Psalm 22:8
8 He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.
I really like this chorus and the recitative that came right before.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Christmas Cookies
Our other Christmasy day-before-Thanksgiving activity was baking cookies.
We made three kinds: sugar cookies (with no frosting), peanut butter cookies (with peanut butter cups), and ginger thins. We listened to Mannheim Steamroller Christmas CDs while we were working, which was fun.
The sugar cookies were "Sugar Drop Cookies with Oil", from Joy of Cooking.
The last cookies were Helena's specialty: Ginger Thins from Joy of Cooking. Helena always says she will never make them again, because they are so much work, but Mara talked her into it.
We're going to send some of the cookies to friends away at college, but we definitely get some for ourselves too. I wish all of you were here to help taste them too!
We made three kinds: sugar cookies (with no frosting), peanut butter cookies (with peanut butter cups), and ginger thins. We listened to Mannheim Steamroller Christmas CDs while we were working, which was fun.
The sugar cookies were "Sugar Drop Cookies with Oil", from Joy of Cooking.
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| Lots of ingredients. |
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| Putting dry ingredients in the sifter...it looks like a snowy mountain. |
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| It looks like snow after you put it in the sifter too. You can see it falling! |
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| You make little balls of dough and roll them in a bowl of sugar. This is a good time to take a lot of tastes of the dough. |
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| Benedick washed the cookie sheets as we emptied them. |
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| Finished sugar cookies! Don't they look good? |
We got the recipe for the peanut butter cookies from a recipe Mom got from a friend a while back.
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| Making the peanut butter cookies. |
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| The dough in the fridge next to our Thanksgiving turkey. |
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| Peanut butter cups ready to go on the cookies. |
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| Finished peanut butter cookies! |
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| Helena making the ginger thins. |
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| The finished ginger thins! |
Messiah 27: All they that see Him
Psalm 22:7
7 All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
If you want to know just what they are saying, you'll have to come back tomorrow and hear the chorus!
7 All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
If you want to know just what they are saying, you'll have to come back tomorrow and hear the chorus!
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Christmas Decorations Part 1
I know for some people it just isn't done, but we started putting up our Christmas decorations the day before Thanksgiving.
Michael's had all their Christmas decorations on sale, and a 20% off your entire purchase coupon in addition. So for less than $20, we got:
Here's the after picture:
It was Mara's and my idea to buy additional decorations and put them up this early. Normally we just do a tree and a Nativity and Christmas lights, but we decided we wanted more greenery this year, so we bought some garlands and wreaths (all fake, so we'll be able to reuse them in the future).
Here's a before picture:
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| Our entryway as seen from the front door |
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| Christmas supplies |
Two 18-inch wreaths, two 18-foot garlands, red ribbon, 70 jingle bells, and several miscellaneous gold and red wreath picks.
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| Eighteen feet is a lot! |
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| Mara hung the garland in the entryway. |
We used little pieces of green pipe cleaner, so that it would blend in. We then twisted it around a couple little nails that we put up. We also did the same thing with jingle bells:
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| Garland with jingle bells |
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| Decorated entryway as seen from the front door |
We still haven't put up the wreaths or the other garland (we can't decide where to put it) but we will put them up soon.
Messiah 26: All we like sheep have gone astray
Isaiah 53:6
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Messiah 25: And with His stripes we are healed
Isaiah 53:5
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Messiah 24: Surely He hath borne our griefs
Isaiah 53:4-5
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
The last part of this verse doesn't come until the next chorus.
There doesn't seem to be much agreement on tempos for this piece. Some people take it very fast, and some take it very slow. We listened to a fast one right after several slow ones and it seemed extra fast!
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
The last part of this verse doesn't come until the next chorus.
There doesn't seem to be much agreement on tempos for this piece. Some people take it very fast, and some take it very slow. We listened to a fast one right after several slow ones and it seemed extra fast!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Messiah 23: He was despised
Isaiah 53:3
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Isaiah 50:6
6 I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting.
This tempo marking on this aria is "largo", so it is very slow. On this recording, it takes about a minute for every eight measures. Also, it has a da capo (it repeats the first half at the end), so even though it only takes up four pages in our score, it is more than 13 minutes long in this recording. This is why it takes up two YouTube videos. The first video has the first four pages as written, and the second video has the da capo.
