This is first performance of a new concerto for double bass and orchestra, The Heart Has No Borders, commissioned by the incomparable Gary Karr. The composer, Andres Martin, conducts the Baja Chamber Orchestra.
The 47 bassists who make up the wall at the end came from all over Mexico.
We hear that Stephen Rose, former head of…
The steady departure of cherished professors at the…
The prolific international conductor Michael Tilson Thomas, diagnosed…
There have been some irreparable losses. Germany mourned…
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A heart with “no borders” is not a heart. It’s a bleeding mess. And the body dies with no heart just like it does when invaded by pathogens. You people are on a suicide train and you don’t even know it.
If you’re comparing immigrants to “invading pathogens,” you’re very clearly the bleeding mess you decry. Good lord, man.
And a heart is a shite metaphor for a country, too.
It’s the resident Trump lover: Doug!
Sooo… The town you live in has border control then? It wouldn’t be a town without them now, would it?
Furthermore, in your unearthly analogy, what’s the body? The state you live in? The US? The earth? Our solar system?
The only pathogens, dog, are “people” like you.
You represent all that is wrong with the usa nowadays and why it is universally despised.
What on earth are you talking about?
My Goodness, Dougie…. Not only are you
greatly lacking in compassion, but also, it appears, in imagination….
THERE IS NO WALL AROUND THE HEAR, DAVE!!!!
Oh, wait, there is? Never mind, then.
Make that “heart.”
I don’t usually comment here, but no-one else has. Doug, you appear to harbor racist sentiments.Trump’s wall is not about border security, it’s about hatred.
Hatred mongering as a vote getting strategy.
Here is a good link for those who want to know facts (and not Trumpian mythology) about immigration trends:
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/12/03/what-we-know-about-illegal-immigration-from-mexico/
barf
Oh, THANK YOU Doug for setting us straight.
Yes, Doug – it’s called the Trump Train.
And about two-thirds of the US adult population know it.
To those who have given me a “thumbs down” on my post, I apologize for being unclear.
I meant to emphasize that two-thirds of the US adult population are recognizing Trump as being a liar, a fraud, and, very likely, a traitor.
Check the latest polls if you don’t believe me….
It is the “Trump Train” that is the suicide train.
Sorry for the confusion….
You are probably overestimating Trump’s disapproval.
Trump’s disapproval rating is now around 52%. By his standards it is a low point.
Throughout most his presidency (except for the first few weeks) it has been ranging between that and high 50s.
Polls currently show that about 62% of US citizens believe he is lying about Russian collusion.
While polls overwhelmingly show that ,over time, Trump is the most unpopular post WWII president, by far, I know of no evidence to point to two thirds of the US adult population seeing him as a fraud. Do you?
While there is no shortage of such opinions at Slipped Disc, I was shocked to see that my posting with a link to statistics (not opinions!) on immigration trends only got thumbs down.
Oh, and before we forget why we (hopefully) visit this blog, The Heart Has No Borders is a moving piece I enjoyed quite a bit. Many thanks to Mr. Lebrecht.
I suggest that all the bleeding-heart no-wall types stop locking the doors of their houses and/or remove all fences found on their property. Lead by example !
LOL, no. The people I lock my doors against are white US citizens. (Not all of them. Some of them, I assume, are good people.)
What is the virtue of being a citizen and paying taxes if there is no borders and sovereingnity?
I grew up on a farm near the Mexican border. A wonderful artistic statement.
Some academic should investigate a striking phenomenon that’s appeared since the advent of Trump/Brexit: the powerful correlation between far-right views and the inability to spell or cope with even the basics of English grammar.
Nothing has been written so far about the music – surely the key reason for inclusion in this blog. I enjoyed it. Gary Karr shows he is still a formidable player. I have no problem with its making a political statement. Isn’t that precisely what Sibelius did with Finlandia?
I really enjoyed the piece.
As much as Karr was one of the forerunners of modern bass playing 60 years ago, he’s been surpassed by today’s Juilliard-Curtis-NE, students’ intonation, fingering positions and bowing.Current Philadelphia, NY Phil, Boston principals, as well.
That’s OK. So has Heifetz. That’s how the state of the art progresses: a galvanizing figure sets a high bar, and following generations strive to meet it (and then raise it).
Mike….
– so where are the other world-renowned bass soloists who appear with the great orchestras around the world?
I’m certainly not looking for a fight with you re: “he’s been surpassed by today’s Juilliard-Curtis-NE, students’ intonation, fingering positions and bowing.” That may very well be true.
But, like I said…. where are the next Gary Karrs?
FYI, our children are now dying , yes, DYING because “the heart has no borders” and no brain either: https://amgreatness.com/2018/12/15/will-cdc-trace-polio-like-outbreak-or-just-shout-racism/
I once had a lovely personal experience with Gary Karr.
An eon ago, I played percussion with the Peninsula Symphony in the SF Bay Area, back when it was conducted by Aaron Sten.
Gary Karr was the soloist in this series. He played a concerto – I believe it was a reworking of some Paganini, but I can’t be sure; my memory ain’t what it used to be, and it warn’t never much to begin with.
Anyway, this piece had no percussion parts, so I was hanging out in the wings listening to Gary’s lovely playing.
Gary, as many of you know, played the “small” Stradivari bass that Koussevitzky played, and which was given to him by Koussevitzky’s widow.
The piece ended, wild applause occurred, Gary took his first set of bows, and walked offstage.
Carrying his bass, he came up to me, the first person he saw, and said “can you please hold this while I go back for more bows?”
So I had in my hands for a few moments a priceless Stradivarius once played by Koussevitzky! I was gobsmacked!
Later, at the post-concert reception, Gary came up to me and said – “Hey, thanks for holding on to my bass!” like it was nothing out of the ordinary.
A real gentleman….
A lovely story, thank you. It’s relatively immaterial but I think the bass given to him by Mme. Koussevitzky was thought to be an Amati and not a Strad. However, I believe a study of the wood made some years ago found that it could not have been made in early 17th century Italy. Instead it appears to have been made in late 18th century France.
Having been given such a priceless instrument, Mr. Karr himself donated it to the International Society of Bassists a few years ago. A splendid gesture by a superb artist.
Thank you, Nick2, for the clarification. I’m always interested to know about instruments, their makers, and their provenance.
Doesn’t change my wonderful memory of that moment, though.
My description of Gary as a real gentleman, and yours of him as a superb artist, well – that about covers it!
– cheers, Spenser
What a wonderful discovery to see Gary Karr play this moving piece .
We met so many lifetimes ago at the house of my wonderful teacher and friend Katharina Wolpe .Happy memories and so happy to hear you again
As some have mentioned above, this is a lovely piece worth listening to on its musical merits regardless of one’s own political views. There are plenty of fora online to argue about the politics of immigration. I’ll leave that to others while I crank the volume on this work and listen to it again.