Back to index of "this and that in my life" pages by Donald Sauter.
Dedicated to the proposition that every thought that's ever been thunk may be of interest to some crazy fool . . .
ME: Subject: another blockage
Thought I would test my current web searching abilities on
"february 14 1847" for a Beatles tie-in. Couldn't find anything
in a few minutes. Some things never change. You've already been
through both inventors of the sewing machine, so that can't be it
(unless there's a third.)
Not sure about the subject line "circus in 1968".
I did discover tonight that if you crumble up some old chocolate
that you don't really want, and you dribble some honey over it
that you're trying to get rid of, the result is quite
spectacular. I suppose this has never been invented before
because who ever heard of candy you have to eat with a spoon. I
guess the trick is to get the honey on the inside.
I offered to work with Rashard (1st grade) at school on a regular
basis. His teacher was very enthusiastic about my offer. I'm
planning to go in Tuesdays and Thursdays, just for an hour, or
however long I can keep his attention. Thursdays I'll hang
around to help kids in the computer lab.
ME: When I used to subscribe to the newspaper, I always set aside
the Sunday comics without reading them. I heard that Peanuts is
coming to an end now, so I thought now's the time to try to
auction off that pile of comics on ebay. I have one dinky little
bid (the minimum) so far, but for some reason people generally
wait till the end to bid.
I vaguely remember hearing about that peanut butter restaurant.
A week or so ago I was listening to my college radio station,
WMUC. They played a song that had a good pop feel to it. Then
the dj came on and said his sidekick wanted to hear the rest of
the album. He said the first person to call in with a yea or a
nay would decide. I don't think they really expected anybody to
call, but I did and said, sure, play the whole thing. Which they
did. Ah, good ol' college radio. Don't remember the name of the
band, though.
ME: I looked in on George's greeting card. I can assure you it's
perfectly g-rated (that means for little kids, even). "Make love
not war" was a saying protestors used back in the Vietnam war
days. That's all it is, an anti-war slogan.
THEE: Chocolate and Honey. Sounds pretty good. Messy but tasty.
Who said the honey has to be inside? Sounds like a clever
marketing gimick to me.
I remember you mentioning Rashard. That's great that you're
going to help him...sort of like a 'Big Brother'. Did you see
the movie 'American History X'? Powerful film...based on all
the racial hatred you hear about all the time. But basically...
the kids were influenced by adults...good or bad.
Yeah, Peanuts are no more. I read the good-bye strip on Friday
night...when part of the Sunday paper was delivered here. Did
you hear that Charles Schultz died BEFORE the Sunday paper came
out on Sunday! Eerie timing.
I finally ordered something online...I ordered the paperback
books by F.Paul Wilson I can't find anywhere else. Hope I have
no problems. My DJ said he buys stuff online all the time...
that $120 sun glasses can be gotten online for $33. Oh, I asked
him if he ever plays the Waterboys...and he said no.
THEE: Subject: Comics
Hi!! This is a great auction item --should do great!! In case you
didn't know, these could all go Bookrate which is $13.07 for 40#...
just trying to help!! Have fun!! :0}......terri<><
THEE: I hope you checked out what happened on Feb. 14, 1847.
Tomorrow, something happens to John when he's 24 that happened to
me when I was 16.
I saw the circus at the Coliseum in 1968. I'm very proud of the
fact that I missed the Beatles' performance there by less than
five years.
I'm enjoying (really!) Robyn Hitchcock's latest CD, "Jewels for
Sophia."
Alas, as you may have heard, Charles M. Schulz died on Saturday.
Will that affect your auction?
THEE: Subject: Little Red-Headed Tina
I'm sure that gag about the Little Red-Headed Girl is a shot at
Tina-Louise.
"Just listening to "Sally Was a Legend" from Hitch's new CD.
He's back!
ME: Subject: rant
Here's the letter I sent to the Dept. of Juvenile Justice.
Usually, when I write something in anger, the next day I'll calm
down and make it more level-headed. In this case, I still don't
regret leaving the anger in. What do you think?
Feb 10 2000
Vickie Mitchell, Area Director Maryland Department of Juvenile
Justice
14735 Main St. Upper Marlboro, MD 20772
Dear Ms. Mitchell,
I want to share with you my recent experience with the Department
of Juvenile Justice. This is mostly in the spirit of "for what
it's worth", although you will find two specific requests in the
body of this letter.
I have a friend A who has three sons, two of which, B and C were
summoned into the DJJ office in Largo on February 8 2000. I was
there because I gave the three of them a ride (A does not have a
car), and to lend a friend some support.
The charges against the two boys were, 1) destruction of
property, 2) truant, and 3) nongovernable. The destruction of
property was a kicked door. I wasn't at the scene of the crime,
but on the day it happened I picked up A (who had to leave work)
to get her two sons from the police station.
Four boys were picked up by the police: A and B and Roberto and
Ian. I don't know the last names of the last two. B, Roberto
and Ian were together when Ian kicked the door. C was not with
them. He was by himself in A's apartment. All accounts are
consistent with the previous statements; nothing has been
presented that would contradict them in any way.
The police found it easiest to lump them all together, placing
equal guilt on all of them. They can do that. They have the
power. And guns. A policeman entered (burst in?) A's
apartment and took aim at C. In my opinion, that seems
excessive for a case of truancy - and might not be the best way
to get young people to respect authority. But that's just me.
(It also seems inconsistent with police action - or, more to the
point, complete lack thereof - in cases involving serious crimes,
such as when A was forced into a car some months ago, taken to
her bank and forced to withdraw all of her money, $1400, for the
robbers. Or when I tried to tell a police officer that A's
former husband, with a warrant out for his arrest for not paying
child support, was in a certain building. I could go on.)
All four boys were called into DJJ at Largo on the same morning.
Three showed up; B and C with their mother, and Roberto with his
father. Ian did not show up. I don't have complaint IDs for the
others, but they should be easy find with the information
supplied here. The intake officer was Ms. Horsey. She decided
to hold a conference with everybody present instead of handling
each case individually.
Ms. Horsey immediately presented herself as someone full of her
own power. I guess that's what happens when you give someone
power. Her style was to ask a question and then immediately
shoot down anything any of the boys said in answer to her
question. She didn't care about any of the details of the
incident. As was the case with the police, she obviously derived
great satisfaction at being in a position to declare everyone
equally guilty of whatever she wanted.
She began by asking who did what. When she was told that only
Ian kicked the door, she was in her element. That's exactly what
she wanted to hear. The sarcasm came gushing out. "Oh, I see!
The one who isn't here did it? Isn't that always the case?"
And, turning to B while pointing at Roberto, "I suppose if he
weren't here you would say he did it?"
B calmly answered, "It wouldn't matter who's here; I would tell
you the truth."
In the event, no one except Ms. Horsey had much to say in the
meeting. For example, I don't think C spoke a word, even to
say that he wasn't anywhere near the scene of the crime. What
would be the point? He would only be asking to be shot down. I
have serious doubts that prejudging a case is a good way - or a
lousy way, even - of getting at the truth or serving justice.
So she declared everyone equally guilty. She can do that. She
demanded a payment of $175 (how much of that is restitution and
how much is fine, I don't know.) She can do that. She didn't
care how she got the money. Well, she wouldn't accept personal
checks, because she said she didn't want to have to chase after
us if it was bad. (I wouldn't have guessed that that was part of
her job description.) Oh yeah, and she wouldn't accept cash.
(Doesn't trust the U.S. government? I don't know.) Anything to
make things harder for people who already have enough hardships,
I guess. From the way she talked, I honestly thought the
cashiers check or money order was to be made out to her
personally.
Ms. Horsey didn't care how the guilty parties divided the fine.
She graciously let them divide it any way they saw fit, BUT... if
she didn't get the whole thing, she would take the case to court.
The blackmail went like this. "If I don't get the money, I will
send the case to court and you will have to hire an attorney,
which will cost you in the vicinity of $1600. So just paying up
is a much better deal. You can understand that, right?"
Now remember, the one person responsible for the destruction
wasn't even present, so expecting him, without even being told,
to send in his 25% (much less, 100%) share would be pure
insanity. So the fine was split with A paying 2/3 and Roberto's
father paying 1/3.
Sounds like a shake-down to me. And if there is a single,
specific, main issue in all of this, it is this: was Ms. Horsey
telling the truth when she said that if the case were to go to
court that the defendents would be forced to hire an attorney? I
need an answer to that. I'm not sure I trust everything she
said. For instance, she made all of the boys and their parents
sign a "Consent For Informal Adjustment and Supervision" form.
She didn't explain what they were signing, or allow any time for
reading it. Just sign there, and hand it back.
I did read it after we left the office. The last paragraph says,
"It is further understood and agreed that if it is determined the
Informal Adjustment [i.e., shakedown] cannot be completed
satisfactorily, the Intake Officer, with supervisory approval,
may terminate the Informal Adjustment, authorize the filing of a
petition and forward the complaint to the Office of the State's
Attorney for possible Court action."
Ms. Horsey definitely did not say anything about "supervisory
approval". She left no doubt that it was her decision alone.
She also made it clear that court action would be definite, not
"possible."
To summarize, I am very disturbed that the DJJ, with all of its
resources and manpower, seems not to care about the specific
problems a juvenile may have. Catch a kid; nail him (or more
specifically, nail his parents. Both parents also lost a day's
wages.) It doesn't matter what for, really. In this case, if
you need help, the problem is that B is often truant, and C
almost always. Is there anything you can do about that? Or are
you like a police department that struts around all big and
tough, handing out parking tickets, setting up speed traps (and
sticking guns in the face of kids playing hooky)?
Your mickey mouse shakedowns, besides being a joke, only create
more problems for the parents. (You wouldn't know, but I do,
that A deserves a medal for all she has done for her kids under
unthinkably difficult circumstances.)
Finally, I want to be informed of whatever action is eventually
taken against Ian. Is he off the hook now that DJJ has put on
its little show and got paid off, or is there, by any chance, an
actual concern for justice in your department?
ME: Subject: guitar pieces for concert
Here are my pieces for the program:
Scraps from the Opera (1868) arr. Justin Holland
Faust Waltz (Gounod, 1859) (1819-1887)
Norma (Bellini, 1831)
Bob Wysong, guitar
Donald Sauter, guitar
La Manola (P. Henrion) arr. Justin Holland, 1860
Edna N. Simms, soprano
Donald Sauter, guitar
Any chance the guitars can go first? There's a lot of setting up
to do, plus tuning. And if there's room in the program, could
you print a short note about Holland?
