a Nano world
My friend josh came to Jax and visited this past weekend. We had a lot of fun hanging out. We went to the Ballet, ate Indian food at the very good "Cilantro" restaurant, dined at our favorite Italian restaurant, Vito's, gabbed a lot, and in general enjoyed our time together. It was my birthday weekend and josh was a generous friend. She gave me several gifts which I enjoyed very much (a restaurant card, a book store card, dinner out for F and I, and a wonderful Obama t-shirt! Lovely. My parents were generous, giving me cash, as did Lori.
I got a Nano iPod and I love it. I have not really been so much into music lately. Partly because I haven't really had a means of listening to it. I listen to music when I am in my studio. I'm not usually in my car long enough to do more than catch a bit of NPR. I listen to NPR when I can at work. Since I've had the iPod I have listened to music everyday. I've learned to download free mp3 files on line, I opened an itunes acct and have actually bought music downloads! I don't feel like such an old fart now.
Coincidently, while at the Ballet, it was the Florida Ballet Company's 30th Anniversary Show, both josh and I (as well as F and probably many others there) were introduced to the music of Rufus Wainwright. Curtis Williams, a gifted dancer/choreographer, choreographed a piece for 4 dancers with 4 tunes written and performed by Rufus on his "Release the Stars" album. The first song, "Going to a Town" really grabbed me. It's hard to explain, but while watching the dance I was really listening to the song. The music wasn't secondary. I was hearing the lyrics. I was both enjoying it, paying attention to it, wondering who it was, hoping to hear more, all while watching this interesting dance.
The four of us, Lori, F, josh, and I, all talked about it on the way home. The following day, josh decided she needed to buy some Rufus albums. She got four of them, all of which wound up on my iPod in very short order. I can honestly say that I haven't been as struck by a singer/songwriter in a long time. I'm really enjoying listening to his music. Here's a sample of "Going to a Town" by Rufus Wainwright. Enjoy!
1 comment:
Hello Kess,
About a year ago I too discovered the music of Rufus Wainwright. It opened up a new world to me. I found him singing the music of Leonard Cohen on a movie about Cohen. Then I bought the albums. And last week I traveled to Melbourne Florida to hear him in person. He is a phenomenal songwriter. You are in for a treat as you explore his work.There is a lot more than just the albums.
At the moment he is writing an opera.
Had I know that his music would be danced in Jacksonville, I would have been at the ballet too. Rufus wrote and sings a choral work called "Bloom" for the Stephen Petronio Ballet Company NYC. It is incredibly beautiful.
If you are a movie buff, you can here him sing the Beatles' Across the Universe' in the movie "I Am Sam".
There are not many people here in Jacksonville who have ever heard of Rufus, although many have probably heard of his father, Loudon Wainwright III.
I hope you will become a fan, because the beauty of his music brings so much joy to life. It did mine.
JaxJoanie@gmail.com
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