Sunday, December 29, 2013

Goodbye Blue Sky - Sinéad O'Connor - Bye 2013

Two classics to say goodbye to our beloved year 2013.

Saturday, December 14, 2013

John N. Gray


(...)
"Barbarism," Gray believes, "is a disease of civilisation." All our institutions – "families and churches, police forces" – are incriminated by "human nastiness". It's absurd to place faith in the evolution of our species or in the progressive amelioration of society: in the Belgian Congo or Stalinist Russia or in contemporary Iraq, Iran and Syria, ideologues who rave about the regeneration of the world rely on mass slaughter to establish their personal version of heaven on Earth. In Gray's reading of history, men are the playthings of a blind and amoral fate, which decrees that the same mistakes will be made over and over again. The fictions and myths we elaborate in order to feel at home in this inimical or indifferent universe are at best "a scattering of dust", easily dispersed by the chilly blasts of Gray's invective. (...)

http://www.theguardian.com/profile/johngray

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_N._Gray
http://cultura.elpais.com/cultura/2013/12/11/actualidad/1386778011_263294.html

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Alice Munro http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtwUyDPXROQ

Calling her a “master of the contemporary short story,” the Swedish Academy awarded 82-year-old Alice Munro the Nobel Prize in Literature last October,10. It is well-deserved, and hard-earned (and comes not long after she announced her retirement from fiction). After 14 story collections, Munro has reached at least a couple generations of writers with her psychologically subtle stories about ordinary men and women in Huron County, Ontario, her birthplace and home. (...)

http://www.openculture.com/2013/10/read-14-short-stories-from-nobel-prize-winning-writer-alice-munro-free-online.HTML

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/bios/alice_munro/search?contributorName=alice%20munro

Saturday, December 07, 2013

Doris Lessing

We miss her already. One of my favourite writers she was and a must-read for all of you. Satisfaction is guaranteed.

Wonderful Doris Lessing has died (Nov. 17). You never expect such rock-solid features of the literary landscape to simply vanish. It's a shock. (...)
If there were a Mount Rushmore of 20th-century authors, Doris Lessing would most certainly be carved upon it. Like Adrienne Rich, she was pivotal, situated at the moment when the gates of the gender disparity castle were giving way, and women were faced with increased freedoms and choices, as well as increased challenges. (...)

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/nov/17/doris-lessing-death-margaret-atwood-tribute

http://www.dorislessing.org/
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/11/on-doris-lessing-and-not-saying-thank-you.HTML
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/nov/18/doris-lessing-five-best-novels

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/nov/17/doris-lessing



Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Lou Reed - In Memoriam

Goodnight ladies, it was time to say goodbye. I had the sword of Damocles right upon my head and it fell down (Lou Reed could've said). We loved your songs, Lou, and we still do.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Anthony Caro

(...)
Serota ranked him among the great names in the world of sculpture. "Anthony Caro was one of the outstanding sculptors of the past 50 years, alongside David Smith, Eduardo Chillida, Donald Judd and Richard Serra. In the 60s, he established a new language for sculpture in a series of elegant, arresting, abstract steel sculptures placed directly on the ground. His development of this vocabulary, building on the legacy of Picasso, but introducing brilliant colour and a refined use of shape and line, was enormously influential in Europe and America. (...)

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/oct/24/sir-anthony-caro-dies

http://elpais.com/tag/anthony_caro/a/



Thursday, October 10, 2013

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

THE KNIFE

Interesting sound, really interesting.
http://theknife.net/

Friday, July 26, 2013

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Bernardo BERTOLUCCI

(...) Me and You is by some way better than that – admittedly not difficult – but it still comes across as a stylish exercise in willed claustrophobia (or claustrophilia, as the director puts it) without a great deal to say. The story – in which a teenage boy and his older half-sister spend a week together in a cramped basement – is adapted from a novel by Niccolò Ammaniti, who also co-scripted along with Bertolucci and two others. One of Ammaniti’s earlier novels provided the basis for Gabriele Salvatores’s I’m Not Scared (2003), about claustrophobia of a different sort: a small boy finds another boy being held captive in a hole in the ground and comes to realise that his father is involved in the child’s kidnapping. Salvatores’s film is let down in its final few minutes by a lurch into sentimental religious symbolism, but luckily the religiosity that blighted Little Buddha (1993) plays no part in Me and You – although Bertolucci has admitted to making the ending of his film happier than it is in the novel. (...)
http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/reviews-recommendations/film-week-me-you

Monday, July 08, 2013

Hearty Bruce

Now we've had him and the E-Street Band out here in Spain, let us not forget he is a real American rocker. That's why he's able to write songs like these.