Justin Holland (1819-1887) - civil rights activist, linguist and
teacher of the piano, flute and guitar. Holland was the foremost
American guitarist of his generation, with over 350 published works.
ME: Subject: catching up
I've started volunteering at the elementary school again, and it
has done wonders for my mood. Besides roving around the computer
lab helping kids here and there about half a day a week, I'm
working regularly with a 1st-grader named Rashard who needs a
little catching up. Most people who have dealt with him also
mention his "anger", but I've seen almost none of that. We have
a great time.
We got a nice snow down here a few weeks ago. Some of it is
still lingering in spite of many warm days recently. I got in 3
good sledding sessions. (Could have had more, but I was starting
to wear out.)
I took A and 2 of her boys to the Department of Juvenile Justice
last week. They hadn't done anything serious. As always, when I
see any part of our justice system in action from the inside, I
just about explode with frustration and anger. I wrote a letter
about it to the area director of the DJJ. I'm thinking of
putting it on the web, too. Man, when I see the imbeciles who
somehow get in a position to judge the rest of us...
I got a Hself a website, and put her writings up on it. The
story has a long way to go, and I'm disappointed I can't nudge
her to get it all done. When it's finished, then maybe we can
start worrying about getting it translated. I am actually very
impressed with her internet skills, considering I gave her an old
dinosaur of a computer, and she has to do everything the "hard
way", like me. She figured many things out on her own.
ME: nouns: person (red), place (blue), thing (green)
Ah ha, somehow I had never connected the circus poster with the
first half of the 1800s - always thought '70s or '80s.
Ah ha, "circus in 1968". Now I know. Don't believe I'd heard
that one before.
I finally wrapped up Porgy And Bess. I think I could fit the
highlights on a 12" 45 (personally speaking, of course.) And I
didn't even like the story. Should be called Porgy And No Bess.
Having much more delightful results with my recent haul from the
library. [Wow! Since then Porgy & Bess has become one of my
favorites! An American masterpiece!]
I suppose that guy who died the day before the MASH guy was a
MASH guy who played the same role on tv?
That was quite a surprise about Charles M. Schulz. I had gone to
the Washington Post site Sunday night for a completely different
reason (obviously). I mean, I only visit their site every few
months, so it was quite a coincidence. I hope people notice that
my auction predates his death. I see there are about 3600
Peanuts items out there now. I was hoping to get maybe $20, but
the minimum bid is ok, too. I got an email from someone saying
what a great auction it is, but I don't see people killing each
other for it.
I went in to school today for the sole purpose of working with
Rashard. It was good. I'm sure I've found my calling (or *a*
calling), but I need a helping hand from someone inside the
system (as always.)
ME: Subject: 39 cent burgers
No, never heard of American History X. Sounds very interesting,
although I worry it could be way too intense for my fragile
constitution.
My auction of [years' worth of] Sunday comics is up to a whopping
$11.50.
Heading down tomorrow to visit my friend in Dale City, Va. We
always whoop it up with dinner at the McDonald's there. It's the
coolest one I've ever been in. It has a real juke box - and you
don't have to put money in!
THEE: Subject: Busy times
You're a true mench for working with Rashad. (Mench--Yiddish for
honorable man.) I honor thee for helping a kid who needs it.
Talk about incidents that could change history!
The assassination attempt on Roosevelt was something I'd only
heard about vaguely. I was glad I found a good web site on it,
though I'm still not sure what the mayor of Chicago was doing in
Miami. Did you visit the web site? The stricken mayor, who had
tumbled from the car, is said to have screamed something like,
"Get the president away to safety!" Roosevelt, however, made the
driver stop the car and help the mayor back in. Roosevelt held
him on the way to the hospital. That's two stand-up guys, or
menches.
Last night, I taught and it went pretty well. I discovered that
one of my students was Hungarian so, of course, I asked her what
Bogar means. Her English was poor (that's why she's in my class,
of course) but I get the idea it means "black dog." Fair enough.
THEE: Re: 39 cent burgers
Hope you got the 'bad bath' you wanted. Ha!
I wish you luck on your Peanuts stuff...but is $11 worth all the
hassle of dealing with someone over postage, etc? I have these
old He-Man Castles. Hself wanted to give them away, or trash
them, but I insisted on bringing them to the new house. He
finally thought they might be worth money. BUT, I don't want to
try to auction them. I still think they are cool. I'm planning
on keeping the characters. I know...I'm nuts. But when I'm
66... maybe I'll have time to play with them again.
It's 'The Quiet Sear'....yet it's a play on words. Jay Morgans
told me it's like a burning observation of people in a bus
station...so it could be sear or seer....in a way.
ME: a milkman moment
I seem to remember some discussion of the confusion surrounding
Segovia's birthday. I put my money on March. Coincidentally, I
saw a picture of him in his 20s in a book about Heitor Villa-
Lobos at LC today. Don't know how to describe the effect, but
the picture stopped me in my tracks.
Re: the Dylan/Cash sessions. The thought of becoming a Dylan
scholar has always made me tremble. In comparison, becoming an
expert on opera would be like watching a cartoon. I didn't know
about the Johnny Cash special you mentioned. Have you seen it?
I know the two of them recorded a lot of songs because I heard
WMUC play a 45 or so minute set once. I about annihilated you
once by trying to play a few minutes of hightlights.
Since my last letter, I've listened to Sweet Apple Trax, volumes
1 and 2, and watched Let It Be in my head to the beat of In A
Play Anyway. Ahhh, opera and Get Back boots... is there a need
for anything else?
Down in the Dale City McDonalds, Hself and I always pick songs
on the jukebox to test each other. Actually, I play about
90% of the selections. I fired up California Girls, and Hself
said California Dreaming (as would half the population). He
even hung on to that as his "final answer" a few times when I
said "nope".
Bumped into Zakiya, one of my 2nd-graders, in the grocery store
tonight. The kids make you feel like such a celebrity. I should
do more grocery shopping at normal times.
If it were something you could put on scales, I'll bet you'd find
that Rashard is doing more for me than the other way around.
Your teaching anecdote reminds me of Hself. In her new job, she
sometimes gets called on as a Spanish/English translator. Of
course, everybody is always surprised to see fluent Spanish come
pouring out of her. It generally makes for a humorous situation.
P.S. I got quite a shock when I checked my auction tonight -
maybe there *will* be something for you.
ME: You're right, selling something on ebay is *work*. What
happened to me, and I suppose to others, too, is that you just
get started on it without thinking through everything involved.
And then it's too late to turn back. (Another way of looking at
it is that it's recreational, not work. I mean, you could be
watching tv instead.) Luckily, I had just the right size box
around the house. And I had a friend do some scanning for me,
and I just brought a few comics along. Where I really started to
lose it was composing the item description itself. Man, that was
as much work as any of my web pages! Anyhow, the auction will be
closing in a few minutes, and when I logged on it was up to $91.
Funny thing is, the satisfaction comes more from having put up
something that caught people's interest. $91 *might* be minimum
wage for all the work involved. Still, it's nicer than $10!
By all means, *don't* sell off He-Man Castles that you plan to
use in the nursing home.
I didn't *run* for president last time, and I'm not *running* for
president this time - although I *did* register with the FEC
again. I'm not lifting a finger (much less a foot), besides
answering questions people may ask. Because of the internet,
things *are* much different this time. People *do* come to you.
A variety of organizations have sent me questionnaires to answer.
I'm happy to do that, and then I add it to my web page that
collects such things.
Pooey. I forgot about how the Waterboys came up. I thought you
mentioned them because you knew them. That's why I was trying to
impress you with my "amazing" Waterboys knowledge, which is
nothing, really. I had jotted some notes on the album when I
listened to it a long time ago. And on top of that, I see a
fatal typo in my previous letter! "I hope you tell your dj
friend to play them [Waterboys] for me!" was supposed to be, "I
hope you *didn't* tell..."
Everything's relative and, given my exciting life, and one could
accurately say Hself and I "whoop it up" at the Dale City
McDonalds. The jukebox really is great fun. Some of the labels
have been torn off, so punching buttons gives you a mystery song.
I've been compiling a list of these songs, and I tape it to the
jukebox. There's also a moon-face Ray Charles who sits at a
piano, but he never comes to life anymore to start playing. Oh
yeah, know what I had for dinner? *4* regular burgers, and
nothing else. That's living!
ME: BIG batch of comics
Hi felinedesign!
I just heard from ebay that my auction ended. We're talking
about:
Item # 256852598 (BIG batch of Sunday Comics - with Peanuts!)
Thanks so much for the interest in my auction!
The final price was $102.50. Book rate postage is $13.07.
That makes the total $115.57.
Thanks again!
THEE: Another chart-topper by Brian Matthew
I've now put all my 45s up on eBay. I did really well with some
of them. I just got back from the post office, where I mailed
five of them, three within the U.S., one to England, and one to
Canada. Postage, insurance, and whatever else cost me $16.95.
That sure eats into profits. Next week I hope to delve into my
comic book collection for more profitable eBay postings.
Congratulations on your auction.
We're going to the Arena Stage this afternoon to see "Guys and
Dolls."
After many years' delay, MCA finally released "BBC Sessions" by
the Who, last Tuesday. I'm listening to it now. I hope Brian
Matthew gets paid by the minute because he's really all over it,
which makes me happy.
THEE: Subject: the infamous donald sauter
First...you are in the newspaper as a presidential candidate...
then you are spotted shopping by one of your 2nd graders!! That
cool though that the kids treat you right. You're probably one
of their favorite teachers.
So, your Peanut comics are up to $91!! Maybe I should think
about giving up my castles. Funny, but I was talking about
Peanuts to my kids...and they had NO idea what I was talking
about!! They always called that stuff 'Charlie Brown'. I think
all the videos that were made about the strip was called 'Charlie
Brown something...' I had an uncle named Charlie Brown. He was
married to my father's sister. Just a useless piece of trivia
for you. BUT...that means I am Charlie Brown's niece!!
Pretty amazing about your involvement with organizations during
your presidential thing.
