|
Have you ever smelt that distinctive fragrence when the rain falls after a dry period? Have you ever wondered what it was called?
Well, wonder no more! The word you are looking for is 'Petrichor'. Petrichor is a combination of the Greek word 'Petros' meaning 'stone' and the word 'Ichor', which in mythology was the blood of the Gods. The word particularly describes the release of oils from vegitation, which is then absorbed by the surrounding rock and earth. It is this process that produces the distinctive smell. No more fumbling for adjectives the next time you want to describe that smell to people! Stile Galante baroque orchestra, conducted by Stefano Aresi, and Ann Hallenberg are going to record a new CD featuring original cadenzas from one of the most famous, celebrated and important castrato singers of Mozart's age.  Ann Hallenberg - © Minjas Zugik 2013 After many years of painstaking reseach, Stefano Aresi has compiled the most extended collection ever found of original embellishments, da capos, cadenzas, variations connected to a single castrato's repertoire.
The castrato, whose name is yet to be announced, was one of the most famous, celebrated and important castrato singers of Mozart's age. Ann and Stefano plan to produce a CD to showcase the sensational discoveries, and also to create a 50 minute documentary to describe in detail the significance of the haul of information they have gathered. Click on this link to the project's gofundme page to give what you can to this extraordinary endeavour. A gripping tale, steeped in mythology, enriched with historical detail, and bound together with fantastic artwork and an engaging concept: Alex Anstey's graphic novel, Nine Tenths - The Slider, makes for a gripping read which you will not be able to put down. CLICK HERE FOR THE REVIEW 
Scientists from Newcastle University, the University of Bristol's Glaciology Centre, the British Antarctic Survey and the universities of Edinburgh, Exeter, and York have discovered a massive trench under the ice covering the Ellsworth Subglacial Highlands, a region of Western Antarctica.  Map section from http://lima.nasa.gov/antarctica/ The Ellsworth Subglacial Highlands are a line of subglacial highlands in West Antarctica that extend WSW from central Ellsworth Mountains to the vicinity of Mount Moore and Mount Woollard. The scientists researching the area have discovered "a massive subglacial valley up to 3 kilometres deep, more than 300 kilometres long and up to 25 kilometres across. "[1] The bottom of the valley is, in places, more than 2000m below sea-level. The discovery has given a fascinating insight into the life-cycle of this ancient and intriguing ice-sheet. Due to the "low ice velocities and limited present-day change in the ice-sheet interior,"[2] areas in Western Antarctica such as the Ellsworth Subglacial Highlands are key to "establishing the locations from which the West Antarctic Ice Sheet originated and grew."[3] They can also help us to understand the possible effects of Climate Change upon the ice sheet. [1] PhysOrg: Scientists discover giant trench under Antarctic Ice. 14/01/2014
[2] Geological Society of America Bulletin: The Ellsworth Subglacial Highlands: Inception and retreat of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. 20 September 2012 [3] Ibid. Sergej Eisenstein's classic masterpiece The Battleship Potemkin has to be one of my favourite films, based as it was on the December Revolution in Tsarist Russia in 1905. I will never forget the iconic Odessa Steps sequence: one of the most celebrated scenes in the film. I am happy to say that the whole film is on YouTube: check it out below. For those who have never seen a silent film before, do watch it: it is an amazing piece of cinematography. |
My SitesContralto Corner Categories
All
Archives
May 2019
Blogs & SitesThe Arts Desk |
RSS Feed
MOST VIEWED POSTS
The "Maggot from Italy's Tomb?" The "Black Widow" of St Bartholomew? Or one of the finest examples of power politics and survival ever seen? Well, I would have to say yes to all of the above, and more! Catherine was one of the most complex characters in a time of massive internal strife in France, with enemies both within (Guise, D'Albret) and abroad (Philip II of Spain).
|
Born in Kent Town, Adelaide, Australia, Mark Oliphant was a Physicist, who received the prestigious Hughes Medal (other recipients include Alexander Graham Bell, Enrico Fermi, Stephen Hawking, and Andre Geim). He was also a life-long vegetarian after seeing a pig slaughtered at a farm as a child.
|
The third movement of Haydn's Cello Concerto in C Major is one of my favourite pieces of music. It is a truly joyous piece, and one which I find uplifting. The first performance I heard was by 13-year-old Han-na Chang, who took my breath away with her skill, musicianship and dynamism.
|
New research from Dutch scientists has revitalised the search for the elusive Majorana Fermion. The Majorana Fermion was first predicted about 75 years ago by Italian scientist Ettore Majorana, one of the Via Paspernera Boys - a group of scientists named after the street where their lab was located.
|
Water. Without it, we would not exist. Covering nearly 71% of the world’s surface, it is one of the key building blocks of life on Earth. We think we know all about it, how it works, and what it does. But Gerald Pollack, Professor of Bioengineering at the University of Washington, Seattle, is sure we don’t!
|
Franco Fagioli is an Argentinian Countertenor "who seems to redefine the capabilities of the countertenor voice." He has won great acclaim for his performance in the role of Arbace in the recent all-male production of Vinci's Artaserse, and will soon be releasing an album celebrating the star castrato Caffarelli.
|
© James Edward Hughes 2013