vilaine fille

Varia

• Two men of letters revered by vilaine fille have been exhumed. From the BBC report: “Poliziano—who was believed to have been one of Pico della Mirandola’s lovers…” You Brits are so funny with your understatement! (Nobody ass-f*cks like a Florentine, mes poules. NOBODY.)
• Speaking of whom: Some of us do too get agitated on their account!
• Look: A candid, true-to-life photo of me on the Internets! (I scream those very words every morning.)
• Noah Harris plays Pianos this week. See you there?
• I think this review is all too kind—the film’s a stinker, but still worth seeing for my beloved Fabrice Luchini.
• Last we heard, Giuseppe Filianoti was feeling much better and revving up for a season chock-full of role débuts: Hoffmann, Boito’s Faust, Tom Rakewell…
• Incidentally, the Filianoti-less, Don Juan Diego-ful Otello from Pesaro will be broadcast on RAI 3 on 8 August. (Amici, pensate a una povera esule…)
• Thank you, G-d, for sending me this. (Yes, it is the summer of Father Leonard covers chez vilaine fille.)

Tu B’Av

Tu B’Av is the highest, most joyous day, least celebrated, most hidden and mysterious holiday of the year…

In ancient times, Tu B’Av was known as the day to meet the soul mate, for it was on this day that the women would dance before the men and with their eyes say “Look at me,” and in one look, marriages would be made. It was Tu B’Av, the full moon of this month of Av, that was the only day that could hold this kind of powerful expression of the feminine.

On Tu B’Av, the Shechina reveals Herself to those who love Her, to those who cry for Her, to those who truly long for Her. To be open to receive on Tu B’Av is a great spiritual gift and privilege. On Tu B’Av, the Shechina dances before us, and we are more than comforted. She gives us a taste of ecstasy.
—Melinda Ribner

Pensée du dimanche 29 juillet

Eppur parenti siamo un po’
di quella gente che c’è là
che come noi, è forse un po’ selvatica,
ma la paura che ci fa quel mare scuro
che si muove anche di notte e non sta fermo mai…
—Pallavicini/Conte, “Genova per noi”

Un saluto a tutti gli ammiratori del Maestro ed ai genovesi (in particolare, quelli muniti di bacchetta).

Senza titolo XXX

175. Hallelujah
176. Hallelujah
177. Hallelujah (merci)
178. Hallelujah
179. Hallelujah
180. Hallelujah

Oceana

From this week’s edition of Time Out New York, here is my review of Oceana (DG), a new collection of wondrous music by Osvaldo Golijov.

Golijov is composer-in-residence at the 2007 Mostly Mozart Festival. Kronos Quartet released earlier this year a beautiful recording of Górecki’s String Quartet No. 3. Dawn Upshaw reportedly has licked breast cancer and is singing better than ever.

Recent news has not been great for Robert Spano—but, otherwise, “all was well.” (That’s no longer an innocent statement, alas! Then again, I’m inclined to believe there is no such thing as innocence, in statements or otherwise.)

Le même meme

La sor romana mi ha invitato a rispondere a questo même. Siccome non vorrei negarle nulla…

Mise à jour : Eccovi il collegamento a quelli che avrebbero lanciato le même. (Bacione, ragazzi!)

4 dei miei cibi preferiti:

1. trifolé!
2. insalata (soprattutto con la rucola)
3. parmigiano reggiano
4. pêches blanches, nespole e altri frutti che non esistono negli USA

4 cibi che non mangerei mai e poi mai:

1. sashimi, carpaccio e altra roba cruda
2. lumache, ostriche e schifìe simili (insieme a tutte le altre bestioline che non siano kasher)
3. haggis, black pudding e orrori simili (non kasher, del resto, ma anche se lo fossero…)
4. poutine

4 cose che faccio quando navigo su Internet:

1. scrivo/leggo posta elettronica
2. ascolto musica (soprattutto al “lavoro”) e…
3. …guardo clips (talvolta contemporaneamente)
4. leggo i blogs degli amici

4 impieghi che ho svolto nella mia vita:

1. impiegata allo sportello di un teatro
2. insegnante d’italiano
3. redattrice di testi didattici
4. “giornalista” (la gente occupata ride)

4 film che potrei rivedere almeno altre 4 volte:

1. Il gattopardo
2. Le notti di Cabiria
3. Vertigo
4. North by Northwest

4 trasmissioni o serials TV che ho guardato:

1. Seinfeld
2. Star Trek (quello vero, con Kirk e Spock)
3. Sex and the City
4. X-Files

4 posti in cui vorrei essere in questo momento:

1. qui (ma davvero davvero davvero! Per il mare cristallino, però, non per tutto il casino.)
2. qui
3. qui
4. qui

4 persone che mi farebbero piacere rispondendo a questo meme:
Mi limito a blogghieri in grado di leggere l’italiano!

1. Bob (ecco la sua risposta)
2. Mauro (ecco la sua risposta)
3. Rini (ce la fai, diletta?)
4. [...]

Senza titolo XXIX

169. a reason to keep going (but skip the visuals, yuck)
170. and another
171. the cold, lashing rain
172. drugs that get me through the morning (plus, they hold umbrellas in a pinch)
173. Carte da decifrare (indeed)
174. Dansez-vous ?

Pensée du dimanche 22 juillet

La paura di innamorarsi
non è forse già un po’ d’amore?
—Cesare Pavese

Senza titolo XXVIII

163. blessèd rewards of being bored out of my gourd at “work” (tiens, c’est pour/grâce à toi)
164. along the same lines, the rewards of artistic crushes (I’m not explaining this one)
165. that, in extremis, I finally may be wild about Harry
166. G-d’s sweet mercy, in its many varieties (including n. 163)
167. delicious memories
168. gifts of many layers

Pensée du dimanche 15 juillet

Protest, evasion, merry distrust, and a delight in mockery are symptoms of health: everything unconditional belongs in pathology.
—Sister Fred