Who is Elmer Bernstein? He is the composer who wrote so many of our recognizable tunes from movies and musicals:
The Magnificient Seven
The Great Escape
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Ten Commandments
Ghostbusters
Elmer is no relation to Leonard, that we know of. Nevertheless, the two knew each other growing up, much like the Armstrongs knew the Armstrongs (no relation), and the Websters might know the Websters (no relation).
What a great talent, and we should research the gene pool of Bernsteins. I am thinking that they may be/may have been a pretty fun group!
Showing posts with label Music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Music. Show all posts
Monday, July 11, 2011
Thursday, June 18, 2009
...and the livin' is easy...
Arthur Rubenstein once said, "The seasons are what a symphony ought to be: four perfect movements in harmony with each other." Reading that expressive quote, I began to think about summertime tunes. Given today's heat and humidity, the music might have to be some slow, funeral-like dirge. Because that's about how fast my heart is beating.
But...some other "summertime music? Certainly Gershwin's Summertime:
Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high
Oh, Your daddy's rich
And your mamma's good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry
One of these mornings
You're going to rise up singing
Then you'll spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky
But until that morning
There's a'nothing can harm you
With your daddy and mammy standing by
Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high
Your daddy's rich
And your mamma's good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry
Yep, that song is ideal, isn't it?
And most everyone is familiar with Vivaldi's Four Season's "Summer". It is very enjoyable to listen to, but does not, in my opinion, fit the Kansas summer. (Except the thunderstorm part.)
But I like this one for "summertime": Vitali Chaconne
Here's a Youtube link for the Vitali Chaconne:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jlcca97wow4&feature=related
and Summertime (w/ Ella Fitzgerald):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoPlAe23Ruo
And Vivaldi:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXqHJPuGVsY&feature=related
Listening to music like this makes the heat and humidity just a bit more bearable. Yessirree.
But...some other "summertime music? Certainly Gershwin's Summertime:
Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high
Oh, Your daddy's rich
And your mamma's good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry
One of these mornings
You're going to rise up singing
Then you'll spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky
But until that morning
There's a'nothing can harm you
With your daddy and mammy standing by
Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high
Your daddy's rich
And your mamma's good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry
Yep, that song is ideal, isn't it?
And most everyone is familiar with Vivaldi's Four Season's "Summer". It is very enjoyable to listen to, but does not, in my opinion, fit the Kansas summer. (Except the thunderstorm part.)
But I like this one for "summertime": Vitali Chaconne
Here's a Youtube link for the Vitali Chaconne:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jlcca97wow4&feature=related
and Summertime (w/ Ella Fitzgerald):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoPlAe23Ruo
And Vivaldi:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXqHJPuGVsY&feature=related
Listening to music like this makes the heat and humidity just a bit more bearable. Yessirree.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
I...Love a Parade!
Who doesn't like a parade? I am a parade's biggest fan. I am ready to hop on that bandwagon and play along with them! Ditto a band in general. I love bands, love orchestras, love choirs, and mostly, LOVE to be in them. There is nothing finer, let me tell you, than getting together with some fellow musicians and having a great time making music together!
My family is chock full of musicians. If we put together the full Reese-Webster contingent we might possibly be able to rival the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. (Certainly in spirit.) At Christmas time, we like to gather and sing Handel's Messiah. Not the Hallelujah Chorus, silly, the ENTIRE thing. It takes upwards of 2.5-3 hours (depending on food and visiting in between). It is a marathon that is not always popular with the inlaws and inlaws-to-be, but it's just something we do. Period. For years my sister Barb would play the entire piano accompaniment for us. (More on my gifted sister Barb in a future writing...) After she passed away, the CD accompaniment was never quite right. But we go on.
Bands, orchestras...we (Paul & I) required of our three kids that they must take some sort of music every semester in high school. I loved it! Orchestra and choir concerts every semester. And now they have graduated. I hope they continue in their musical skills and interests.
A very generous gift was sent our way this weekend, and Paul and I attended the Symphony in the Flint Hills. Once a year, some ranch in the Flint Hills region of Kansas (Google it!) hosts the Kansas City Orchestra on their ranch property. This summer the concert was at the Doyle Creek Ranch near Florence, Kansas. 3000 people in attendance. You must sit and try to imagine the logistics of the people and parking, and all other human problems. The site was amazing: tents on the 30,000 acre prairie, rolling hills, gorgeous 80 degree weather, food and drink, families, music enthusiasts, ranchers, and great music!
