Burns and Mozart: a January celebration!

Let's not let January go by without giving a nod to Robert Burns and Wolfgang Mozart. On January 25, 1759 the great Robert Burns was born, and on January 27, 1752, Mozart entered this world. Two creative geniuses: one literary, the other musical.

And, the world of fine arts would never have been the same without them.

Burns, a Scotsman, was a poet and lyricist, regarded as the national poet of Scotland, writing over 500 poems!

Wolfgang, our famous German composer, wrote, in various forms, including symphonies, concerti, sonatas, church music, operas, dances, marches, over 600 works.

Over the years, the celebration of Burns birthday has become a bit of a thing of its own. Known as the Burns Supper, there is the piping in of the guests, the host's welcome speech, the Selkirk Grace prayer, the soup course, haggis course (which receives its own piping in), the main course, toasts and more toasts, an address to the lassies present, a reply to the laddies present, and the hearing of some of Burns' work.  Wow!

Poor Wolfgang only receives our thanks individually, if someone choses to remember. I, for once, choose to make an evening of it with my friends, having German food, and a Sacher torte for dessert, though this year we are combining the two "events" and including a Scotch tasting. I think Wolfgang would have approved of this.

The Eyes have It!

January 10 marked the death of David Bowie, famous musician/performer. He was 69, and was really was the first to explore music, particularly rock music, as performance art, and hence "glam rock" was born. He sang, played guitar and composed some very catchy tunes over his 40 year career, but it was his unique and rather otherworldly quality to his voice and appearance that set him apart. He was truly one of a kind. Regarding his appearance, he donned outlandish and even futuristic type clothing which he changed like a chameleon over the span of his popularity, but there was also something about his physical appearance that gave him an "alien-like" quality. Yes, he was thin, tall and pale, but it was his eyes that were mystical and magical. They appeared to be of two different colors, one blue, one brown or at least very dark. But that was not it. He had a condition as a result of an injury, called anisocoria, that resulted in a difference in the size of his pupils.

Historically, Around 200 AD, Galen likened the iris to an elastic circular ring that was passively inflated or deflated by vital spirits sent from the brain to enhance vision. It was not until the first half of the 18th century that it became widely accepted that iris movement and pupil size were due to active interaction of 2 iris muscles: a longitudinal radial dilator and a circular sphincter muscle.

Unusual physical traits have always been fascinating. Some are repulsive, but some are mesmorizing, like Bowie's eyes. Eyes, as they say, are the windows to the soul, and anything odd or different about them can create suspicion, adoration, or obsession, or a definition of beauty depending on the era.

In the 18th Century, the women of Georgian high society looked beautiful in their satins and silks, but they hardly ever bathed.  Sanitation was still quite crude and they preferred to douse their clothes, their bodies and their belongings in toilet waters and perfumes. They wore scented pomanders and carried small scent bottles about their person.  They had false teeth, false hair, false bosoms, false calves and induced large eyes which they made to falsely dilate by using Belladonna extracted from the Deadly Nightshade plant.  They were a walking deception.By the way, from Latin, bella donna means 'fair lady', perhaps from the use of its juice to add brilliance to the eyes by dilating the pupils.

As the old year ends, and the New Year begins!

Here's an interesting bit to ponder on New Year's Eve:

In Western Europe During the Middle Ages, while the Julian calendar (introduced by Julius Caesar in 46 BC) was still in use, officials moved New Year's Day around, depending upon locale, to one of several other days, among them: 1 March, 25 March, Easter, 1 September, and 25 December.

These New Year's Day changes reverted to using January 1 before or during the various local with the adoption of the Gregorian calendar beginning in 1582. The Gregorian was a refinement to the Julian, adding a correction that contituted Leap Year.

The change from March 25 to January 1 took place in Scotland in 1600, before the ascension ofJames VI of Scotland to the throne of England in 1603 and well before the formation of the Kingdom of Great Britian in 1707.

In England and Wales as well as all British dominions, including Britain's American colonies, 1751 began on March 25 and lasted 282 days, and 1752 began on January 1.

So, we have been celebrating January 1, at least in the Western world, for only 263 years.

Wishing you a wonderful 2016, filled with a sense of curiosity and imagination (health, wealth and happiness go without saying!!)

Christmas Greetings! Joyeux Noel!

With Christmas only days away and all that needs to be done, I have not had the time to blog as much I'd like, but I take this opportunity to wish you Merry Christmas!

I hope your "Every-Christmas'Wish" comes true, and I look forward to blogging you my thoughts on the Enlightened Age in 2016.

I leave you with some beautiful images from Christmas at Versailles Palace, Paris, as my gift to you!

A Holiday Treat!

We are well into December now, and thinking of holiday parties and festivities to come. At every Christmas gathering, there are the traditional dishes, some based on where one lives around the  globe, and some based on tradition, mostly German and English, like the "Dickens Christmas", for instance.

In 1773, noted English clergyman James Woodforde, was asked to organize a holiday meal at New College, Oxford, and of course, he included Mince Pies! Below is his recipe, that was recorded in 1795.

