With a musical history that dates back to the late 18th century, the group has revitalized a long-lost culture through music performed largely a cappella and entirely in Haitian Creole. Watch The Creole Choir of Cuba mash up Cuban and Haitian cultures in this spirited set at the NPR Music offices.
Happy birthday, Gioachino Rossini!
The guy didn't get that many birthdays: only 18 during his lifetime (remembering that 1800 wasn't a leap year), so we need to acknowledge it whenever we get a chance: today is his 51st birthday. (Update: 53rd. Somehow I missed 1888 and 1988.) As they said to Frederic in another context: Though you’ve lived […]
Distraction of the Day
Update: cartoon by Dave Walker
Courts second-guessing choir membership decisions
Pretty soon we're going to have to hold auditions entirely by lottery, at least in Ireland: A YOUNG man with an intellectual disability has been awarded €2,500 compensation against Wexford Male Voice Choir for ejecting him from their membership. The 24-year-old former member who was born with a rare genetic disorder was asked to leave […]
What my mom thinks
Domingo advocates music in schools
Most readers of this blog agree that music should be considered a core subject taught in schools, and it's not really a surprise that most professional musicians think so too. But it's always nice when a high-profile celebrity endorses it on national media, so Placido Domingo's flat statement that "music education should be mandatory" in […]