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Isaiah 50:6
6 I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting.
This tempo marking on this aria is "largo", so it is very slow. On this recording, it takes about a minute for every eight measures. Also, it has a da capo (it repeats the first half at the end), so even though it only takes up four pages in our score, it is more than 13 minutes long in this recording. This is why it takes up two YouTube videos. The first video has the first four pages as written, and the second video has the da capo.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Messiah 22: Behold the Lamb of God
John 1:29
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
This chorus marks the beginning of the second part of Messiah.
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
This chorus marks the beginning of the second part of Messiah.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
The Events of Today
Today was rather a humorous and crazy day. It started off with Dad taking the wrong car to be smog tested! He took the Echo instead of the van. Dad got all the way to the smog testing place before he realized that he had the wrong car. He had to come all the way home to get the van.
Then, later, Dad played Benedick and me at a game of Sorry. Now, one thing you should know is that whenever Dad, Benedick and me play Sorry it usually turns into a rather noisy and extremely fun game. Especially since Mom and Helena weren't here to tell us to be quiet, and since we were playing with eight men apiece instead of four. It's always funner playing with eight men than it is with four. I was in the lead for most of the game, but Dad and Benedick started Sorry-ing me and wouldn't let me get a man in Home, so Benedick won, I came in second, and Dad came in third.
As if all that's not enough to make a great day, we've been trying to see a jet fly-over, when the jets fly over our house on the way to the stadium. We had all sat outside once, trying to see it, but they did something else unexpectedly so we didn't see anything. But today, about two hours ago, we heard a lot of helicopters going over, so we all ran out front and saw helicopters fly over instead. Maybe not as impressive as jets but you can see them for longer because they don't go as fast.
Benedick is making gingerbread right now and the house smells really good. And Mom is making homemade whipped cream, which is so much better then store bought whipped cream. I can't wait to eat some.
Then, later, Dad played Benedick and me at a game of Sorry. Now, one thing you should know is that whenever Dad, Benedick and me play Sorry it usually turns into a rather noisy and extremely fun game. Especially since Mom and Helena weren't here to tell us to be quiet, and since we were playing with eight men apiece instead of four. It's always funner playing with eight men than it is with four. I was in the lead for most of the game, but Dad and Benedick started Sorry-ing me and wouldn't let me get a man in Home, so Benedick won, I came in second, and Dad came in third.
As if all that's not enough to make a great day, we've been trying to see a jet fly-over, when the jets fly over our house on the way to the stadium. We had all sat outside once, trying to see it, but they did something else unexpectedly so we didn't see anything. But today, about two hours ago, we heard a lot of helicopters going over, so we all ran out front and saw helicopters fly over instead. Maybe not as impressive as jets but you can see them for longer because they don't go as fast.
Benedick is making gingerbread right now and the house smells really good. And Mom is making homemade whipped cream, which is so much better then store bought whipped cream. I can't wait to eat some.
Messiah 20: He shall feed his flock like a shepherd
Isaiah 40:11
11 He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
Matthew 11:28-29
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
This duet uses text from both the Old and New Testament.
11 He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
Matthew 11:28-29
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
This duet uses text from both the Old and New Testament.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Messiah 19: Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened
Isaiah 35:5-6
5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
6 Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.
I've been finding that these videos are great things to go back through and listen to when I'm working on other things, such as when I was typing up my post on Secretariat.
5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
6 Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.
I've been finding that these videos are great things to go back through and listen to when I'm working on other things, such as when I was typing up my post on Secretariat.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Messiah 18: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion
Zechariah 9:9-10
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
10 And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.
Obviously, the aria just takes a small excerpt from each verse. The full text of the song is:
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy king cometh unto thee.
He is the righteous Saviour, and He shall speak peace unto the heathen.
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
10 And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.
Obviously, the aria just takes a small excerpt from each verse. The full text of the song is:
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy king cometh unto thee.
He is the righteous Saviour, and He shall speak peace unto the heathen.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Messiah 17: Glory to God
Luke 2:14
14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Messiah 16: And suddenly there was with the angel
Luke 2:13
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Messiah 15: And the angel said unto them
Luke 2:10-11
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Secretariat
Mara and I went to see the movie Secretariat last Friday. I had never gone to see a movie at a movie theater before, and it was a nice one to start with.
