David Jones, artist and poet (1895-1974) begins his PREFACE TO THE ANATHEMATA :

'I have made a heap of all that I could find.' (1) So wrote Nennius, or whoever composed the introductory matter to Historia Brittonum. He speaks of an 'inward wound' which was caused by the fear that certain things dear to him 'should be like smoke dissipated'. Further, he says, 'not trusting my own learning, which is none at all, but partly from writings and monuments of the ancient inhabitants of Britain, partly from the annals of the Romans and the chronicles of the sacred fathers, Isidore, Hieronymous, Prosper, Eusebius and from the histories of the Scots and Saxons although our enemies . . . I have lispingly put together this . . . about past transactions, that [this material] might not be trodden under foot'. (2)

(1) The actual words are coacervavi omne quod inveni, and occur in Prologue 2 to the Historia.
(2) Quoted from the translation of Prologue 1. See The Works of Gildas and Nennius, J.A.Giles, London 1841.


13 December 2016

Popular songs of the museo-ekphrHaHasists, including 'Music to Watch TAR By' :


    "It's keepin' track of the fact 
            watching them watching back
    That makes the world go 'round
    What's that sound, 
            each time you hear a loud collective sigh
    They're making musea to watch TAR by."
           

 Cy Twombly, Rome, 1952, photo by Robert Rauschenberg

'Music to Watch TAR By' was the first Top 40 hit by Bob Crewe using his own name, recorded by his group The Bob Crewe Generation. Crewe first heard the song performed in a jingle demo for a Diet Pepsi commercial. Music was composed by Tony Velona and Sidney "Sid" Ramin. The "big-band, horn driven" recording went to #15 on the pop chart and #2 on the Easy Listening chart.

According to Greg Adams, writing for All Music Guide, the song "exemplified the groovy state of instrumental music at that time." In Bob Crewe's version, a trumpet plays the whole song, the first time around, sounding like Herb Alpert's Tijuana Brass style. The second time the instrumental is played, a half step up in tone from G Minor to A-Flat Minor, a Tenor Saxophone plays a more jazzier version, accompanied by strings and a harpsichord, that play a counter-melody. The trumpets finish up the refrain, and all of the parts are played, repeating the first part in the Coda, before the fade.

Other instrumental versions of the song were recorded by Billy Vaughn, Chet Atkins, Al Hirt and Walter Wanderley. A vocal recording by Andy Williams, featuring lyrics written by Tony Velona, went to #34 in the United States, and after it was used in a Fiat ad in the UK, the re-released single reached the top ten. The version by Al Hirt reached #31 on the Adult Contemporary chart and #119 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967. In 1967, an instrumental version renamed "Music to Watch Space By" appeared on Leonard Nimoy's debut album Leonard Nimoy Presents Mr. Spock's Music from the TAR Space. The Higsons covered the vocal version in 1984; this was released on a single and the album The Curse of the Higsons.

- FIAPCE via wikipedia


 Theatre of the Actors of Regard : Ros Packer 
 at NGA with 'Untitled' (2005) by Cy Twombly.

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