Our friends DJ and Daisy and Anna and Lili came over, and we spent the day moving furniture from room to room.
My office has moved in to the front room which had been serving as our “living room” (such a strange name for a room!) since our lower floor was flooded. Our bedroom has moved into my office, and what used to be our bedroom is being fitted out for someone new.
All this shuffling about was supposed to have taken place a couple weeks ago, but my damn sprain threw everything off schedule, and that’s kept us on edge.
So when I flopped down on our bed, exhausted, I felt a sense of supreme satisfaction. At last, we got it done. It’s like having a whole new house.
But what surprised me was how happy I felt. I listened to the Philip Glass composition “Mad Rush” and wept tears of joy. Don’t let anyone tell you minimalism is cold and heartless!
And I can’t remember the last time I felt this way.
Philip Glass is NOT a minimalist. His music has evolved far beyond that, but he’ll probably never escape that tag. To call his music minimalism is to confuse the s__t out of anyone listening to his works today.
‘Mad Rush’ is an absolutely beautiful piece of music. Please don’t label it–LISTEN to it!
Thanks, b.rox, for loving it
This entry captures perfectly the the spirit that keeps me reading this blog, and that enticed me years ago to watch J&B on the Rox.
For whatever it’s worth, I think the two of you will be fabulous parents!
Congratulations!
I like the disc Kronos Quartet plays Philip Glass.
Front Room is not a strange name. We’ve used that term for the actual living room at my grandma’s house since I can remember. (She has a converted garage that we call the big room).
I’m glad you’re finally settled! Cross your fingers for me, we’re just planning on finally getting things on the walls.
I agree with David: Kronos’ CD of Glass’ string quartets is one of the most hauntingly beautiful CDs produced in the past decade.
I disagree with Fran, however. Insofar as labels have any meaning, Glass isn’t just “a” minimalist, he is the quintessential minimalist (along with Steve Reich), if you take the Wikipedia definition as being close enough to gospel on the subject. Minimalism, the wiki-we have deemed, is music “based mostly in consonant harmony, steady pulse (if not immobile drones), stasis and slow transformation, and often reiteration of musical phrases or smaller units such as figures, motifs, and cells.” Clinical as it sounds, that’s Glass’s compositional technique in a nutshell.
There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, there’s a whole world of glory in it (I’m a longtime and devoted Glass fan). If -ism labels hold any validity (and that in itself is a good subject for debate), Glass is a minimalist, much moreso than, say, John Adams — who could more fairly take issue with being grouped in that camp.
In any event, I don’t wanna divert the conversation into arguments over musical style and substance. Good soundtrack choice for an epiphany of joy, Bart! I hope the positive vibe continues to reverberate.
Hi Joe,…well, I try once & then I forget it. I’m glad you’re a fan–that’s good enough no matter how you tag the composer. Just listen & enjoy his music. Phil doesn’t care–why should I.
Good luck, guys. New Orleans deserves better than it got.
It needs folks like you.
Be well,
Fran
Good for you.
There is something to be said for having your space set up the way you want it. You might not have even realized it for the time your house has been at odds, but things seem to be coming together for y’all in a timely manner, for the point in your lives and I was happy to read that you were happy.