Monthly Archives: August 2016
Boris Christoff
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 31st August 2016Boris Christoff (1914-93) was one of the greatest dramatic basses since the start of the recording age. His unique sound and searing intensity brooks only one comparison – to Feodor Chaliapin. Christoff sang at all of the world’s great opera houses, save one. The Bulgarian bass was engaged by Rudolf Bing to sing King Philip II in…
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Finale 9 – Mahler Symphony #8
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 28th August 2016Mahler’s 8th symphony was composed in a blaze of inspiration during his Summer vacation in 1906 at Maiernigg in southern Austria. Mahler made his living conducting. Composition was only possible in the summer. The hut in which Mahler wrote the symphony is above the title. This huge and complex work took less than 8 weeks…
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Olympic Journalism – Sentence of the Games
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 20th August 2016Over the past 100 years or so the sports desk has replaced the classical music beat as the depository for journalism’s weakest writers. The following sentence shows why. It’s from an article by Johnette Howard writing for ESPN. It occurs towards the end of the article about the Ryan Lochte debacle. The context doesn’t mean…
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American Airlines Will Soon Charge You Not to Fly
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 16th August 2016A couple of decades ago I wrote a piece in which I predicted my premature demise secondary to trying to make a 5 minute connection from Gate 1 to Gate 40 (they’ve since changed their numbering system) on American Airlines in DFW. Well, like most of my prognostications, it didn’t happen. Undeterred, I’ll venture another…
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