The horse Secretariat was a big chestnut colt sired by Bold Ruler and foaled by Somethingroyal. He was born at Meadow Farm in Caroline County, Virginia. He was owned by Penny Chenery Tweedy, trained by Lucien Laurin, and mostly ridden by Ron Turcotte. The way the coin toss—deciding who would get which foal—worked out in real life was a little different then from the movie. In the movie there were two unborn foals. One from Hasty Matelda and one from Somethingroyal. Ogden Phipps won the coin toss but he picked Hasty Matelda's unborn foal so Mrs. Tweedy got the foal she wanted. In real life there was a live colt out of Hasty Matelda, and a live filly out of Somethingroyal, along with an unborn foal of Somethingroyal. Since Phipps won the coin toss he took the filly out of Somethingroyal, leaving Mrs. Tweedy with the colt out of Hasty Matelda and the unborn foal of Somethingroyal.
Secretariat raced several times as a two-year-old, and he was American Horse of the Year both as a two-year-old, and as a three-year-old. To skip right to the Kentucky Derby, Secretariat broke from the gate last, but came from behind to win the Derby by 2 1/2 lengths. He ran each quarter-mile segment faster than the one before. He set a Derby track record that still stands of 1:59 2/5. It was 28 years before any other horse has won the Kentucky Derby in less than two minutes.
Then, again in the Preakness Stakes Secretariat came from behind to win by 2 1/2 lengths. For the third race in the Triple Crown, only four horses decided to race against Secretariat in the Belmont Stakes. Among these was Sham, who had finished second in both the Derby and the Preakness, also three other horses thought to have little chance of winning. Secretariat and Sham started quickly, setting a ten length lead on the rest of the field. Sham started to tire a little farther on -finally finishing last. But Secretariat surprised everybody by continuing the fast pace, and getting farther and farther ahead. He finally won by 31 lengths, and set a world record for 1 1/2 miles on dirt of 2:24. Secretariat became the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years, and he was the 9th horse to win the Triple Crown.
Anyway, we thoroughly enjoyed the movie, and now my whole family needs to watch it. It has a quotation from the book of Job about horses in it from the NIV version. Secretariat is a great movie, and I'm glad I went. Now I think I know how Alec Ramsay from the Black Stalion books feels whenever he enters a race. I think when people write about horse races it is still pretty exciting, but they can't quite catch the excitement of actually seeing it.
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| Me & Mara at the movies! |
The horse Secretariat was a big chestnut colt sired by Bold Ruler and foaled by Somethingroyal. He was born at Meadow Farm in Caroline County, Virginia. He was owned by Penny Chenery Tweedy, trained by Lucien Laurin, and mostly ridden by Ron Turcotte. The way the coin toss—deciding who would get which foal—worked out in real life was a little different then from the movie. In the movie there were two unborn foals. One from Hasty Matelda and one from Somethingroyal. Ogden Phipps won the coin toss but he picked Hasty Matelda's unborn foal so Mrs. Tweedy got the foal she wanted. In real life there was a live colt out of Hasty Matelda, and a live filly out of Somethingroyal, along with an unborn foal of Somethingroyal. Since Phipps won the coin toss he took the filly out of Somethingroyal, leaving Mrs. Tweedy with the colt out of Hasty Matelda and the unborn foal of Somethingroyal.
Secretariat raced several times as a two-year-old, and he was American Horse of the Year both as a two-year-old, and as a three-year-old. To skip right to the Kentucky Derby, Secretariat broke from the gate last, but came from behind to win the Derby by 2 1/2 lengths. He ran each quarter-mile segment faster than the one before. He set a Derby track record that still stands of 1:59 2/5. It was 28 years before any other horse has won the Kentucky Derby in less than two minutes.
Then, again in the Preakness Stakes Secretariat came from behind to win by 2 1/2 lengths. For the third race in the Triple Crown, only four horses decided to race against Secretariat in the Belmont Stakes. Among these was Sham, who had finished second in both the Derby and the Preakness, also three other horses thought to have little chance of winning. Secretariat and Sham started quickly, setting a ten length lead on the rest of the field. Sham started to tire a little farther on -finally finishing last. But Secretariat surprised everybody by continuing the fast pace, and getting farther and farther ahead. He finally won by 31 lengths, and set a world record for 1 1/2 miles on dirt of 2:24. Secretariat became the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years, and he was the 9th horse to win the Triple Crown.
