Monthly Archives: June 2017
The Opioid Epidemic
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 30th June 2017There seems to be no end of mischief that the government can do when it plunges into the quicksand of American medicine. Let’s consider the opioid epidemic. It appears that deaths from opioid overdose have sharply increased in this country. Let’s also grant that this surge in deaths is exactly the way it’s portrayed in…
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Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk – Orchestral Excerpts
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 24th June 2017Shostakovich’s opera Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District is the greatest Russian opera of the 20th century and among all Russian operas is matched only by Boris Godunov. Set to a libretto by the composer and Alexander Preys, it depicts the brutality of mid 19th century Russian life and the plight of women enmeshed in a…
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The Sniffer – Review
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 15th June 2017The Sniffer is a Ukrainian TV series recorded in Russian. The stories all take place in an unspecified Russian city. The license plates are Russian and the characters often refer to oligarchs. The show has two protagonists, the title character and his childhood buddy, who after a promotion halfway through the first season, is a Colonel…
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French Opera Arias
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 6th June 2017The title is accurate, but incomplete. The arias that follow are all from operas that are rarely, if ever, heard today. Most of them are equally infrequent guests at recitals. But they all have some interest and are worth an occasional hearing. They are predominantly by French composers. I have not included Italians masquerading as French…
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The Paris Climate Accord and Reasoned Debate
Written by Neil Kurtzman | 3rd June 2017The center cannot hold… …
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