From the great halls of Europe to the rainforest of Borneo, this month’s issue is all about the melody of life. Music, from man’s earliest beating of drums to communicate and warn, to the elaborate arrangements of the world’s most spectacular symphonies, the soundtrack of life revolves around the need to create, emote and connect.
Music soothes the mind and soul, inspires and ...
Tour Host Review
Each spring, Florence hosts Maggio Musicale, the most important music festival in Italy. An event of international prestige since its founding in 1933, Maggio Musicale has effected the collaboration of renowned theater and film directors and famous painters and sculptors in the staging of its productions, which include operas, concerts and ballets, making it a consummate artistic endeavor.And what...
World Heritage Site
The most important museum for the late 20th century’s most important musical form is in Cleveland? Not London or San Francisco? Not even Memphis?What gives?Alan Freed gives. Freed was a white disc jockey in Cleveland who, sponsored by a local record store owner, began playing rhythm and blues records on a local radio station in 1951 under the name “Moondog.” When he went to name ...
Museum Pick
After you’ve spent years armchair traveling, debriefing sojourner friends and watching Globe Trekker episodes, you begin to think the earth has few surprises left. All the superlative landscapes, artifacts and creatures have been discovered, described, and logged in to your mental picture of the world. There are no new Florences or...
Here’s a spot-on two-word explanation for the resurgence in travel that tour operators, travel agents and industry observers say has been apparent since late last year:
Cabin fever.
“People are tired of moping around,” says Rita Zawaideh, owner of Seattle-based Caravan Serai, a tour operator specializing in...
While traveling to Europe in the summer can be a rewarding experience, I have always preferred the continent's big cities in the middle of winter. The reason is simple and perhaps a bit selfish: You can have the magnificent capitals of Europe all to yourself.
During the peak summer months, the crowds form endlessly long lines to see Europe’s top museums. In the off season, on the other hand, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to arrive...
An expression of praise for any feat in Corca Dhuibhne, the West Kerry Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking area) is “Mo cheol thú!” – “You are my music!” –an indication of the indigenous place music has in the life of the area.
Both instrumental music and song have a long tradition on the Dingle Peninsula. In recent times with the increasing...
When I dream of Switzerland, I think of clanking cowbells and the keening sound of the wind whistling through the high alpine valleys. Everywhere you travel in this pristine country, nature has its own music but you have to be still to listen to its melody.
One of my favorite spots, right in the heart of central Switzerland, is the little lakeside town of Weggis. Situated at the foot of Mt....
The most important museum for the late 20th century’s most important musical form is in Cleveland? Not London or San Francisco? Not even Memphis?
What gives?
Alan Freed gives. Freed was a white disc jockey in Cleveland who, sponsored by a local record store owner, began playing rhythm and blues records on a local radio station...
Opera has always been as much about spectacle as it has been about fine music and voices. Audiences revel in elaborate sets and scads of supernumeraries as much as they do in the superb vocals of a diva or marquee tenor.
But what Seville, Spain, is planning for September may go down as the Ultimate Opera. From Sept. 2 through 12 during the First Seville International Music festival,...
When I dream of Switzerland, I think of clanking cowbells and the keening sound of the wind whistling through the high alpine valleys. Everywhere you travel in this pristine country, nature has its own music but you have to be still to listen to its melody.
One of my favorite spots, right in the heart of central Switzerland, is the little lakeside town of Weggis. Situated at the foot of...
Applause echoes through the vaulted outer ring of the ancient cloister as a string quartet ascends the stage. A hush falls over the eager listeners, then the pure, glorious notes of Haydn rise into the evening sky.
A smiling artist steps up to a gleaming harpsichord set in a corner of an antique shop, and introduces us to Mozart played on period instruments that mirror the prized armoires, settees and tables among which we sit.
It's like punching along the row of pre-set buttons on a radio. As I take the Sky Glider, a horizontal chairlift that runs the length of 75-acre Henry W. Maier Festival Park, I hear a few bars from one band and then another and another. . . . Music is being made on no fewer than 12 stages below me, and when evening comes, yet another headliner will take to the stage at the Marcus Amphitheater. ...
Each spring, Florence hosts Maggio Musicale, the most important music festival in Italy. An event of international prestige since its founding in 1933, Maggio Musicale has effected the collaboration of renowned theater and film directors and famous painters and sculptors in the staging of its productions, which include operas, concerts and ballets, making it a consummate artistic endeavor.
From the great halls of Europe to the rainforest of Borneo, this month’s issue is all about the melody of life. Music, from man’s earliest beating of drums to communicate and warn, to the elaborate arrangements of the world’s most spectacular symphonies, the soundtrack of life revolves around the need to create, emote and connect.
Music soothes the mind and soul, inspires and ...