Monthly Archives: February 2011
Duke Snider – RIP
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 27th February 2011Duke Snider, one of my boyhood heroes died today; he was 84. I’ve already written about him and the rest of the Brooklyn Dodgers – here. One of the great players on a great team. He was a power hitter who fielded with grace. He played on a team that was from another world. Professional…
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Iphigénie en Tauride in HD
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 27th February 2011Gluck’s 231 year old opera was broadcast throughout the world today over the Metropolitan Opera’s radio and HD networks. This is the same production that the Met offered in 2007 with the same three principals. Before that season the opera had only 5 performances at the New York house – in 1916-17. Today’s was the…
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Hemodialysis – 2011
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 26th February 2011There are two short, but informative, articles about hemodialysis in the February 17 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine – here and here. The first by the journal’s national correspondent, John Iglehart, outlines the various maneuvers that Medicare is performing in an attempt to reduce costs. The second by Richard Retig from RAND…
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Sentence of the Day
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 24th February 2011“The last few decades have taught the rulers of the People’s Republic of China that their most effective poverty-reducing tool is the market, while Arab countries now fear a nuclear Iran far more than they ever did Israel.” The preceding is the first sentence of a book review of Literature and the Economics of Liberty…
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New Recommendations About Dietary Salt Intake
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 14th February 2011For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong. H.L. Mencken The American Society of Nephrology has just endorsed the Dietary Guidelines issued by the US Department of Agriculture. The ASN is particularly concerned with salt intake. The Society’s complete statement on this issue is appended at the end of…
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Press release for opera premiering at the Eisemann Center on November 5th, 2011
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 13th February 2011World Premier Of The Dawn, An Opera From The Band Frausun, Premiering At The Eisemann Center on November 5th, 2011. The Dawn can be previewed and purchased at: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-dawn/id398543648 Tickets can be purchased at: http://www.eisemanncenter.com/tickets/calendar/view.asp?id=1767 Dallas, TX: Invoking classic Wagnerian leitmotifs, with modern musical sounds, Kurtz Frausun The Dawn, an electronic German opera about 2…
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Nixon in China in HD
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 12th February 2011John Adams almost 25 year old opera, Nixon in China, finally made it to the Met. It was broadcast today on the Met’s radio and HD networks. The composer conducted and the same director of its premiere presided – Peter Sellars. I saw this opera some time ago. This version is a little raunchier than…
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The Lubbock Symphony Orchestra – A Look Inside
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 9th February 2011The Lubbock Symphony Orchestra is the city’s premiere arts organization. Under the leadership of its dynamic young conductor Tomasz Golka it performs at a level that would be expected from the orchestra of a city more than ten times the size of Lubbock’s 250,000. Below is a video briefly describing its role in the city’s cultural life….
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New Data on the Treatment of Breast Cancer
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 9th February 2011Axillary node dissection has been the standard of care for patients with breast cancer who have early metastatic disease as indicated by a positive axillary lymph node biopsy. In other words, an axillary lymph node is biopsied; if it contains cancer cells the axilla on the affected side is dissected and its lymph nodes are removed. A new…
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Top 10
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 3rd February 2011Anthony Tommasini the music critic of the New York Times has been driving music lovers to frustrated distraction by his endless quest for his very own list of “classical” music’s top 10 composers – in order of merit no less. Such compilations are basically frivolous, but they’re harmless. They can even yield some amusement. While it took…
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