October 26 - Bacchanalias Americanus / Europus

Our revels are now begun. Up reasonably early printing out the recent Antigone transpositions for Tisha (who will be down next week to share the title role with Eliza); then two more pages of Moses and Aaron: XIII. "This Gold Image", before heading out to Chamber Arts for more rehearsals of


John Billota's The Quantum Mechanic and my


Antigone (with Meghan, Alix, Eli-


za, Dalyte, Kim,



William, Erin, Michael, Adam, Micah, Terrence, and Lisa),



then home past the evening-tinged North Lagoon Mountains,



to finish The Golden Calf orchestration and begin the same for XIV. Postlude: "Be gone"

July 3 - Beyond Beethoven Blitz

After Beethoven bonanza (what some won't do to sell recordings...), blitz home via



bounteous back roads: Suisun Valley's Twin Sisters(....hm....could be Sister's Twins...);



Fairfield's Vineyard,



Three Oak, and



Paradise Hills (the latter from the North Texas offramp,



and the I-80 frontage road -- in standard and



telephoto views);



just beyond, past Poverty Hills (once again, two views,




the second with cows [the plural almost hidden behind an almost imperceptible intermediate ridge])



and the North Lagoon Mountains



on the fire divide ---



feverishly finishing up the Classical blog articles at markalburgermusichistory.blogspot.com beyond Beethoven, and now preparing for publication Mice and Men, Act V, Scene 2 D (page 1).

June 26 - Darkest Before Oncoming Train

Through the Renaissance in History (at least up to birth of opera, which really occurred before the traditional reckoning of the Baroque -- 1600), and Louis Bourgeois Old Hundreth for dictation and harmony in Theory, then home with the smokiest skies yet. Rather surreal -- sun still visible and casting enough light to be reflected off passing autos,



yet all headlights on -- oops, that didn't work -- let's try again..




yet all headlights on (somewhat visible even through a rearview window screaming "wash me, please"),



firetrucks perhaps redeploying,



transport vehicles mebbe maybe, too, the local hills waiting,





waiting,


waiting --



some have waited long enough -- and waiting upon page 4 Mice and Men, Act V, Scene 2 C publication preparation.



With Harriet at the pool, after the requisite bike, lo the upper atmosphere bears a few high tropical puffs and suggestions of blue (remotely resembling above Iowa sky), so perhaps the worst has past.

May 1 - The Hills Are Quiescent with the Noise

Morning joys and sorrows (The Little Death, approaching the Death Songs of next weekend [markalburgerevents.blogspot.com]), generating the brass parts for Variations on Americana, then off to teach with the North Lagoon Mountains drying out.



Nick T. is up for dictation today with another fine movie excerpt. Learn from Cecilia that yesterday's was from the anime Castle in the Sky, with music of


Joe Hisaishi (b. 1950). Meanwhile, Nick's today is C major: four bars with 2-beat pickup of eighths

Me Sol Do Mi Mi Fa Re Re Sol Ti Do Re Mi Do Do Re Do

I (our addition) IVM7 V7 iii7 vi ii7 V7 I

a hip version (what with seventh chords on all but vi and I) of that Renaissance inclusiveness of using chords built on all scale degrees save viio.

Following this notable compositions by Josh and Robert, followed by Conference Room Technique / How to Survive from San Rafael News: 10 Death Songs.


Home again, correcting the May 2008 issue of 21st-Century Music (now available at 21st-centurymusic.blogspot.com and soon at 21st-centurymusic.com) working on the online Music History text (markalburgermusichistory.blogspot.com), putting up info on the Trumpet of Tutankhamen and the First Delphic Hymn.