A taste of Welsh contemporary music

Tired of rock and roll or classical music? Contemporary music might be a good choice in that it shakes your mindset with the extraordinary texture and performance techniques.

Hear and Now, the main contemporary music programme on BBC Radio 3, featured a refreshing studio session from three Welsh composers and the National Orchestra of Wales last Friday in Weston Studio in the Wales Millennium Centre.

Three pieces of new music written by Welsh composers were interpreted by an international team, including Grant Llewellyn, the associate guest conductor coming from the US and the orchestra coming from all over the world. Still, they showed an intelligently understanding of Welsh culture with their adept performance skills.

The first piece presented a sad myth about an ancient King of Wales and his beloved perfect but soulless wife. With his vigorous and effusive voice, the Welsh baritone Jeremy Williams interpreted the grieving King whose beloved wife ran away with another man. His expressive and emotional singing was highly poetic with beautiful cadences and it deeply moved the audience even if they couldn’t understand the Welsh lyrics.

Tenor Andrew Staples’s smooth singing illustrated vividly an image of a lovely peaceful night in the countryside of Wales in the second piece. More than five violinists sweetly played a series of short light ringing sounds with concordant pace and rhythm, depicting the chirp of insects and patter of rain drops.

The last piece presented a dramatically textured performance of new music. The unconventional and disorganized composition implied to all of us that it was nothing traditional: no euphonious musical notes to give you an enjoyable night; but it makes you think and try to understand.

The programme will be aired on BBC Radio 3 as part of its Hear and Now series with Michael Berkley’s introductions to the pieces and the works being performed again. BBC Radio 3 website: http://bbc.co.uk/radio3.

Lucky Taurus in Piggy`s Year

A friend of mine sent me the 2007 horoscopes the other day. I found it very amusing not only because of its stylish expression and all the fine words to me, precisely speaking, to all Taurus people, but its somehow veracious description of my character. That is why I was kind of believe in what it says, and therefore chuckled to myself at its conclusion–Lucky Taurus is going to experience a happy piggy`s year.

Taurus` 2007 overview: “Optimism will help you break out of any routines that you want to be free of this year. Focusing on your idealistic approach to life will afford you exciting new opportunities in education and travel. “

As a journalist-to-be with her critical eyes, potimism will help everybody break out of any routines, not only the Taurus people, so basically the first sentence is sort of cliche but should be bear in mind anytime. What interests me is the second one. It says Taurus people tend to be idealistic in their lives. According to Collins Cobuild dictionary, if you describe someone as idealistic, you mean that they have ideals, and based on their behaviour on these ideals, even though this may be impractical. So how can I be afforded “exciting new opportunities in education and travel” when I live my life based on “impractical ideals”? I am very confused. Anyone can give me an convincing explanation??

Taurus 2007 Career: “This is an ideal year for you to excel in a service occupation, most likely healthcare. You make a significant contribution toward creating a more loving world, based on humanitarian ideals.” It also said: “Your work must be spiritually satisfying to be interesting and motivating, and this is a promising time to make that a daily reality.”

I could not help laughing when I saw the fist two sentence. Am I really the sister Teresa type of person? I show sympathy to those homeless dying people in Kolkata, but I will not bring them home and take care of them myself, as many people will not do. This is why I am not sister Teresa, and why there is only one sister Teresa in this world and she deserves the admiration from all of us. 

Yet the third sentense is quite true to me. The reason I study journalism is not necessary because that I can change the world with my pen, but that I can be “spiritually satisfied” by knowing the world better. How does the globalisation affect the world economy and our daily lives? How do the politicians fool us around by playing dirty games? How can we be worldly wise and make ourselves safe in this world of unrest? All these questions are journalists` concern and by knowing which better, we may understand how the world runs better.

That is the reason I am excited about the courses in MAIJ, and can`t wait the coming of next semester. Although I may not be qualified enough to be a journalist after the courses, but I believe that I will definitely be smarter to understand the world better. “This is a promising time to make that a daily reality”, said the astrology. I should have a liitle faith that I will have an Lucky piggy`s year!

See your piggy`s year astrology prediction here.

My several “first time” in UK–an simple intro to my following posts

It is time to write something to memorize my several “first times” in UK: my first Christmas in UK, my fist New Year in UK and my first long-distance journey in
UK.

The way UK people spend their Christmas reminds me of the way we spend in Chinese New Year, and what is more interesting, reminds me of how different people in West and East express love.

Experience in London leaves me an impressive memory of this city–having a taste of red wine under the moon near Tower bridge, damn romantic despite the freezing cold wind.

I`ve got more to say about my Scotland journey. Acting like a real backpacker, hit by the fabulous old architectures in Edinburgh, immersed in the grand lanscape in Highland and met some interesting people in hostel, I got to fall in love with travelling.

Christmas`s coming

This is the last week of autumn semester. I still have one company article deadline to meet. (“meet the deadline” is really my way of expressing, I want to know if it is right, anyone can tell me?) Since I still have six day (well, should be less than six day), I am not in the mood of thinking about it yet. My stream of consciousness is floating everywhere, except Gary`s assignment.

Hanging around the online shops in UK, all are Christmas gifes promotions. And I suddenly realized the fact that Christmas is looming closer and closer. Even my parents who never pay attention to, let alone celebrate the festival said “Merry Christmas” to me. But I still can not feel a thing. Christmas is full of smell of commercial in China, and it is, to be critical, merely a festival for businessmen. Things are so different here. Christmas is really big. Everybody has a plan for it, except me. And I don`t feel good for that. Maybe I should find out who is available in Christmas and able to spend the holiday with me.

It has been raining nonstop these days and getting colder and colder. The sky is grey, the blowing wind is piercing cold, I feel like losing warm from the body to heart. Where is the clear sky and warm sunshine hiding, get out for me! And I realize that my temper is easily dominanted by the weather.

Maybe it is because of the tension of assingment last week. I pushed myself too hard. I hope after the company artical, I can have a good rest and experence the excitement of Christmas.