In my posting “Benjamin Britten, Peter Pears and Decca”, I noted how Wes Anderson’s use of Benjamin Britten’s music in Moonrise Kingdom was really eye opening for me. Here’s a great short interview with Anderson where he talks more about Britten and his importance. And it gives a peek into…
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Benjamin Britten, Peter Pears and Decca
Originally published February 20, 2013. Updated, revised and republished May 29, 2025. I’m ashamed to admit it, but Benjamin Britten is a composer I managed to live most of my life without knowing really anything about. Chalk it up first to the anti-British bias there is in classical music overall.…
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Meet Michael Nyman
Originally published September 15, 2012. Updated, revised and republished May 29, 2025. Today’s treasure is one that I found over twenty years ago: the modern British composer Michael Nyman. I first discovered Michael Nyman when I went to see the film “Prospero’s Books”. I admit, I didn’t know who Greenaway…
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Hello Old Friend, Hello New Friend
Originally published September 12, 2012. Updated, revised and republished December 8, 2025. I said in Fermata that I expected to be posting again soon and today is as good a day as any. As I said there, one reason for this blog being on hold is because of an issue…
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Fermata
Originally published August 11, 2012. Updated, revised and republished December 8, 2025. Fermata is Italian for “stop”. It’s used much like we use “stop” in English: a “bus stop” in Italian is a “fermata dell’autobus”. In music the “fermata” indicates a hold, generally at the discretion of the conductor. It’s…
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Thoughts on Spotify, Last.fm and Pandora
Originally published June 12, 2012. Updated, revised and republished December 8, 2025. You may (or may not) have noticed that it’s been many months since my last update. I won’t bore you with details but suffice it to say that I’ve been separated from my music collection due to a…
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The Future of Music
Originally published September 17, 2011. Updated, revised and republished December 8, 2025. One thing I found when I was at a major tech company is that my work had affected a shift in focus in regards to technology. Because new things ALWAYS have problems, my work as a technical really…
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A Tale of Two Cultures
Originally published August 29, 2011. Updated, revised and republished December 8, 2025. As I come back from the summer hiatus it seems appropriate that my first post should be inspired by someone who’s made a career helping us figure out what to do with our summertimes and also happens to be…
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Summertime
Originally published August 5, 2011. Updated, revised and republished December 8, 2025. …and the living is easy. Which is to say that we’re on a bit of a summer hiatus here at Andante. We’ll be back in the fall with new postings on new music experiences, including (as a teaser)…
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Thanks Google for the Doodle
Originally published June 11, 2011. Updated, revised and republished May 29, 2025. Google gets kudos for their “doodle” tribute to Les Paul recently. Not just for paying homage to someone who so richly deserves it, though that’s a part of it. No, Google gets kudos for paying homage to someone…