I don't know why you used * * so many things in this latest
letter. I prefer '...' In case you hadn't noticed...
You know...if you take the mystery away from that jukebox... by
taping the proper names onto the spots...you may be infringing on
someone else's enjoyment of the unknown... just a thought. Sort
of a reverse vandalism. Just kidding ;-)
THEE: Hi Donald; Looks like I missed a golden opportunity, I was
just in DC, but between business and sites, I didn't go into the
Library of Congress. I contacted a member of the Washington
Guitar Society when I was there but he wasn't able to suggest
anything. I do swap music, via the net, I'll send a list if your
interested let me know.
ME: Re: guitar music
I'm very curious about what your collection is like. Sure send
your list, if that's no bother, otherwise, just a few sentences
about it. I have been wondering why there are apparently so few
people thrilled about guitar music.
My situation is that there is so much public domain music at the
Library of Congress, that finding music from other sources is not
high on my priority list. It'll be a long time - probably never
- before I'm finished scouring LC. I *wwould* like to complete my
Justin Holland collection, if you can help there. If there are
pieces in my collection you really need, please ask me.
I'm also curious about who you talked to in the Washington Guitar
Society. I can't imagine who would have *not* put you in touch
with me. I had been loading the newsletter with LC goodies for
years.
ME: decent radio
Driving up to Baltimore County today, I was listening to the doo-
wop program on WTMD. The dj had Pookie Hudson and the Spaniels
in the studio. He said that we could have met them at the record
convention in Arbutus this morning (Sunday). Reminded me we have
to make an effort to get up there, eh? The Spaniels recorded on
Vee-Jay, and one of the songs they played was Peace Of Mind.
Another good one went, "Aw my Tina, sweet sixteen-a, a beauty
queen-a, in her blue jean-as." That's poetry.
I'll be playing a few pieces at the Black Composers Concert at
Catholic University on Saturday, February 26 2000 at 3:00. You
are cordially invited. It's in the Ward Recital Hall, which is
directly behind the Basilica. Here's my bits:
Scraps from the Opera (1868) arr. Justin Holland
Faust Waltz (Gounod, 1859) (1819-1887)
Norma (Bellini, 1831)
Bob Wysong, guitar
Donald Sauter, guitar
La Manola (Henrion) arr. Justin Holland, 1860
Edna N. Simms, soprano
Donald Sauter, guitar
You put up all your singles one-by-one, with a graphic, I guess?
Whew, that sounds like a lot of work, although I'll bet you had
it down to a well-oiled science. How many singles was it? Did
you pay postage for all of them?
ME: Subject: *
Well, my auction ended at $102.50. Nothing to get excited over
if you view it as "work". Now, if I had many big batches of
comics to put up on a regular basis, and got into a groove, it
could make a little spending change. Alas, it was a one-shot.
When I use asterisk pairs, the implication is *emphasis*, in
every way equivalent to italics. I think that's more or less a
standard, based on how I see them used in discussion groups.
It's always a few months between trips to Dale City, so I'm sure
my little lists won't survive the whole time. They can have it
*both* ways, some days perusing a list, some days a shot in the
dark. It's actually a disappointment to me how few people go up
to the jukebox to punch buttons. I can keep it hopping by
myself, but in a perfect world there should be a long queue.
Heard that your mom and my pop are tied at 32-32 in Phase 10,
with my mom at 30. I'm rooting for your mom.
THEE: Decency
I've been away from Arbutus for far too long!
If, as I claimed, Feb. 11 is the busiest day for the Beatles year
in and year out, Feb. 22 is the best date year in and year out to
judge the Beatles' progression from 1963 to 1969. I hope you'll
see what I mean tomorrow.
THEE: Black Composers Concert Program
The tentative program of the Black Composers Concert is attached
to this message. Please review the program and contact me for
any corrections or additions to the program.
I'm looking forward to seeing you on Saturday.
The Annual Black Composers Concert
Karen Marie Egypt, Coordinator
Edna Sims, Mistress of Ceremonies
Saturday, February 26, 2000
3:00 p.m.
Ward Recital Hall
Ev'ry Time I Feel The Spirit arr. H.T.
Burleigh
Edna N. Sims, soprano
Karen Marie Egypt, piano
A Night in Tunisia John Birks "Dizzy"
Gillespie God Bless The Child
Billie Holiday Misty
Erroll Garner
Constantine Efantis, piano
Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child arr. H.T.
Burleigh Deep River
arr. H. T. Burleigh
Elyse Schuette, soprano
Karen Marie Egypt, piano
Spring Intermezzo Betty
Jackson King Sonatina Op. 1, No. 1
Eurydice Osterman
II Cantabile
III Allegro Con Fuoco
Sharon Shafer, piano
Selections
Students of the Duke Ellington School of the Performing
Arts
Intermission
La Manola (P. Henrion) arr. Justin
Holland
Edna N. Sims, soprano
Donald Sauter, guitar
Scraps from the Opera (1868) arr. Justin
Holland
Faust Waltz (Gounod, 1859)
Norma (Bellini, 1831)
Donald Sauter, guitar
Bob Wysong, guitar
A Medley of Spirituals Negro
Spirituals
Marcia McIntyre, violin
Theme and Variations from Sonata No. 1
George Walker Rhapsody from Five Sketches
Noah Ryder
Victoria Alma Castello, piano
Cardozo Songs (poems by JoAnn Harris)
Mark Fax
Love
The Refused
Only Dreams
Selfishness
Advice To A Child
Sharon Shafer, soprano
Deep River arr. Samuel
Coleridge-Taylor
Karen Marie Egypt, piano
The Deserted Garden
Florence Price Spiritual (O, Mourner, Mourner & Swing Low, Sweet
Chariot)Clarence Cameron White Pilgrim Song (Somebody's Knocking
At Your Door) Clarence Cameron White
Phyllis Fleming, violin
Elmer Booze, piano
The Negro Speaks of Rivers Howard
Swanson Since You Went Away
James Weldon Johnson Black Piano
William Grant Still
Karl Gipson, tenor
David Chapman, piano
This program is sponsored by The Office of Multicultural &
Special Services and CUA Program Board with assistance from The
Benjamin T. Rome School of Music.
ME: punchinello funny fellow
How can you see when I'm online??? I log on to a "guest" account
with the Maryland Sailor system. I thought that kept me pretty
anonymous. Hmmmm....
I went in to school today to "work" with Rashard, but he was
absent. (Hope he's not trying to avoid me. I thought we were
pals.) The teacher was apologetic, and maybe a little worried I
was put out, but I just said, "How about Christopher, then?" She
said, "Sure!" Christopher's even harder to get a right answer
out of than Rashard, but I guess he's not viewed as having any
sort of emotional problem. So I plunked down across from
Christopher (in Rashard's chair) and a little girl runs up and
gives me a big hug. I find out her name is Lenell, and it was,
in fact, her very first day there. Her family had just come up
from Texas. Have no idea why she took to me like that, but she
pulled up a chair right there. I looked over her assignments in
math and reading, which were near-perfect, as opposed to
Christopher's, which didn't have a single answer indicating he
even knew what they wanted him to do. I mean, not even *wrong* -
I couldn't get him to understand you're supposed to put one of
the 3 supplied choices in the blanks. Lenell pulled open her
book and read me the first story - on a near-adult level. In
fact, I think the story was meant to be read to the kids, which
the teacher did to the reading group a while later. Anyhow,
another fun day.
Started getting to know Pagliacci today. Potent story, as for
most operas. Has a great final line. After everybody gets
stabbed to death at the end, Pagliaccio turns to the audience and
says, "The comedy is ended!" So far, it does show similarities
with Cavalleria Rusticana. No wonder they put both of 'em on 3
LPs in one big ol' boxed set. Vinyl is good for you.
ME: Did I ever mention that in Trovatore, old dying Azucena tells
Conti di Luna that he just executed his brother with only 24
seconds to go?
I like Zaragossa. I never knew where it was, besides in Spain
somewhere, but it's where Gaspar Sanz's guitar book was published
in 1672 (or thereabouts).
Some kindly drivers alerted me to a speed trap today that would
probably have caught me otherwise. I would have never guessed
the speed limit was 25 on such a wide, straight rod.
THEE: punchinello funny fellow
Obviously...you have a way with females. TOO cute about that
little girl who seems to have fallen in love with you
immediately.
I don't understand the mail contacts online either. I could see
the detroit one...since it was the one you sent mail from...not
the donaldsauter one. Now...don't get excited...it's not like
you showed me your SS#....oh...yeah...you did...
I think I know one song from Pagliacci...I use to have some
opera/piano book...might have gotten it from the library. I
don't remember the story...but the song went 'laugh now,
pagliacci...though your heart is breaking'...something like that.
THEE: I was pleased to find your "modernized" tablature of
Mudarra's works on the internet. Many of the fantasias are
pieces that I've been wanting to learn (other than the much
overplayed and overinterpreted # 10) for years. I have not had
the chance to research the rest of the site but will do so this
weekend.
Thanks again for all your good work!
THEE: The comedy has not yet begun!
So, what's the deal? Harrison born on Feb. 24 or 25? The
beloved web says both, depending on who you ask. I need a
straight answer!
I'm going to buy a DVD player tomorrow. I need to because the
movie "Dumb and Dumber" (1994) has a Beatle reference on it and I
only have it on DVD. I have to tape it for you.
My boss once explained to me why "Pagliacci" and "Cavalleria
Rusticana" are usually packed together. Is it just because
they're both short? Possibly.
ME: a quick one while I'm still up/cav and pag
I put my money on the birthday George had all of his life until a
few years ago when he changed it. I think that was the 25th,
right?
I'm having tremendous static problems on my phone. Thought it
was the phone, so bought a new one and the problem's still there.
Amazed that my modem can make any sense of what it gets. It does
slow things down a lot for me on the 'net.
Pagliacci came out of the same mold as Cavalleria Rusticana.
Besides same length and similar layout (there's an intermezzo at
the same spot in both) and similar style of music, they are both
example of "verismo", meaning real-life plots instead of
mythology and royalty, etc. Cav had its premiere on May 17 1890,
Pag May 22 1892. I have to wonder what Mascagni had to say about
Leoncavallo. By the way, feel free to restore the "I" to
Pagliacci - I can hardly say it without, now.
ME: final answer is... abcdefg...