Anyway, we thoroughly enjoyed the movie, and now my whole family needs to watch it. It has a quotation from the book of Job about horses in it from the NIV version. Secretariat is a great movie, and I'm glad I went. Now I think I know how Alec Ramsay from the Black Stalion books feels whenever he enters a race. I think when people write about horse races it is still pretty exciting, but they can't quite catch the excitement of actually seeing it.
Messiah 14: There were shepherds abiding in the field / And lo! the Angel of the Lord came upon them
Luke 2:8-9
8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
These two recitatives are numbered as 14 & 14a in the Novello (Shaw) edition, so we are grouping them together. (The recording has all four recitatives.)
8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
These two recitatives are numbered as 14 & 14a in the Novello (Shaw) edition, so we are grouping them together. (The recording has all four recitatives.)
Monday, November 15, 2010
Dinner at the Lake
Me and all my family except for Mara had dinner at the lake today. It was lots of fun, and here are some pictures.
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| Goose parade! |
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| Can I have some? |
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| Coming on the run. |
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| Feeding the ducks. |
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| Completely surrounded. |
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| Just about out of bread. |
Messiah 13: Pastoral Symphony
Besides the overture, this is the only other movement of Messiah that has no words.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Messiah 12: For unto us a child is born
Isaiah 9:6
6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Messiah 11: The people that walked in darkness
Isaiah 9:2
2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Messiah 10: For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth
Isaiah 60:2,3
2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.
3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.
This recitative continues the passage begun in the previous chorus.
2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.
3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.
This recitative continues the passage begun in the previous chorus.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Messiah 9: O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion
Isaiah 40:9
9 O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!
Isaiah 60:1
1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.
9 O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!
Isaiah 60:1
1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Messiah 8: Behold, a virgin shall conceive
Isaiah 7:14
14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Matthew 1:23
23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
The text of this recitative is mostly copied from the passage from Isaiah, except that the translation of Jesus' name is included from the New Testament fulfillment.
14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Matthew 1:23
23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
The text of this recitative is mostly copied from the passage from Isaiah, except that the translation of Jesus' name is included from the New Testament fulfillment.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Messiah 7: And He shall purify
Malachi 3:3
3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.
This chorus is an excerpt from the verse which follows that of the last aria.
This is one of my favorite parts. Probably in my top four favorite movements.
3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.
This chorus is an excerpt from the verse which follows that of the last aria.
This is one of my favorite parts. Probably in my top four favorite movements.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Messiah 6: But who may abide
Malachi 3:2
2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
The last part of the verse is left off in the aria. Fuller's soap was used to eliminate impurities in cloth while it was being created. So like a refiner's fire with metal, it is another way of refining and removing impurities.
Handel wrote versions of this aria for different voice types. Here is a version for bass:
And one for soprano (it begins at 1:28). We all really like her dress. It's Mara's favorite color. I want to try doing my hair like hers.
2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
The last part of the verse is left off in the aria. Fuller's soap was used to eliminate impurities in cloth while it was being created. So like a refiner's fire with metal, it is another way of refining and removing impurities.
Handel wrote versions of this aria for different voice types. Here is a version for bass:
And one for soprano (it begins at 1:28). We all really like her dress. It's Mara's favorite color. I want to try doing my hair like hers.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Messiah 5: Thus saith the Lord
Haggai 2:6-7
6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.
Malachi 3:1
1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the LORD, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
For this recitative, Charles Jennens selected two different passages of Messianic prophecy, but they are still related by the use of the phrase "The Lord of hosts".
6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.
Malachi 3:1
1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the LORD, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
For this recitative, Charles Jennens selected two different passages of Messianic prophecy, but they are still related by the use of the phrase "The Lord of hosts".
Saturday, November 6, 2010
We Went to the Symphony!
On the 23rd Dad took Mara, Helena, and me to the Symphony. This was the first time I'd ever gone to the symphony.
