[powerpress] Sylvester teaches Aikido to 80 year old ladies. And Qigong. And breath work. And energy work, of course. Whole food nutrition. Color and aroma therapy. African-American pragmatism. If it’s a healing art — he can convey it. And the ladies at the North Oakland Senior Center love him. And so do I. He’s my…
Category: essays
Mira and Erin writing on themes of death, dying, grief, ritual, music, listening, Kaddish, Lev Kogan’s “Kaddish,” and so on.
what is it about cemeteries?
Sometimes just going out to lunch or dinner with an ex isn’t just the pleasant experience you think it’s gonna be. We went to one of the places we usually go to. We ordered items congruent with who we each are at the moment. And instantly, the conversation turned to disease, dying, and death —…
gregorian chant, jesus fulfilling prophecy, and easy listening
Last Sunday’s “Kaddish” recording (kaddish_2010.12.19_veniEmmanuel) explores and tests how the nusach of “Kaddish” blends into Gregorian chant; see “a musicological view of kogan’s ‘kaddish’” and commentary passim for discussion. Historical analysis As I mentioned in the analysis, in Gregorian chant we see Catholic monks blending the Judeo- into the -Christian of the Judeo-Christian tradition. All…
a kaddish for the israeli flag, may it rest in peace
People say that there are a lot of reasons to open up a bible. Here’s one of them you might not have ever been asked to think about. And a reason why using the bible — especially לך לך — as a basis for validating nation-building is not a terribly good idea. We can lay…
a musicological view of kogan’s “kaddish”
A musicological analysis of Kogan’s “Kaddish”; looking at the composition from a music historical and theoretical point of view.
a kaddish for the printed word
If I grade one more paper tonight, I think I will scream! Problem is — I have another 4.5 years worth of papers to grade, and I won’t scream. I never have screamed. I’ll kvetch. I’ll pull my hair. I’ll eat chocolate. I’ll complain a lot. And I’ll look for something positive to say about…
recent “kaddish” recordings
Recent recordings have included Kaddishim for Elizabeth Edwards, Mark de Lemos, human rights, lost innocence, Terry Dobson, Bob LaBrie and microtonal, jazz, and lullaby interpretations.
a kaddish for elizabeth edwards
I’m not sure what to think, exactly, about Elizabeth Edwards, but I’m pretty sure that the real tragedy is that we still know more about him than her.
a kaddish for terry dobson
There’s no reason for me to remember. There’s no reason to forget. I knew the man for 15 minutes. The last 15 minutes, it turned out. Riki, his partner, told me at SF General Hospital that night, that in those 15 minutes, I had gotten the best of Terry Dobson. Maybe it’s the focus on…
an experimental kaddish, and a kaddish for healing
Yesterday Mira and I conducted an impromptu experiment, with interesting results. Today I played a kaddish for healing, at Mira’s request. We welcome kaddish requests from our readers.