Great memory about the Pagliacci song - yep, that's the one every
tenor everywhere belts out. It precedes the play the clowns are
about to perform, which mimics exactly what has been going on in
their real lives. Canio's wife is fixin to run off with another
man, so his character Pagliaccio goes a little berserk in their
little comedy.
Hself's reaction reminds me of when I played a Sorrells Pickard
song for my buddy Hself. Said he didn't like it. When pressed
for a reason he said he thought it was a lousy song. Criminy,
everything about it's top notch. Anyhow, that ruined my fun.
Some people go out to great lengths to not enjoy something.
The kids will be doing a production of Who Wants To Be
Millionaire at school tomorrow. Should be funny.
THEE: Subject: George, George, whoops, George
I'm going to rely on the info I found here:
http://www.eskimo.com/~cathy/hariontour/hariFAQ.htm
That seems authoritative enough.
THEE: Re: final answer is... abcdefg...
Amazing what I remember from things...like that Pagliacci song.
Hmm...I have trivia upon trivia stored in here...somewhere.
I hope you get a laugh from my Mosh Pit Yellow Ledbetter. I do
include a cuss word...so don't play it in front of your young
pupils. It's also a little violent. And Hself will hate it.
Play it for him one day when you are ticked with him. Sorrell
will sounds SOOOO good after me.
That Who wants to be a Millionaire thing at school sounds like
fun. Do you get to be Regis? I can see you doing the 'is that
your final answer???' line.
ME: what year did roots air a b c or d
Wondrous news on the static front. Not only did the phone
company fix it, they didn't have to come inside, so there's no
charge. In fact, they did it while I wasn't even at home. So
you can imagine what a pleasant surprise that was, after you
start thinking of everything that can go wrong, like them not
even showing up, or them insisting to check inside the house even
if they know they don't need to, or all manner of false
accusations. So now I can take the new phone I bought back (and
get my 10 bucks back.)
I was at a singer friend's place rehearsing our song for a Black
Composers Concert at Catholic University on Saturday.
The Who Wants To Be A Millionaire show at school this morning had
lots of good laughs, but was as painfully slow moving as the real
mccoy. (I've only ever been inflicted with about 45 minutes of
it in the background at my sister's house.) The mc had the part
down pat, and even had a tape of that dumb space music. One
teacher was great as a telephoned life-line - took it right down
to 29.6 seconds with small talk before saying her answer. The
poor little girl contestant was going absolutely frantic.
ME: hard evidence(?)
Whereas I am looking right now at a copy of a certified copy of
an Entry Of Birth for George Harrison which says "Twenty fifth
February 1943", please feel free to reuse yesterday's title for
the newsletter. The certified copy itself is dated July 17 1968.
ME: Subject: p.s.
Lenell kept finding excuses this morning to go across the hall to
the computer lab so she could hug me.
ME: more finds at lc
I'm still poking around the Library of Congress ocassionally.
I've been doing more exploring than copying, but I've accumulated
another small batch of music I was wondering if you'd be
interested in. This isn't a "hard sell", but I need to ask you
before I incorporate the new stuff into my collection. Once that
happens, it would be extremely difficult to bring your collection
in line with mine again. (I kind of like the idea of having my
collection duplicated somewhere.)
The new material is in the same vein as the first batch - maybe
even a little higher class. It's still mostly arrangements, but
there's a larger ratio of European to American. I'll send a
complete list of pieces in a separate email.
As always, there's lots of fun little discoveries, or at least
questions raised, going through the pieces. For instance, do you
have the Siegfried Behrend collection that includes a Bolero
attributed to Sor? I found the original, but it doesn't mention
Sor. There are some "national songs" that also popped up in
Diabelli's arrangements from Auber's Muette di Portici. There's
an arrangement of First Love by Wallerstein. Name sounded
familiar, and yes, it is the same piece as Un Premier Amour
Redowa, arranged by Holland. (I get a big kick out of comparing
arrangements.)
Speaking of Holland, I had a very nice phone chat with Ernie
Jackson, who put out an edition of Holland pieces. He is a great
guy; I hope you have reason to meet or talk to him some day. We
exchanged a few Holland pieces in our collections. In fact, the
2 Holland pieces you see in this new batch are from him. I'll be
playing a few Holland things at a Black Composers Concert this
Saturday - the Faust Waltz and one of the Normas with my guitar
partner Bob, and one of the songs, La Manola, with singer friend
Edna.
THEE: Looking for a Beatles gif file from 1960-1965
I have searched everywhere for the Beatles picture in a red and
white stripe nightshirt from the cover of Playboy Magazine Feb.
1965.Where can I find it? This is for my class.
I am a student in the CIS 172 Intro to the Internet class. This
is a requirement of Test # 1.
THEE: Presidential Election 2000
I was doing research on the prospective candidates for the Office
of President of the United States of America -- and I came across
your name and across your website. I read with great interest
your Unarchy position, and was quite fascinated by your thinking.
I can not yet say that I agree -- I would need more time to
digest what you had to say -- but I was curious particularly
about your candidacy.
What do you mean that you are running for President? What does
it take to run for President? Do you have a picture? The reason
I am asking is that I am in a government class, and we are doing
research on a particular candidate. I have selected you because
your philosophy seems most fascinating to me, and I want to learn
more about your position. One of the requirements for this
project is a picture of the candidate. Can you send me a picture
of yourself?
Best wishes and good luck in your struggle to educate America!
You have my support! (Thought not necessarily my vote.)
THEE: "You and Me for President"
Here is the notes I wrote for my presentation of your candidacy
tomorrow in class.
I hope I have presented your position satisfactorily. Let me
know if anything is false or misleading.
Keep up the fight for Truth.
"You and Me for President"
Reported by Dan Hussain ("Under the assumption that agreement or
disagreement with the issues presented is not to be assumed")
29 February 2000
Campaign slogan: Mr. Sauter's campaign slogan will be "You and Me
for President"
Direct quote from conversation with Mr. Sauter
"I am an enthusiastic classical guitar player, scrabble player,
and Beatle fan."
Another direction quote from online conversation with Mr. Sauter,
"Initiate a discussion about whether there is any better way to
determine what's "good" and what's "bad" than majority will."
Proclamation: I have tried best to present here what I
understand is Mr. Sauter's position on government. I have
written here freely, and no doubt included a lot of my own
thinking. It should also be clear that I do not endorse nor
oppose Mr. Sauter. Do not even assume that I agree with anything
written here. These are just Food for Thought.
Issues
Donald Sauter has a very simple (and elegant?) proposal for the
federal government and society. He sees his position as both
logically sound, moral, and practical and efficient. The idea is
very simple
Every government decision will be made by majority will.
What does that mean? It means that every law/practice/act to be
done by government will be put to a direct, referendum vote to
the populace. Specifically, Mr. Sauter proposes the following
single plank to his whole campaign:
The president will act according to the majority will.
The ultimate goal, of course, is to eliminate government and
replace it with "competing" private firms. In practice, if
elected President (And this is a big if), Mr. Sauter promises to
make no act until a vote of the people has been taken. Then, he
will act on the vote of the simple majority.
Sauter has the fascinating position that requiring a
supermajority for any action (such as the conviction or acquittal
of a convict) stalls action and puts a gridlock into the system.
According to Mr. Sauter's proposal, which he calls Unarchy, every
action requires a simple majority vote - no more, and no less.
Mr. Sauter's position really challenges us to whether or not we
really believe in democracy. Do we really believe in the
majority's right and intelligence to make proper choices and
decisions? Or do we think that a "guided-minority" should direct
American politics - a minority that "knows better" or "has
greater qualifications" or "is more intelligent" or simply, "has
more time to think"? That assertion goes to the heart of the
democratic question, and Mr. Sauter has raised it in his
candidacy for President. Unfortunately, the majority of the
media is ignoring it. (To the peril of politics.)
So the question really is: Can the majority make a moral, just,
fair decision? Mr. Sauter's position is that it is the only
thing that can. To think that a minority has the right to impose
its position on the majority is absurd, and flies in the face of
democracy.
History has been the increasing acknowledgement of Everyman's
capabilities to Think, to Act, and to Chose - Wisely, Rationally,
and Objectively. These are abilities that are not reserved to a
Select Minority, But rather, belong to the each Individual Human
Being. These are qualities that can be fostered and nourished in
all people. The Majority is Rational, Wise, and Just - but only
if it chooses to!
It is time for American's to assert their Individual Dignity,
Intelligence, and Self-Reliability and Strength by standing up
for their ability to Chose their Destiny. And that is a vote for
Unarchy. [No, unarchy is the perfect system of justice.]
ME: you and me for president
Thanks for taking an interest in my ideas. I don't think of
myself as "running" for president. I'm just putting an idea out
there for everyone's consideration. If one day the New York
Times stumbles on it and says, "Wow, this is great!", so be it.
If not, so be it. All it takes to register one's candidacy is
filling out a very short and simple form and mailing it to the
Federal Election Commission. To be honest, I don't know why
there aren't a million candidates!
Make sure you understand that unarchy is *not* my presidential
platform. Take a careful look at
http://www.geocities.com/donaldsauter/prez.htm
and
http://www.geocities.com/donaldsauter/elec2000.htm
I've never held an office before. My "qualifications" are that I
am perfectly happy to let majority will dictate every
presidential action.
There is a picture of me at my website, although I have no links
to it. Go to
http://www.donaldsauter.com/dsmw.jpg
You can find personal information about me in my resume:
http://www.donaldsauter.com/resume.htm
Mosey around my website and you will find many "pieces of
information" about me. For instance, I am an enthusiastic
classical guitar player, scrabble player and Beatle fan. You'll
see in my resume that I volunteer time at the local elementary
school, working mostly with first- and second-graders.
Send all your classmates to my website! Also, initiate a
discussion about whether there is any better way to determine
what's "good" and what's "bad" than majority will.
ME: Looking for a Beatles gif file from 1960-1965
I'm afraid that I've misled you - the cover picture features a
female model in the nightshirt, not the Beatles. I associate the
cover picture strongly with the Beatles since they are mentioned
on the cover, and the issue contains their interview, but they
are not pictured on the cover. I'm sorry to send you on a wild
goose chase!