Parson Woodforde’s Mince Pies

For the mincemeat (2-2 ½ lbs):
¾ lb cooking apples;
8 oz currants;
8 oz raisins;
6 oz shredded suet;
8 oz dark brown muscovado sugar;
4 oz lean beef mince;
grated rind and juice of 1 medium lemon;
1/8 teaspoon ground mace;
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves;
1-2 drops cider vinegar to sharpen (optional);
3-4 dessertspoons brandy, to taste.

Peel and core the apples. Mince them, together with the dried fruit and suet. Then mix in all the other ingredients. Store in airtight, vinegar-proof pots in the refrigerator. Use within three weeks.

For the mince pies (about 20):
Do not use the mincemeat uncooked. Grease bun or patty tins and line with puff pastry. Fill with the mincemeat; the quantity above should fill twenty deep 2½ inch diameter tins. Cover if you wish, but remember that fatty meat may float off a little free during cooking; it can be blotted off open tartlets after cooking. If not covered, top each mince pie with a rosette of brandy butter before serving. 

By the way, Woodforde is the author of The Diary of a Country Parson. It is a rather detailed and meticulous record of his life. It provides an authentic look at the life of country life in England at the time. You might find it a tasty treat as well!

Little Luxuries and Shared Joy!

Well, here we are again....December 1st, and it's exciting to think that there are only 24 days until Christmas. The weather has turned here in the high desert, and I actually had the thermometer indicator in my car flash the little" snowflake" and make a ding sound, as the 38o reading came up on the dash board. I love that! And, it's high time. We have had too much warm weather. It's time to get our the quilts and light the fireplace, and have the evening whiskey.

I will be placing my advent calendar up in the kitchen; courtesy of the National Gallery in London, where I bought it a couple years ago. It's still fun to open each little door every morning.

As the years go by, I like the simple things best about Christmas; the baking, the making things for friends and family, the listening to beautiful holiday music, the sharing the time with those I love. I am not feeling compelled to go to the mall. The behavior of the "Door Buster" or "Black Friday" reveler is appalling to me. It's a real turnoff.

In the 18th Century, the focus was not on buying up a storm, but "church, dinner, dancing, some evergreens, and visiting." For instance, Philip Vickers Fithian's December 18, 1773, diary entry about exciting holiday events mentions: "the Balls, the Fox-hunts, the fine entertainments. . ."

Gift giving was not to the excess it has become today. Cash tips, lite books, sweets in small amounts were given out by masters to their dependents, whether slaves, servants, apprentices, or children. Children and others did not reciprocate. Our idea of "filling stockings with care" and "eyes all aglow" come more along the 19th Century. 

Décor was mostly of natural materials, with the intent of brightening the bleakest time of the year. Evergreens were studded with berries and blossoms, and candles, too.

There is something very lovely about getting back to basics, and remembering that the holiday really is about Christ's entrance into our world. So, I send you wishes for a blessed and beautiful holiday season ahead, filled with little luxuries and shared joy.

Marchons! Marchons!

France's national anthem, La Marseillaise, is one of the most captivating and defiant of all anthems.

In 1792 Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle, captain in the French army, composed it, after Austrian and Prussian troops invaded France, hoping to stop the revolution. The mayor of Strasbourg asked Rouget to write something that would rally the troops who were under threat. It was originally titled "Chant de guerre pour l'Armee du Rhin", and it was dedicated to Marshal Nicholas Luckner, the army's Bavarian commander.

The lyrics stated that the children of the Fatherland's day of glory has arrived, but there was also a terrible warning, that "ferocious soldiers" were coming under the "Bloody banner" of tyranny to "cut the throats of your sons, your women". Citizens were to take up arms and "Marchons! Marchons"  (let's march on !)

Sung by troops from Marseilles as they approached Paris, this is how it got its nickname. It became the French anthem in 1795, but lost its status when Napoleon I reigned.

La Marseillaise was restored again during France's third republic - from 1870 when the modern idea of what France means was established. Unlike Britian's "God Save the Queen", it is not aristocratic, but about the people, about being a citizen.

And, so, here is the song, and a translation!

Allons enfants de la Patrie, (Arise, children of the Fatherland)

Le jour de gloire est arrive! (The day of glory has arrived!)

Contre nous de la tyrannie, (Against us tyranny's)

L'etendard sanglant est leve (repeat) (Bloody banner is raised)

Entendez-vous dans les campagnes (Do you hear, in the countryside)

Mugir ces feroces soldats? (The roar of those ferocious soldiers?)

Ils viennent jusque dans vos bras (They're coming right into your arms)

Egorger vos fils, vos compagnes! (To cut the throats of your sons, your women!)

Chorus: Aux armes, citoyens, (To arms, citizens)

Formez vos bataillons, (Form your battalions)

Marchons, marchons, (Let's march, let's march)

Qu'un sang impur (Let an impure blood)

Abreuve nos sillons (repeat) (Water our furrows)

And, if you want to see a great rendition, watch it performed at Rick's in the film Casablanca! 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HM-E2H1ChJM