties to Jewish people. One could also argue for Wilhelm Furtwangler as well with his countless letters and oppositions to the regime. It is hard to say which of these composers would be the guiltiest of collusion as most of them at some point revolted in some way against the Nazi regime and all were exonerated in denazification trials. If I had to choose one I would say that Strauss was the guiltiest. I say this because the article states that “Strauss was generally on good terms with the Nazi Party”.