For those composer enthusiasts out there, we heard Grofé, 2 Copelands, Dvořák, and Bernstein. Out beyond the orchestra shell there were cowboys riding the range for our visual aid to the music. It worked! To hear The Red Pony and see the horses out loping in the grassy hills made the evening such a bouquet of imagination!
At the concert, husband Paul & I were settled in our seats when a trio came and sat down beside us. I pegged them immediately, being married to such: the man was wearing a pair of boots peculiar to Australia (and to our tiny Armstrong neck of the Wabaunsee woods..). After the last song, I turned and asked them where they were from? Australia was the answer. Ah! I was right! A fun evening commenced. It turns out this fellow and his wife are Aussie ranchers in WA (Western Autralia) and were visiting ranches here in Kansas for two weeks. They use helicopters to ranch their 3.5 million acres!
A few months ago I overheard a conversation between grandfather (the former band director) and granddaughter (the violinist). He was telling her to keep up with her violin and her music. She took his wise admonishment to heart, and also took her violin back to college with her the next semester.
As for me, I haul out the flute on occasion. (ALWAYS on the 4th of July to play the piccolo part of Starts and Stripes...makes my family crazy.) Our piano is there for the playing. The guys play their guitars regularly. I cannot imagine what it must be like to not know music.
And the night shall be filled with music,
And the cares that infest the day
Shall fold their tents like the Arabs
And as silently steal away.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Day Is Done
My family is chock full of musicians. If we put together the full Reese-Webster contingent we might possibly be able to rival the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. (Certainly in spirit.) At Christmas time, we like to gather and sing Handel's Messiah. Not the Hallelujah Chorus, silly, the ENTIRE thing. It takes upwards of 2.5-3 hours (depending on food and visiting in between). It is a marathon that is not always popular with the inlaws and inlaws-to-be, but it's just something we do. Period. For years my sister Barb would play the entire piano accompaniment for us. (More on my gifted sister Barb in a future writing...) After she passed away, the CD accompaniment was never quite right. But we go on.
Bands, orchestras...we (Paul & I) required of our three kids that they must take some sort of music every semester in high school. I loved it! Orchestra and choir concerts every semester. And now they have graduated. I hope they continue in their musical skills and interests.
A very generous gift was sent our way this weekend, and Paul and I attended the Symphony in the Flint Hills. Once a year, some ranch in the Flint Hills region of Kansas (Google it!) hosts the Kansas City Orchestra on their ranch property. This summer the concert was at the Doyle Creek Ranch near Florence, Kansas. 3000 people in attendance. You must sit and try to imagine the logistics of the people and parking, and all other human problems. The site was amazing: tents on the 30,000 acre prairie, rolling hills, gorgeous 80 degree weather, food and drink, families, music enthusiasts, ranchers, and great music!
For those composer enthusiasts out there, we heard Grofé, 2 Copelands, Dvořák, and Bernstein. Out beyond the orchestra shell there were cowboys riding the range for our visual aid to the music. It worked! To hear The Red Pony and see the horses out loping in the grassy hills made the evening such a bouquet of imagination!
At the concert, husband Paul & I were settled in our seats when a trio came and sat down beside us. I pegged them immediately, being married to such: the man was wearing a pair of boots peculiar to Australia (and to our tiny Armstrong neck of the Wabaunsee woods..). After the last song, I turned and asked them where they were from? Australia was the answer. Ah! I was right! A fun evening commenced. It turns out this fellow and his wife are Aussie ranchers in WA (Western Autralia) and were visiting ranches here in Kansas for two weeks. They use helicopters to ranch their 3.5 million acres!
A few months ago I overheard a conversation between grandfather (the former band director) and granddaughter (the violinist). He was telling her to keep up with her violin and her music. She took his wise admonishment to heart, and also took her violin back to college with her the next semester.
As for me, I haul out the flute on occasion. (ALWAYS on the 4th of July to play the piccolo part of Starts and Stripes...makes my family crazy.) Our piano is there for the playing. The guys play their guitars regularly. I cannot imagine what it must be like to not know music.
And the night shall be filled with music,
And the cares that infest the day
Shall fold their tents like the Arabs
And as silently steal away.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Day Is Done
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