By the way, I wish someone could track down a picture of the
uncropped Beatles VI album cover photo. See my page
http://www.donaldsauter.com/beatles-vi-cover.htm
ME: you and me...
I just read your paper on my candidacy. I like it. In many
instances I felt like, "I wish I had said that!" In one or 2
instances I thought you had ever so slightly "put words in my
mouth", but nothing serious enough to worry about.
The only big mistake is that my presidential platform is *not*
unarchy. Unarchy is my vision of all government being reduced to
nothing but a simple system of justice based on common sense and
conscience - no laws, lawmakers, lawyers or judges; only juries
casting votes. They argument is, whatever happens within the
framework of people treating each other fairly is ok. When that
time comes, we may all live in mansions, or all in cardboard
boxes, or the whole spectrum of everything in between - and it
will be all right.
My presidential platform relates to unarchy only in that it would
be the first teeny-tiny baby step in getting people to see that
they don't have to live in fear of majority rule.
Thanks again for your interest. I'm flattered!
ME: Thanks again for the enthusiastic support at the guitar
recital last Saturday. It really means a lot. I count up 9
people who came at my invitation. I remember last year there
weren't any.
Had a bizarre dream 2 nights ago where I was getting furious for
some reason - and I was wrecking Berliner gramophones! (What does
that mean?)
Did you say you had color pics from the Scott expedition in your
possession? If so, feel free to bring them along tonight.
Bought a few more records at the library today. I'm embarrassed
to admit, yes, once again, I paid an unthinkable 50 cents per
disk. I guess they know a sucker when they see one.
Was baffled at the name "Burnell" as the discoverer of pulsars.
I had never heard anything other than Jocelyn Bell. Wonder when
she got married. You know, I began working at the National Radio
Astronomy Observatory not many years after the discovery of
pulsars. There was an exciting atmosphere in radio astronomy
then. (May still be; I don't know.)
ME: gris and backus
I got the latest Soundboard yesterday. Haven't had a chance to
go through it, but just thought I'd mention the big kick I got
out of the cover. I guess some computer went haywire with a
digitized version of the original? It happened that a guitar
friend was visiting at the time, and the cover goof-up brought to
mind the horror story of your Guitar In America anthology. I dug
out your interview by Fred Noad. If it helps any, we feel your
pain. On the plus side, we had a few chuckles. I hope that's
ok, what with the passage of time and all.
Of course, I always head straight for "Return With Us Now". You
say Backus's name is new to you, so I guess you forgot a small
mention in an earlier Soundboard? In the 5th installment of the
Fiset letters (letter XVII, SB winter 1991, page 27), Fiset
writes: "Also am working up Strauss Autograph Waltzes arr. by
Backus which are exquisite on guitar..." So we know at least
one person could play it! (Assuming Fiset finished working it
up.)
I noticed an error in the waltz on page 6, staff 3, measure 4,
where the C's should be C# (I think).
While I'm writing, I invite you to look over the public domain
guitar music on my page:
http://www.donaldsauter.com/lcgtr.htm
If *anything* looks like it might go good in Soundboard, just
ask. How about Sousa's Liberty Bell March and/or Hail To The
Spirit Of Liberty March for the summer issue? A friend tells me
the former is used as the theme music for one of those British
comedy tv shows (I forget which).
Also would like to offer, as always, my services restoring any
music you want to put in the Soundboard in facsimile. I think
I've developed a good knack for doctoring music. (This isn't a
complaint about the Strauss waltz. Its original was obviously in
fine shape.)
THEE: Take Linda Surfing
That's a weird dream, man. You love the old grammophones, but
you want to clear them away and embrace the latest technology!
I'm a trained mental health professional. You can trust my
analysis. (No you can't.)
I found a pretty good page about the pulsar discoverer. It may
answer some of your questions about where she is now. It's at
http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/whos_who_level1/bell.html.
It says she has one child, a son.
I'm warming to the Beach Boys book I'm reading, "The Nearest
Faraway Place." Today I read just a little about Jan and Dean's
early semi-concept LP, "Take Linda Surfing." I'm fairly sure
you've told me in the past that it's THAT Linda. I may have to
bring a Jan and Dean CD with me tonight.
THEE: gris and backus
Good for you to remember that Fiset reference! It never crossed
my mind. Yes, those Cs on page 6 you mention should probably be
sharps. (You find this a lot in old prints, where the engraver
forgets that a barline cancels an accidental in a previous
measure). Have you figured out what the "+" signs represent?
Yes, I did notice that cover and could have made a fuss when I
saw the blueline. But as the magazine was already two months late
and it would have taken another month at least to fix the
problem, I just let it go. In the original, you can just see the
legs of a table on which this cubist guitar. When I sent the
print, I drew arrows, so whoever would know which way was up.
Don't know what happened in the cropping: the table legs got
dropped and then the whole thing was turned kind of sideways.
The Liberty Bell March was the Monty Python theme. I think a
Sousa march might be nice for the summer issue.
THEE: Beatle Significa
Hi, I am going to be selling some Beatles items at the March 2000
Beatlfest and I was wonder if you still had a case of the Beatles
Significa left. I only have a few left from the last case. I
want to sell some and give some away to other who purchase items
at my table.
Let me know if you have some left. The Beatlefest is March 24
THEE: Re: you and me...
I have presented your position & your candidacy to my AP
Government class in high school. The presentation went very
well, and I have recieved very positive feedback and interest in
your candidacy. It seems that people are interested in new and
"different" ideas.
I have been in conversation with the other students and with my
teacher (Mr. Jones), and they were wanted me to ask you if you
would be willing to come to our class and talk to us about your
position & your candidacy.
I go to a high school called Richland Senior High School, and we
are located in Johnstown, PA. The address of our school is 220
Highfield Avenue, Johnstown, PA 15904. We are about 3 hours away
from Washington, D.C. to give you a sense of where we are
located.
Would you want to come to our school one day and give a talk to
our class?
Thanks.
PS -- The Mars Society is a space-advocacy group. Our position
is that the best investment that governments and private
corporations over the world can make is a manned mission to Mars.
Specifically, we seek to increase funding for Space Science,
Research, & Development. Visit us at http://www.marssociety.org/
THEE: what year did roots air a b c or d
I think Roots aired in 1976. I know I was living at ... Maybe
1975....near there.
Roots trivia that I remember...Kunta Kinte...Lamar Burton...
get's half his foot cut off for trying to escape. Kunta's
daughter's name meant 'stay put'. The daughter spits in the cup
of water she gives her old childhood friend when they are old.
Gosh, Lenell is so funny! I mean, you are certainly a nice
guy, but why is she so nuts over you! Kind of weird. Maybe
it's the age though. We were at a birthday party for one of my
grandkids, and one of David's great-nieces went nuts over him.
Guess she doesn't usually get attention from nice men.
Or...maybe it's just some unexplainable thing. Pheromones.
Yeah, that must be it. She's already addicted to you.
Glad your phone was repaired with no hassle or expense. That is
almost unheard of!!
Guess you are at your concert now. Hope it went well.
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire is so slow. I've gotten into it
once or twice if David is watching it with me. Wonder why the
public loves it so much. Jeopardy is faster....maybe it is the
slow pace they like. Life is so stressful. I worked last
weekend...which means I got a day off during the week. I took
last Monday off. Today, I am still so UN-relaxed. Course,
sometimes game shows like that are more anxious than
relaxing...as you wait for the outcome. Strange
phenomena...people are weird.
ME: Subject: sousa
I'll put the 2 Sousa marches I mentioned in the mail shortly,
probably with some or all of the other ones I have. They are all
unmarked and pristine. (I treat my 1st-generation copies of LC
music as archival.) Most of these marches indicate an optional
second guitar part which don't seem to be at LC. Still, the main
guitar part is written to be stand-alone.
No, I don't know what the + signs are for in the Backus
arrangement. I know I use completely different fingerings from
Backus in that section.
I doubt you're inclined to dwell on it, but I viewed it as sort
of a mental puzzle. Comparing the SB cover with the picture on
page 67, it looks like the cropping itself was not all that
severe - about 1/4 inch off the left side, and about 3/16 off the
right side of the b&w picture. The remainder was rotated
90 degrees and s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d to fit the designated space on
the cover. Actually, both table legs are there, but the left one
is hard to recognize because the bit of table *top* was cropped.
If the Soundboard gets too far behind schedule, my 2 cents is
don't worry about it - just skip an issue. It always takes me by
surprise when it pops up in my mailbox anyway. It's not like I
look for it on a particular day.
Since I last wrote, I've enjoyed Piece Sur Un Theme Bulgare and
Swing Along.
ME: Subject: darn, subject block again
Thanks for the fine visit. On an ordinary evening, the straight-
edged record would have been the highlight, but it had
insurmountable competition tonight, including but not limited to
Figaro's theme song, Jim!, a bogus Linda, and new-phase
strawberry shortcake.
The science projects were displayed at school today. I liked one
that proved that baths use less water than showers. I've been
trying to tell people this all my life. On the other hand, I had
to look askance at the one that proved that baths use *more*
water than showers. I'm sure the experimenter was led on by a
preformed conclusion.
There was one that really pulled the rug out from under my
physics-based persona. It proved that a balloon filled with air
weighs more than an uninflated one. There was a picture, even,
of the filled balloon pulling its side of the scale down. Looks
like I'll have to try this myself.
THEE: Re: gris and backus
Well, I paid a visit to your LOC site and must say that it sounds
like you've been one busy beaver. There's one thing I fail to
get, though. You say you have focused all your attention on
classes M129, M128, and 125 (the arrangements) and have left the
original material alone. Could I ask your thinking behind this? I
have no difficulty with transcriptions, but I think the original
stuff has even more interest, being the instrument's legitimate
repertoire.
ME: Subject: invitation
I am sincerely flattered by your invitation to visit your school
and talk about my candidacy. I have to decline for 2 main
reasons.
First, I am not really very comfortable at public speaking, and,
to be honest, there really is not much more to say than what you
have already reported to your class.
Second, I wouldn't do it for the reason that I don't want to give
the appearance of having anything in common with those guys you
see on the front of the newspaper every day embarrassing and
humiliating themselves in their all-consuming quest for power.
Keep in mind that I would decline an interview with the New York
Times, or an invitation to the Oprah show. Talking with you was
fun because that was on the level of friends, as opposed to
actual campaigning. I hope that makes some sense, even though
visiting your school is a far cry from promoting my candidacy.