'Tougher Than The Rest':  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_91hNV6vuBY&feature=share&list=RD02zSEYQ4Rpgks

Monday, June 24, 2013

Summer Solstice and John The Baptist

(...) The June solstice marks the first day of the summer season in the northern hemisphere. The word solstice is from the Latin word “solstitium”, meaning “sun-stopping”, because the point at which the sun appears to rise and set stops and reverses direction after this day. On this day, the sun does not rise precisely in the east, but rises to the north of east and sets to the north of west allowing it to be in the sky for a longer period of time. In the southern hemisphere, the June solstice is known as the shortest day of the year. It is when the sun has reached its furthest point from the equator and marks the first day of winter. (...)
http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/june-solstice.html

Thursday, June 20, 2013

There's Nobody Left On Mars

Like all the planets in our solar system, Earth and Mars orbit the sun. But Earth is closer to the sun, and therefore races along its orbit more quickly. Earth makes two trips around the sun in about the same amount of time that Mars takes to make one trip. So sometimes the two planets are on opposite sides of the sun, very far apart, and other times, Earth catches up with its neighbor and passes relatively close to it. (...)
http://mars.nasa.gov/allaboutmars/nightsky/nightsky03/

http://mars.nasa.gov/multimedia/interactives/billionpixel/?image=PIA16918&view=pano
http://mars.nasa.gov/allaboutmars/nightsky/

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

LAC (Michael Davies)

https://soundcloud.com/lacmusic

These are songs for disaffected teenagers, shouted out with mallet-flying subtlety by a bunch of blokes who appear to have stepped out of a remake of Scum, that movie where a young Ray Winstone plays an apprentice hardnut and gets to sample the accommodation at Her Majesty's pleasure.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2013/jun/10/lac

Saturday, June 08, 2013

SMITH Challenges CHRISTMAS (= Ferrer Vs Nadal)

In case you don't know, in Catalan,  'Ferrer' means 'Smith' and 'Nadal' means 'Christmas'. Let's jingle bells then for both players.

Nadal - Djokovic
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2013/jun/07/rafael-nadal-novak-djokovic-french-open






Friday, June 07, 2013

TOM SHARPE DIED YESTERDAY.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6nmYL5vhAE&feature=share&list=PL0877EBCA616D9547
The featured series I have posted, Blott on the Landscape was adapted by BBC TV in 1985 and broadcast in six episodes of 50 minutes each. It was scripted by Malcolm Bradbury. They are worth seeing. Take your time.

Sharpe, who was born in London in 1928, died in the coastal town of Llafranc in north-eastern Spain on Thursday.

Scabrous, savage, scatological, writer of high force and low farce, creator and inflator of wayward condoms and threatening sex dolls: Tom Sharpe was the master of situations that couldn't possibly get any more embarrassing, sensitive or tricky, but did. Sharpe was never one for holding back, as his first novel, Riotous Assembly, featuring, among much else, apartheid, an elephant gun, murder, incompetent policemen and interracial lesbianism, triumphantly demonstrated. (...)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/jun/06/tom-sharpe-savage-sense-fun

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-22795507
http://cultura.elpais.com/cultura/2013/06/06/actualidad/1370504260_091037.html

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Long Live Georges Moustaki After Life

Some artists are like our dogs: They always die too young.
We will miss you, but we hope you keep singing from the stars above.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9zTRvZtbOc&list=RD02BJTSNI2-9Tc

Saturday, May 18, 2013

MUSEUM DAY (SHOULD BE EVERY DAY)

Every year since 1977, International Museum Day is held worldwide sometime around May 18. This year, more than 30,000 museums are getting ready to celebrate the event in around 100 countries on the five continents!
http://icom.museum/press-releases/press-release/article/international-museum-day-2013-museums-all-over-the-world-have-the-place-of-honour/

Monday, April 29, 2013

The Best Restaurants in the World

Organised by Restaurant magazine, The World's 50 Best Restaurants list is an annual snapshot of the opinions and experiences of over 900 international restaurant industry experts. What constitutes "best" is left to the judgement of these trusted and well-travelled gourmets. (...)

