Roman Totenberg died earlier this week at the age of 101. He was born in Eastern Europe and eventually settled in the U.S. His premier as a violinist was in Poland when he was 11 years old. He had appeared as a guest artist with almost every major symphony orchestra in the world and taught a great number of professional violinists their skills.

What ( Read more... )

I've said it before, and I'll say it again ... and again, and again, and again, public radio is so awful when it comes to the coverage of music that it's beyond belief; it's surreally bad! That includes all genres. I remember hearing many years ago that some of what were then known as "five-and-ten-cent stores" gave job applicants a simple ( Read more... )

Alberta Hunter and Eubie Blake were a famous and wonderful blues team, she singing, he on the piano, in the mid 20th Century. They both lived to great age, Eubie Blake to 96, Alberta Hunter to 89; and they were performing almost up to the day of their respective deaths.

In those days, sex had to be alluded to subtly, not blatantly as it is today. ( Read more... )

I am, and for about 65 years have been, a lover of the singing voices of the very young, whether individually or in choruses and glee clubs. In the early days of TV, when there was no color, no cable, no high-definition, there were a few popular talent shows (really the precursors of American Idol), the one I remember best being Ted Mack's Amateur ( Read more... )

October was a mixed bag when it came to the pluses and minuses. November has begun with minuses, but it's early days; so maybe things will pick up. I have always loved Andrea McArdle's rendition of Tomorrow (or anything else she sang, for that matter), and I'll try to hold onto the mood of the song for the rest of the month. I think that her ( Read more... )