By the way, could I have your permission to put your report up on
my website? I have a page devoted to answering questions from
people and organizations; it would be nice to have a page that
gathers things that have been written about my idea.
THEE: Subject: president
Too bad you can't come -- my class was hoping to seeing you and
discussing some of your ideas with you.
Feel free to post the stuff that I wrote about you on your
website.
Good luck for the future!
THEE: The bum's mush
Proof my brain is turning to mush:
Well, first, you will be very surprised (not) to hear that that
darn record wouldn't play on either of my turntables. If I lean
back right now, I can featch it out of the trashcan behind me.
Hself had to remind me that several months after I bought that LP,
Hself Q gave me another copy as a Christmas present, not knowing
I already had it. So, where is my second copy? I think it's in
Q's basement, waiting to be photographed for eBay. Q thinks I
successfully sold it at their April 1998 yard sale. Stay tuned!
Even though this "Linda" thing is going to be a big problem, I'm
really enjoying my book now.
THEE: Re: The Laxton's Superb Awards!
Congratulations! Your Beatles site has been chosen to be
nominated in the Third Annual Laxton's Superb Awards! The
premiere Beatles Web Site award on the net has you nominated in
the following category:
Best Beatles Journalism Site
Attached you'll find a "nominee" banner which you can use to
lead your visitors to the About.com Beatles site. It's not
necessary for you to put this on your site, but it WILL increase
your chances of winning. There's also a "nominee" jpg for those
of you who need a smaller image. If you choose to add either
image to your site, please make sure it points to this exact URL:
http://beatles.about.com/library/weekly/aa030400.htm
This will ensure that you send them to the precise voting place,
where they can e-mail me their vote. Visitors can ALSO vote for
you there as Web Site Of The Year. DEADLINE FOR VOTING IS
MIDNIGHT EST, MARCH 31ST, 2000. Please also change any "Mining
Co." references on your site to "About.com."
If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail me! And
thanks for creating such a great site!
ME: Subject: on the way
I got your latest package of goodies on the way today. It's
great. (I can vouch for it!)
Here's a few comments on what you'll find. (This is probably
more for my pleasure than your own necessity.)
You'll see the European editions are on the top, even though I
put them last in the list I sent you. Otherwise, the list should
be in agreement with the stack of music. (Let me know if you
want the list again.) All the pieces in the list have been
incorporated into my main list, but I haven't uploaded the latest
version to my website yet.
The Coste arr. of Lucia di Lamermoor may look horrible, but,
believe me, I've improved it a million percent. In the original
the staff lines were half missing and the background speckling
almost overwhelmed the music.
When you see dark edges, as in the Cuttoli, it means a tightly
bound edition that wouldn't lie flat on the copier. I can live
with it. Had a lot of fun with the Barbier di Siviglia, after
listening to the opera. (I think it's the same key.) Go as fast
as you can, and just play the graces as glissandos. Those single
notes 2/3 down page 6 are the famous "Figaro, figaro, figaro..."
The anonymous Bolero is the one I mentioned I have attributed to
Sor in a collection by Siegfried Behrend.
Compare some of the pieces in the Guitar Album (Lafleur) with
similar ones in Diabelli's arangement of La Muette di Portici. I
wonder what the story is. Also, I think the anonymous arranger
did a nice job. For example, just to look at it, I wouldn't see
anything special in God Save the King, but it sounds very good -
nice bass line.
I'll admit I still haven't found the groove with Bane's personal
"tuneing". This is one I got from copyright deposit, not the
music division's collection.
I guess the Largo by Handel and Dead March From Saul are only the
2nd and 3rd Baroque pieces I've found in all of this music.
Compare Brachet's arrangement of Traumbilder with the first of "3
German Airs" by Hayden found on the LC American Memories website.
Does Hail Columbia sound like Itsy Bitsy Spider?
Frey's Carnival Of Venice is one I found and copied years ago,
which explains my measure numbers. It was in the guitar trio
class.
La Savane and Morningstar Waltz are courtesy of Ernie Jackson. I
did major doctoring on what he sent me to create masters.
Janon's Heimweh also came from the copyright warehouse.
In one of the Fiset letters in Soundboard (winter 89-90, p21) he
says the intro Romero slapped on Souvenir d'Amerique came from
Ferrer's Home Sweet Home.
Without a doubt, I'm the world's biggest T. P. Trinkaus fan. I
get such a kick playing songs from the Top 40 at the turn of the
century. If it weren't for Trinkaus, I would never have had a
chance to hear it.
Is Wailand the same as Weiland?
El Zapateado we already met in the Guitar Album.
Finally, First Love by Wallerstein you already have arranged by
Holland, called Un Premier Amour Redowa.
ME: hooray for arrangements
I copied 3 Sousa marches for you today: The Liberty Bell; Stars
And Stripes Forever; and Hail To The Spirit Of Liberty. They
were the most patriotic titles of the 12 or so Sousa arrangements
I have.
I figure before I seal up the envelope and send it off I'd ask if
there's anything else you see that you might want, either for
yourself or the Soundboard. Knock yourself out!
About going for the arrangements at LC first, I tried to explain
my wacky reasons in an essay on my web page. It seemed to me
like it would be a lot of fun - and it has been! It gives such a
fantastic window on the wider music scene of that era - serious,
popular and that all-American hybrid stuff. Don't ask me why,
but for old guitar music, I feel like arrangements *are* bona
fide guitar compositions. If Yamashita arranges Lucia di
Lamermoor for guitar, that's "just" a transcription, but if Coste
or Dorn did - that's guitar music! Also, with arrangements,
you'd expect the quality of the music to be higher, in general.
Think of Hayden's originals versus his arrangements. Also, the
LC collection of originals is so overwhelming, where would I
start??? I'd have to be *very* selective, and for me that would
require taking my guitar in (which I did for years, actually) to
decide which pieces make the cut. (The irony is, if I've played
it at the library, why copy it?) With a "junky" little
arrangement, at least you know you're getting a taste of music
that was somehow important at the time.
Any of that make any sense? Anyhow, if I live to be 120, I might
make a dent in the guitar originals at LC. Also, if my guitar
philanthropist steps forward and coughs up a paltry minimum wage
for me to dig up guitar music at LC and make it available to the
world, I'd start today, with gusto!
ME: Finally got full payment for my "big batch of Sunday comics"
today and sent that off. Also sent off a batch of guitar music
to a guitarist who has been buying what I dig out of LC. Also
returned the size L shiny blue shirt that I didn't need because
size M fit well. I'm in the money.
Made another batch of split pea soup today. Wonder how many
pounds of that 8-pound ham are still in my freezer.
Listened to the first 2 sides of your Irish album - and noted the
highlights. Why won't somebody hire me to separate wheat from
chaff, music-wise?
Do you have any reliable info on the actual popularity of
Pachelbel's Canon through the years. I believe I read that it
was "discovered" in the 1930s. Why this is important to me is
that the 2 variations Justin Holland wrote on Nearer My God To
Thee in the 1860s sound to me a lot like the Canon.
I turned down an invitation to talk to a high school class in
Pennsylvania about my candidacy. Guess I'll get roughed up at
the airport now. [That's a jokey Beatles in the Philipines
reference.]
THEE: hooray for arrangements
I have no complaints as far as transcriptions, although I am
sometimes uneasy when I see a guitar program that is made up of
nothing but: Bach, Chopin, Albeniz, and so on. It rather suggests
that the guitar doesn't have a legitimate repertoire of its own
and must accumulate one by "cradle robbing." Chopin, in
particular, was such an idiomatic piano composer -- just think of
the way he used the damper -- that whatever one does is apt to
come out differently. Nice perhaps, but different.
Still, a good arrangement can be a thing of beauty and perfectly
legitimate. There is no doubt that the guitarists of whom we
speak were better arrangers than composers. Furthermore, the
homophonic styles of the 19th century allowed arrangements to be
carried off easily, and much of what we're talking about here is
really lighter, salon music. I also see your point of having to
limit yourself. To tackle the entire holdings of the LofC would,
indeed, open a can of worms.
Like you, I think Trinkhaus did some good work (do you know
anything about him biographically?) and a couple of those titles
are just irresistible. Also, if you ever run across a copy of
A.J. Weidt's "Down the Mississippi: Banjo Imitation," let me
know! Please consider providing:
Bane//Bane's Grand March
Bane// Boston visit waltz
Fiset/Saint-Saens/Romance sans paroles
Trinkhaus/Perrin/Ma afro-Mexician queen
Trinkhaus/Whitney/The donkey laugh
THEE: Back at the libes
I had a fine time at the Library of Congress today. I tracked
down nine articles for Hself (from a list of 11), including two on
microfilm. Incidentally, someone told me toward the end of my
researches that my card expired 15 months ago. The only Doyle
article I requested was unavailable. I read about 100 pages of
"The Nearest Faraway Place" while I waited, so I consider the day
successful. I had visions of you cringing as I OK'd each of my
lousy (but readable) photocopies. It was good to be back.
I meant to ask you about your 2000 campaign.
I know nada about the history of "Canon." I always thought it
was rediscovered just in time for the film "To Fly."
I'm glad you got your pay for you Sunday comics. I'm putting
comic books up these days and they're selling, though not for
huge sums.
ME: 20 words per minute
I've now finished 8 sides of your Irish album. It's gonna be a
very good "best of" tape (assuming you stick to the script.)
Got a refill order for a carton of Beatle games. My dealer who
sets up in Meadowlands does so well, I should try to find one
dealer in each of the Beatlefest cities.
My website just got a nomination for the Laxton's Superb award as
best Beatles journalism site. Voting ends Mar 31.
I have a guitar arrangement of a Rossini aria called "Di Tanti
Palpiti" which is identified as coming from Barbiere di Siviglia.
Well, I've listened to the whole opera several times now, and
nothing jumped out as sounding like this guitar piece. In fact,
I've just gone through the 1st 5 sides again, trying to hear it.
(Shades of "Figaro, Figaro...") Oh yeah, I also skimmed the
libretto about 4 times for those words, without luck. So,
tonight, I did a web search - and it turns out Di Tanti Palpiti
is from Tancredi! The other neat thing was the surprise I got
when the Alta Vista's 7th hit was my own web page listing my
guitar music from LC!
