Music & Culture
Classical Music Posts

Reeder’s Movie Reviews: Downton Abbey: A New Era
If you’re a devoted fan of Downton Abbey, the global television phenomenon now back on the big screen, that line certainly rings true. Creator and writer Julian Fellowes, director Simon Curtis (the real-life husband of Elizabeth McGovern/Cora Grantham), a superb ensemble cast and composer John Lunn have crafted another period piece drama brimming with intelligence, emotion, wit and humanity. As with the first feature film incarnation, A New Era preaches eloquently to the choir. Even with a prologue offered by Mr. Molesley (Kevin Doyle) in which he recounts the plot of the 2019 movie, you can’t begin to appreciate the resonance of this storytelling without having your own history with these characters going back a dozen years now. Continue Reading Reeder’s Movie Reviews: Downton Abbey: A New Era

Reeder’s Movie Reviews: Men
Sometimes a filmmaker tells a story so dense, so deliberately ambiguous, so deeply rooted in symbolic imagery that you realize you’re either intrigued by and invested in the narrative or you’re utterly defeated by the process. The memory of Men, a hallucinatory study in toxic masculinity, will linger long after the closing credits. Continue Reading Reeder’s Movie Reviews: Men

Reeder’s Movie Reviews: The Northman
Robert Eggers has only made three feature-length films so far. Even as a modest body of work, they reveal a wealth of obsession and talent. Continue Reading Reeder’s Movie Reviews: The Northman

Music Moment: Angèle Dubeau & La Pietà
Twenty-five years ago, Angèle Dubeau had a thriving career as a concert violinist, having studied with the legendary Dorothy DeLay at the Juilliard School in New York. She had become a popular broadcaster at home in Québec, where she hosted a weekly French-language program on CBC. She already had her Arthur (as she calls her prized Stradivarius violin), but she envisioned an all-Canadian, all-female ensemble. Continue Reading Music Moment: Angèle Dubeau & La Pietà

A Musical Show Of Support For Ukraine Around The World
Read On Thursday March 10th, public radio stations around the world, including NWPB, will air Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 “Choral” in support of Ukraine’s public broadcasting system. The project is… Continue Reading A Musical Show Of Support For Ukraine Around The World

Music Moment: Claudio Brindis De Salas Garrido
Claudio José Brindis de Salas y Garrido. A renowned violinist, born in Cuba in 1852. A contemporary journalist described his playing, and the effect it had on his listeners. “His eyes sparkled. His fingers multiplied…reaching into the deep nerves of the melody…leading a rapt audience to drunken emotion.” Continue Reading Music Moment: Claudio Brindis De Salas Garrido