They performed "Urban Runway," which was composed by the conductor, Bramwell Tovey. He is British, and he composed this piece for the fourth of July, which he made a bunch of jokes about. I really liked him, and he looked like he really enjoyed what he was doing. He reminded us all of Lawrence Welk. This is a photo of Tovey:
They also performed Erich Korngold's Violin Concerto in D Major. The concerto is based on the music he wrote for three different movies: Another Dawn, Anthony Adverse, and The Prince and the Pauper. In The Prince and the Pauper, this theme accompanied the hunt for the royal seal, and those of you who have seen this movie know how great the music is. The soloist was Philippe Quint, who was born in Russia and graduated from Juilliard. Helena says he looks like Josh Groban. I hadn't heard of either of them before, so it doesn't really matter to me. This is Quint:
The last piece they performed was Antonin Dvorák's New World Symphony. My favorite part was the part in the third movement that he based off of an Indian dance scene in "Hiawatha," because it took the overriding theme and made it very dynamic and exciting. In the first movement of the symphony, apparently Tovey's baton broke because something white went flying off into the first violins and he conducted the rest of it with a slightly shortened baton.
Personally, I don't think I really know which piece was my favorite. They all were very nice in their own way.
They performed "Urban Runway," which was composed by the conductor, Bramwell Tovey. He is British, and he composed this piece for the fourth of July, which he made a bunch of jokes about. I really liked him, and he looked like he really enjoyed what he was doing. He reminded us all of Lawrence Welk. This is a photo of Tovey:
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| Photo courtesy of Bethel Woods Center for the Arts |
The last piece they performed was Antonin Dvorák's New World Symphony. My favorite part was the part in the third movement that he based off of an Indian dance scene in "Hiawatha," because it took the overriding theme and made it very dynamic and exciting. In the first movement of the symphony, apparently Tovey's baton broke because something white went flying off into the first violins and he conducted the rest of it with a slightly shortened baton.
Personally, I don't think I really know which piece was my favorite. They all were very nice in their own way.
Messiah 4: And the glory of the Lord
Isaiah 40:5
5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
This chorus concludes the excerpt from Isaiah 40, although there will be two other excerpts from the same chapter later.
5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
This chorus concludes the excerpt from Isaiah 40, although there will be two other excerpts from the same chapter later.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Messiah 3: Every valley shall be exalted
Isaiah 40:4
4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
This tenor aria continues the passage from Isaiah that began in the previous recitative.
4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
This tenor aria continues the passage from Isaiah that began in the previous recitative.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Messiah 2: Comfort ye my people
Isaiah 40:1-3
1 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD's hand double for all her sins.
3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
1 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD's hand double for all her sins.
3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Messiah Countdown
Tomorrow I am starting a Messiah quote-a-day countdown till Christmas. I thought you would like to know a little about the Messiah. It starts with prophecies of Jesus' first coming, and then his birth and ministry, followed by his death and resurrection. Then it talks about the preaching of God's Word, and ends with prophecies of Jesus second coming.
The Messiah was an oratorio composed in 1741 by George Frederick Handel. Charles Jennens selected the text from the King James Bible, and another version common at the time. The first performance was on April 13, 1742 in Dublin. It was well received there, but it was not as popular in London for quite a while.
The text of the Messiah is entirely from the Bible. Sometimes when I am reading the Bible, I come across verses that I know from the Messiah, and the music starts running through my head. I was reading the Revelation Record recently and it mentioned a lot of the verses were familiar to me from the Messiah.
I really hope you like it. The posts will go up once a day, but I will still keep up on my regular posting as well.
Source: "Handel" Encyclopædia Britannica ("First Published in 1768 by A Society of Gentlemen in Scotland"), the 1968 bicentennial edition.
The Messiah was an oratorio composed in 1741 by George Frederick Handel. Charles Jennens selected the text from the King James Bible, and another version common at the time. The first performance was on April 13, 1742 in Dublin. It was well received there, but it was not as popular in London for quite a while.
The text of the Messiah is entirely from the Bible. Sometimes when I am reading the Bible, I come across verses that I know from the Messiah, and the music starts running through my head. I was reading the Revelation Record recently and it mentioned a lot of the verses were familiar to me from the Messiah.
I really hope you like it. The posts will go up once a day, but I will still keep up on my regular posting as well.
Source: "Handel" Encyclopædia Britannica ("First Published in 1768 by A Society of Gentlemen in Scotland"), the 1968 bicentennial edition.
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