If I read a 100 pages of *anything* "while I waited", that would
imply a week's wait for something.
ME: Subject: pearl jam, opera
Thanks for the tape! It's a lot of fun - just like being there
in the mosh pit! (Hold it, what's so fun about that???) Do I
detect that you actually recorded a fresh performance for my
tape? That would explain Hself's groans, as opposed to if you
just dubbed an old recording.
Finally got full payment for my "big batch of Sunday comics" and
sent that off. The first check didn't include postage, so I had
to email for that. Where are people's heads?
A high schooler in Pa. did a report on my candidacy. It went
over so well that they invited me to come to the school to give a
talk. I had to turn them down. I explained that I would turn
down the New York Times and the Oprah show, too. I don't want to
look like a Don Quixote or something. I'm just putting an idea
out there.
Glad that *somebody* agrees with me about the torturous slow pace
of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.
p.s.
Funniest little Lenell anecdote from last week was when I was
walking out of the computer lab, and she was first in the line
getting ready to leave her classroom, and she sees me and comes
running out for a hug, and the teacher, who is already going a
little crazy getting the kids to line up, yells, "Where are *you*
going!?" Then she looks out and sees it was me, and just laughs.
THEE: inquiry
Dear Donald, firgst of all pleasge forgsive me twhe bxroken
keybxoard.
I have the follotwing inquiry: are you atware of gsome
potpourris for cello and guitar, besides Bobrowisz, Matiegka, and
Dotzauer? Many thanks in advance.
ME: Going into school tomorrow morning (Tuesday) to work in Ms.
Kelley's 1st-grade class. I start with two, but before you know
it, 5 or 6 kids are climbing over my head.
ME: Subject: music on the way
Your little batch of music is on its way. You picked some real
winners. I squelched the urge to pile on more. My tendency is
to think along the lines, "If he wants this, he'd get a kick out
of this one, too!"
Both pieces by Bane are good and playable, although I,
personally, have to change a lot of fingerings. You'll also see
a strange high G to be played open, or as a harmonic, I suppose,
in the first part of the Grand March. But in some cases it's
hard or impossible to play as a harmonic. The real eyebrow
raiser is a section that reminds me of the middle section of
Villa-Lobos's Etude 1. And, on top of that, there's a section of
the Boston Visit Valse that reminds me of the *outer* sections of
the Villa-Lobos Etude. There's an E minor melody that slides up
and down the 4th string. This is stacking the deck, but play the
treble chords in that section as 8th notes.
In the Boston Visit, I think the low E in page 1, staff 6,
measure 6 should be a G. That's the only mistake I found in all
5 pieces.
Fiset's arrangement of the Saint-Saens Romance is an exercise in
frustration (for me.) When I plug away at it, I can almost get
it to sound like something, but since I never made a copy to
finger, I have to start from scratch every time I come back to
it. I remember solving each problem spot, but never getting it
to flow. Fiset talks about it in SB spring 90, page 35, 36. I
wonder if Mr. Sheppard was totally candid about the piece to
Fiset. I seem to remember somewhere else in the letters Sheppard
admitted having trouble playing something which I'm betting was a
lot easier than the Romance.
There weren't fancy covers for any of the pieces, except for the
Fiset, which you already have.
I used the best full-service copier in my area, but when I got
home I took a closer and saw that it shifted the images to the
right and up, even lopping off the top of a few page numbers. It
also copied lighter than it ever has before. If it had been a
big job, I would have had them run my test pattern first. I
suspect the rest of the world wouldn't see anything wrong with
them, but I am very picky about copies.
On that subject, the music pages for the Sousa pieces are equal
to or better than the original, but the covers are very slightly
inferior to my 1st-generation copies. Again, I don't think the
rest of the world would notice, but if you want 1st-gen copies
for any of the Sousa covers (for Soundboard, say), just ask.
Nope, I don't know anything about Trinkaus. In fact, anything I
*do* know about American guitarists comes from you.
I'd be more than happy to take a look for the Weidt piece next
time I go down LC.
By the way, is it well known in the guitar world that the guitar
is used in the Barbier di Siviglia? I never knew it. In a score
published in 1860, there's a note saying the guitar part in the
autograph is in a different hand from Rossini's. I wonder whose.
THEE: Subject: Re: on the way
Thanks for all of the info! I'm really looking forward to getting
the package. I've still got a big pile to of music to read from
the last batch you sent! (Piano and guitar stuff). Anyway, I
really appreciate all of your hard work. Please keep me informed
of any new finds! Sorry to be so brief but I'm now preparing for
a concert in San Francisco that's next week. I'm playing a piece
called YAWP by Belinda Reynolds. It's really cool but it ain't
easy! Should be fun.
ME: ##@!*$@* primaries!
Walked all the way to school on Tuesday, and realized something
was up when there was not a single vehicle in the parking lot.
If you want to waste some of your life on the Laxton's Superb
awards, you can start here:
http://www.donaldsauter.com/index.html#beatles
Believe me, my efforts are *nothing* compared to Allan Pollacks'
analyses of Beatle songs - which are as fascinating and
understandable as they are scholarly.
By the way, the image file you'll see there is about the same
size as my little dinky b&w Sears guitar images.
Who the heck would waste money on a stinky album with only
27 "greatest hits". Just kidding, of course. You are now the
excited owner of a "Best of" Irish tape. It's a goodie; I'm
gonna have trouble handing it over. In the interim, I'm trying
to make myself sick of it (with no progress so far.)
In an effort to always correct wrong things I've said, "Nadel" in
German means needle, not nail, which is Nagel. I remembered
Nagel/nail before going to my dictionary, but had forgotten
Nadel/needle.
ME: Sorry about all the obscure jargon in the last email. LC =
Library of Congress, my favorite playground. Yep, Barbier di
Siviglia = Barber of Seville. Don't I sound distinguished
talking Italian? Yep, Tancredi is another Rossini opera, about
which I know nutting (except the title.) The 100-year-old guitar
arrangement identified the piece as coming from Barber of
Seville, in letters as big as life, but it was really Tancredi.
Laxton is not a person, I mean he probably was a person, but
Laxton's Superb is a type of apple. It was used as the working
title for one of the Beatles' songs, but I forget which one right
now. It was kind of a joke, tossing around apple names after
forming Apple, with the Granny Smith apple on the label.
By the way, since more people might be visiting my site while the
Laxton's Superb voting is on, I put up another web page today
about a great play I saw years ago called John, Paul, George,
Ringo... & Bert. It's at:
http://www.donaldsauter.com/john-paul-george-ringo-bert.htm
The photo worked! I downloaded your attachment and fired it up
in an image viewer. (Can you imagine anything so primitive?) The
house looks beautiful to me.
By the way, what I've settled on as a name with the kids is Mr.
Don. I never like Mr. or any titles (read my web page), but I
guess it wouldn't be appropriate for the kids to be calling just
one adult at school by just his first name.
On the music front, I borrowed an album of a variety of Irish
music from my friend Hself who buys all kinds of crazy records.
This one had a mere 150 songs on it. David's wife floated the
idea of making a "best of" compilation, so as a favor I noted the
best tracks as I went through it and created a 37 song "best of"
tape. It's great, and I never felt any particular affinity for
Irish music.
Yes I got a kick out of your Mosh Pit YL song! And even moreso
after reading about the inspiration for it.
THEE: Subject: These things happen
(I sent my pithy message to myself from work this morning. it was
meant for you.)
Subject: Voting!
Sorry the Democratic process got in your way on Tuesday. These
things happen. I still enjoy voting, so i knew the day was
coming up.
Speaking of the Democratic process, thanks for the Laxton's link.
I'm going to vote from home tonight, but I'm not telling who I'm
voting for.
Where do you stand on this whole Three Tenors biz?
THEE: Best beatles journailsim site
Great idea for a Beatles Journalism contest.
I vote for the Unarchy site.
Thank you.
THEE: Subject: Thanks for the goodies!
The music arrived, and was lots of fun to try out. I always get
excited when I get some odd-ball stuff like this to fool around
with. Thanks so much. Let me know if there is some way I can
return the favor.
I really haven't had much time to look at this material. I
frankly don't know quite what to make out of "Bane's Grand
March." I don't think those Gs are harmonics, and this piece
doesn't seem to involve scordatura. I even considered the idea of
a drone G string, sort of like on the five-string banjo. And
there's something funny about all those drone Bs just before the
A Major section. Well, as I say, I haven't had much time to look
at any of this, so I'll let you know if anything clicks.
I can't say I made much of "Stars and Stripes" the first time
through, either. I notice it was set by Charles Henlein, who
(like Hayden) has struck me as a bit of a hack. Then I noticed
that if I took it in two, rather than four, it sounded much
better. So, change the time signature from C to alla breve. "The
Liberty Bell" is indeed the theme of "Monty Pyton's Flying
Circus."
THEE: Re: #$@%&$#@ primaries!
Well, I checked out the kids report on you...and your web about
your candidacy, and I was hit with how similar 'customer defined'
and your 'majority will decide' policies are...and how much of a
cop-out they seem too. The 'customer defined' line was used
every paragraph when the lab bought a computer system. For almost
every question... the sales person said, 'that's customer
defined' and smiled happily...but the reality was a LOT of work
for the poor supervisors. I know your 'majority decides' idea
is pure democracy...but just the way friction messes up laws of
motion...apathy destroys democracy. I almost didn't vote this
week...since I figured...what's one lousy vote.
Oh you sound tre distinguished talking Italian...
Mr.Don. Reminds me of Brando in the Godfather. Oh, did I ever
tell you that 99% of all entertainment magazines have a Brando
reference in them? That's my own theory...and it's stood the
test of time.
Glad you liked my Mosh Pit YL song. Speaking of PJ concerts...
turns out people have to pick up fan club tickets AT the Venues
in Europe with a photo ID. I'm hoping this won't happen in the
USA. I have 3 memberships...mine, one in my mom's name...one in
Hself's name. I was planning on trading the second ticket with
my PJ 'bodyguard/concert bud' in Waldorf. BUT, if you have to
have photo ID to pick up the tickets...I can only use one of
mine. Don't think I can pass for my mom this year...maybe next
year. I could drag Hself to a concert...but I'd rather not. I'm
kind of ticked at PJ for this mess. Extra fan club memberships
is one of my 'guilty pleasures'. Seems they are trying to avoid
scalpers getting these tickets, but even if I just had one
membership, going to a ticket place before a concert SUCKS!!!
