Recently in Music du Jour Category

For your listening pleasure tonight, Dame Kiri te Kanawa sing “Four Last Songs” by Richard Strauss.

Strauss suffered the ignomy of being Hitler’s favorite living composer, and his references to Wagner are unmistakable. To Strauss’s credit, he used his position to protect Jews, including his daughter-in-law Alice and his friend, Stegan Zweig. There is evidence that he provided protection for other Jews as well, but he understandably left no contemporaneous notes.

For your entertainment pleasure this evening, I present Sonate pour violon et basse continue / Les nouveaux caractères, by Rébel.

Tonight’s performance is brought to you by the Kopper King hibiscus, which holds a special place in our front garden.