Given that this well-constructed list is based on personal experiences it can never be definitive, but we believe it is an honourable survey of current tastes and a credible indicator of the best places to eat around the globe. (...)

Number 1: El Celler de Can Roca: "Striking food from Spain's band of gastronomic brothers"
The passion for cooking and hospitality shared by the three Roca brothers is palpable, but the food is playful rather than serious — caramelised olives are brought to the table on bonsai trees — and Catalan ingredients are given centre-stage billing on the menu. Clever techniques complement simple flavour combinations designed to titillate the palate and the memory rather than confuse the mind. It's clever stuff — but thankfully it is also utterly delicious.
http://www.theworlds50best.com/

http://cultura.elpais.com/cultura/2013/04/29/actualidad/1367251909_458440.html


Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Books Books Books

23 April is a symbolic date for world literature, since 23 April 1616 was the date of death of Cervantes, Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega. 23 April is also the date of birth or death of other prominent authors such as Maurice Druon, K.Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla and Manuel Mejía Vallejo.

This is why UNESCO chose this date to pay a worldwide tribute to books and their authors on this date, encouraging everyone, and in particular young people, to discover the pleasure of reading and to gain a renewed respect for the extraordinary contributions of those who have furthered the social and cultural progress of humanity.
The idea for this celebration originated in Catalonia (Spain) where it has become a tradition to give a rose as a gift for each book purchased.

Translation is the first step towards the rapprochement of peoples, and is also a decentralizing experience, teaching diversity and dialogue. Translation is one of the driving principles of our creative diversity, which enriches each language through contact with all the others. 
Irina Bokova, Director General
Message for World Book and Copyright Day 2012
 
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/events/prizes-and-celebrations/celebrations/international-days/world-book-and-copyright-day-2012/
http://www.diadellibro.eu/
http://www.bookcrossing.com/articles/1725

Friday, April 19, 2013

Monuments

In 2013, the theme is Heritage of Education (schools, universities, libraries, academies, etc.) in its expressions in different geo-cultural contexts. 
 
Throughout history and in different geo-cultural contexts, education was practised in a wide range of places or buildings.
 
Open spaces, agora or the protective shadow of a tree could be useful for the transmission of knowledge, but also specific institutional buildings such as schools, universities, madrasas, academies, libraries, monasteries, etc.
Many of those buildings, groups of buildings or sites are recognised as bearing not only social or institutional values but also historic or artistic ones, and have therefore become a significant part of our cultural heritage.
 
The protection and conservation of the heritage of education not only implies preserving cultural assets but also, at the same time, celebrating education as one of the fundamental human tasks. 
 
 
 

Saturday, April 13, 2013

We Are Young - Are We Free?

“Enjoy your youth. You'll never be younger tan you are at this very moment.”
Chad Sugg
“So wise so young, they say, do never live long.”
William Shakespeare, Richard III
“Youth is a dream, a form of chemical madness.”
F. Scott FitzGerald
“I was not a hypocrite, with one real face and several false ones. I had several faces because I was young and didn't know who I was or wanted to be.”
Milan Kundera, The Joke
“Adolescence is like having only enough light to see the step directly in front of you.”
Sarah Addison Allen, The Girl Who Chased the Moon
“The problem with growing up," Quentin said, "is that once you're grown up, people who aren't grown up aren't fun anymore.”
Lev Grossman, The Magicians
“What we want to see is the child in pursuit of the knowledge not the knowledge in pursuit of the child.”
George Bernard Shaw
 “The great blessing and great cruelty of youth is that there seems to be time enough.”
Catherynne M. Valente
“Think, speak, and act. With age comes self-reproach: I might have done more. Therefore now do!”
Théophile Thoré
“I had no idea how free we were. That's how free I was.”
Brendan Cowell, How It Feels

Ballet's Sergei Poluninhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-17362051

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Earth Hour

There is no doubt about it: the world is facing some of the most critical environmental challenges in its history. That may make the journey to a sustainable future seem difficult to imagine, but it is far from impossible. Change this big needs you. It needs every one of us. Together our individual actions add up to make a difference collectively.
In fact, change is already underway.
 

Friday, March 22, 2013

Water

http://www.unwater.org/water-cooperation-2013/get-involved/other-resources/videos/video-SG-WWD2013/en/

http://sociedad.elpais.com/sociedad/2013/03/22/album/1363937833_149671.html#1363937833_149671_1363938388

World Water Day is held annually on 22 March as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.
An international day to celebrate freshwater was recommended at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The United Nations General Assembly responded by designating 22 March 1993 as the first World Water Day.
Each year, World Water Day highlights a specific aspect of freshwater. In 2013, in reflection of the International Year of Water Cooperation, World Water Day is also dedicated to the theme of cooperation around water and is coordinated by UNESCO in collaboration with UNECE and UNDESA on behalf of UN-Water.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

World Poetry Day

Poetry contributes to creative diversity, by questioning anew our use of words and things, our modes of perception and understanding of the world. Through its associations, its metaphors and its own grammar, poetic language is thus conceivably another facet of the dialogue among cultures. Diversity in dialogue, free flow of ideas by word, creativity and innovation. World Poetry Day is an invitation to reflect on the power of language and the full development of each person’s creative abilities.

http://www.un.org/en/events/poetryday/

CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK FOR EDGAR ALLAN POE'S 'THE RAVEN': http://www.oldielyrics.com/lyrics/lou_reed/the_raven.html

Bright Star
By John Keats 1795–1821 John Keats

Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art—

Not in lone splendour hung aloft the night

And watching, with eternal lids apart,

Like nature's patient, sleepless Eremite,

The moving waters at their priestlike task

Of pure ablution round earth's human shores,

Or gazing on the new soft-fallen mask

Of snow upon the mountains and the moors—

No—yet still stedfast, still unchangeable,

Pillow'd upon my fair love's ripening breast,

To feel for ever its soft fall and swell,

Awake for ever in a sweet unrest,

Still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,

And so live ever—or else swoon to death.

http://www.nationalpoetryday.co.uk/poems/
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/children/

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

David Bowies's Back (2)

David Bowie's video for The Stars (Are Out Tonight), the second single from his album The Next Day, stars the singer and actor Tilda Swinton pretending they're a normal suburban couple.

Directed by Floria Sigismondi and shot by Jeff Cronenweth, the video is certainly a striking piece of work – dealing with androgyny and musing on the meaning of fame, and illuminating the meaning of the lyrics. (In his review of the album, Alexis Petridis has already tried to work out just what exactly Bowie's banging on about throughout the new album.)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/musicblog/2013/feb/26/david-bowie-stars-out-tonight-video?INTCMP=SRCH

http://cultura.elpais.com/cultura/2013/02/26/tentaciones/1361875500_980717.html

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

World RADIO Day

And Video DID NOT KILL the Radio star.

Since its origins, radio has been shown to be the most useful medium of social communication for humanity. Radio waves go beyond borders and freely reach everybody and everywhere, being a very affordable receiver compared to other forms of media.

http://www.worldradioday.org/index.html
http://www.wrd13.com/

As radio continues to evolve in the digital age, it remains the medium that reaches the widest audience worldwide. This multi-purpose medium can help people, including youth, to engage in discussions on topics that affect them. It can save lives during natural or human-made disasters; and it provides journalists with a platform to report facts and tell their stories.

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/communication-and-information/events/prizes-and-celebrations/celebrations/world-radio-day/

Friday, February 08, 2013

Eliza and the Bear

https://soundcloud.com/#elizaandthebear/uponthenorth

...not of a band who will be reinventing the wheel, but of a band who will undoubtedly prove of value at gigs and festivals over the next few months. It's a low ambition from a band who put a high premium on good old-fashioned rousing indie entertainment.
... They go heavy on the exuberance, they hammer home the idea that happiness is a highly desirable altered state: they give good joy.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2013/feb/07/new-band-eliza-and-the-bear

Tuesday, January 08, 2013

DAVID BOWIE'S BACK

Bowie's just come back with a brand new single ("Where Are We Now?) that will be included in his first album in 10 years. Happy 66th Birthday, Duke.

The following link features 2 songs you might not know or remember, but I have chosen them because of the gorgeous sound. They were recorded at the Madison Square Garden in New York on David Bowie's 50th anniversary. The list of guests was awesome. I hope you enjoy them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVCf8p5D8Bo

Tuesday, January 01, 2013

Happy New Year

London welcomes the New Year with breathtaking fireworks.

Stunningly beautiful, impressive, amazing, exciting, astonishing, awe-inspiring, hair-rising, heart-stirring, heart-stopping, magnificent, moving, overwhelming, spine-tingling, stunning, thrilling.
You might need a good dictionary to describe them.

HAPPY NEW YEAR.