ME: Subject: greaseman
TO: letterstoed@washpost.com
Mar 12 2000
Dear Post,
Boo hoo hoo for Doug Tracht a.k.a. Greaseman. If he were any
sort of man he would do the right, good and honorable thing and
go and off and kill himself.
Donald Sauter.
9316 Wyatt Drive; Lanham MD 20706.
(301) 577-5589.
ME: a jug of punch
Had a good day at LC on Friday. They gave me permission to copy
some pages from a big, old bound volume full of rare american
guitar music, and I figured, well, might as well get everything I
can while the getting is good. Positioning fat volumes on a copy
machine can be very difficult, but I came up with a method that
gives excellent 2nd-generation masters. And I can use the 1st-
gen copies to play from and mark up. Also had an amazing success
finding a piece requested by the editor of Soundboard. I tracked
it down (with difficulty) in the copyright catalog. It had a
1903 copyright date, which turns out to be the only year of
copyright holdings that are still at LC - and it was there! The
miracle is how the copyright date came up in small chat with a
librarian there, and she knew about the special case of 1903.
Up to almost the Pa. line on Sunday for the birthday party of a
great-nephew. Got caught in traffic behind a terrible accident.
It involved a fatality, and we saw them put the shroud on the car
with the dead person in it. I had never known of that procedure.
Been playing kickball and jokari with the neighborhood kids.
See I typoed in the last email - there were *37* greatest hits on
the Irish album. Good news - I have managed to get a little
tired of parts of the tape.
Finally took the plunge into La Boheme without having the whole
story digested. Like the music fine. This is one of the older
albums and the sound quality was disappointing at first, but now
I don't notice it. I never did find any english translation of
the libretto on the web.
I can't say that I really knew you counted yourself out as a live
rock fan. I suspect you've had many great concert experiences.
I've even had a few, which I should try to remember and write
down so it will be documented in case I go on my usual anti-live
pop music rant. Two that come to mind were the Troggs and the
Characters.
Is the 3 Tenors still going strong and/or in the news? Is that
why you ask? I have no problem with my 3 Tenors experience,
which was one tv special a long time ago, and a a tape a friend
gave me. It only has a few cringe-inducing songs on it.
ME: hiyo silver
What does your Harvard Dictionary have to say about William Tell?
Peter Danner asked, "Also, if you ever run across a copy of A.J.
Weidt's "Down the Mississippi: Banjo Imitation," let me know!"
I found it for him at the library on Friday. It's an amazing
story!
THEE: music on the way
Well, I've been having much fun reading through that music you
sent me. The "Boston Visit" is especially nice. I love those
slurs at the top of page two. That solo on the D string that
reminded you of Villa Lobos also reminded me of Tarrega. Bass
melodies were indeed "stock" items, but this one in the middle
voice is very effective.
Bane's other piece, the Grand March, strikes me as odd. I'm not
sure I understand it yet, especially the last line of the first
page. The opening sounds best to me if you just play those Gs
down an octave on the open third string. That would explain a lot
(plus making things much easier to play). In the two places with
the triplet (two measures from the Fine) the second D needed a
natural sign. Bane, of course, used a lot of that so-called
"Saxton System" with the guitar tuned C-G-D-G-B-D, but I doubt
this is one of those, since it wouldn't explain that open G.
The other piece giving me trouble is the Saint-Saens/Fiset, but
think it ought to nice once I have figured it out. Must go back
and read what Fiset has to say about it in the Sheppard letters.
Some additional fingerings are needed -- such as knowing the
first two-note chord (the two Es) sound best played on the fifth
& sixth strings (at least to me they do). Anyway, I think I've
figured out all the harmonics.
Must find out more about T.P. Trinkhaus. Notice he sometimes
worked with a certain George J. Trinkhaus. A brother?
ME: and another thing
A few more things relating to Monday night's discussions:
1. I've replayed the liar/truth-teller puzzle in my head, and I
believe it screams for further discussion.
2. Let me tell you about my long distance service(s). I feel
sure it beats - by a significant amount - what you were
describing.
3. Scrabble came up, and no doubt we've talked scrabble before,
but I invite your verbal comments on my scrabble web page. I
think it's a powerhouse, but what do outsiders think?
http://www.donaldsauter.com/scrabble.htm
4. Also wanted to revisit Monday night's confirmation call, about
the laugh at the end.
THEE: Comments on unarchy
I admire your creativity with this approach, but i think it
obvious that you haven't completely thought this idea through. It
has many holes that would quickly lead to total failure. By
pondering this one question, you will surely see my point (and
quickly delete all references to unarchy on your web page). I
challenge you to send me back an intelegent answer to this
question:
How would unarchy deal with the issue of abortion?
Since the public is devided fairly evenly on this issue, any
sampling of people will have a 50-50 chance of convicting the
perpetrator. Furthermore, since the sentence is also administered
by the jury, some juries will impose the death penalty for
murder, while others will get off scott free. What happens
then?????
Laws rule!!
THEE: binaural
Do you know anything about the recording technique called
binaural? Pearl Jam's new album is called 'binaural'. They used
Tchad Blake as their producer. I'm hoping I like the
outcome...but it sounds weird reading about it.
ME: trying to catch up...
Hey, don't mix that "customer defined" jazz up with democracy :)
. I hear it all the time and it drives me buggy. Like if you go
into a store to buy a tape deck with a microphone input and you
find they don't make them like that anymore and the salesman
points to all the tape decks on the shelves and "explains" that
that's what the people buy. Of course! Because that's what they
sell! Same with why all stereo components are so jet black you
can't tell which button is which. Same with why tv is nothing
but bathroom humor for 9-year-olds. Etc.
Remember, so-called "apathy" is really just a vote for the status
quo. Nothing wrong with that (says me.) By the way, a vote for
me is... a vote for *3* PJ fan club memberships - no questions
asked!
Uh oh, is "Mr. Don" a Godfather joke or tie-in that many people
would make? I only saw a few minutes of the movie, and don't
know who Brando is. Life would have been so simple if I could
have just been Donald to everybody to my grave, sigh.
THEE: Subject: None!
You had good luck at the Library of Congress on Friday? I had
good luck on Saturday! I got six Arthur Conan Doyle articles,
including three newspaper clippings from microfilm. Alas, I was
only able to track down five of 10 articles Hself wanted, which
was my whole point for being there.
That car accident you saw sounds awful.
I have two Three Tenors performances on a DVD, and I thought I
better tape them for you.
I ordered an oratorio by Handel from the Musical heritage
Society. I already have one of his operas, but I haven't
listened to it yet.
My current album of the week is "Roots of British Rock," which we
bought during our last visit to that record store in your neck of
the woods. I have the exact date of our visit at home, but I
believe it was sometime in october 1997. Time flies!
Hself bought us a new printer yesterday. She really does need it
to churn out the kind of paper she's churning out these days.
We're really spending money like we have some. I have a feeling
that's not smart.
THEE: Subject: Copyright, Donny!
I've been giving you that explanation for how copyright law works
for years!
Haven't I been telling you that Apple's lawyers could beat up
your lawyers, and that's why they can send threatening letters
all around?
(Ugh! It shouldn't be this way!)
THEE: Re: MY ALWAYS FRIEND OF MY HEART
I really love the way she writes English - something very elegant
about it; its really very poetic. Like "NEVER THINGS ARE ALL
RIGHT ALWAYS SOMETHING." What was that line she wrote in her
first E-mail to you telling you about her new fiance? It was a
really cool turn of the phrase.
THEE: Subject: hiyo BANAL
Guillaume Tell. Opera in four acts by Rossini, produced in Paris,
1829. Setting: Switzerland, early 14th century. The overture was
a popular orchestral concert selection until made banal by
association with various radio programs and motion pictures.
THEE: By the way, I also voted your site as best Web site (even
though it was not one of the nominations).
ME: Subject: poetry
It warms my heart to hear you compliment Hself's writing style.
It has the same effect on me, which is why I wanted to share it
with somebody, I guess.
> What was that line she wrote in her first E-mail to you telling
you about her new fiance? It was a really cool turn of the phrase.
Maybe: AND I FIND A MAN WANT TO MERRIED ME, WE BEEN CLOSE TO
The one that gave me a lump in my throat was, "...and I is tired
to be byself."
Yes, the aria La Donna e Mobile is the one we discussed. The
count sings it off in the distance on a night-time stroll while
Rigoletto thinks he's got the count's corpse in the bag.
All of the italian in that discussion was just aria titles, so I
wouldn't accuse them of being snobbish. Remember, it was the
opera discussion group, and it's standard for arias to go by
their original titles.
ME: Subject: the true meaning of
I was always confused by the difference between binaural and
stereo myself, figuring they were probably synonymous. But I
found a website that explains it pretty clearly. Binaural is
"true-to-life" sound reproduction.
HeadWize - Article: Taking Sound In Another Direction
by John Sunier
URL: http://www.headwize.com/articles/sunier2_art.htm
Poor little Lenell got into mild trouble today for coming over to
the computer lab so many times, ostensibly to sharpen her pencil.
The substitute for the class in the lab told her to cut it out.
I explained later to the substitute what the deal was with
Lenell, and she had a laugh.
ME: testing your memory
Do you remember where else we met "banal" in the Harvard
Dictionary?
THEE: Are you saying that Ferranti composed the Carnival of
Venice, or just an arrangement for guitar?
ME: Subject: carnival of venice
As far as I know, the composer of the Carnival of Venice is lost
to history. I've been curious about this myself, and I've never
seen anyone name a composer, even where it would be very
appropriate to do so. What I wonder is if Paganini was the
*first* to compose variations on the theme.
There is a book by Fuld that tells the origins of many, many
well-known songs. I suppose I've looked in it for The Carnival
Of Venice, but I can't say for sure.
I personally think it's appropriate to give Ferranti full
composer credit for all of his super-charged variations. In my
own cataloging system, I give composer credit to the arranger of
a folk tune, as opposed to calling it "anonymous".
THEE: Re: taking the cold
PS. Thought of you when I drove by the Sugar Shack yesterday and
saw all the smoke coming out -- they are cooking up this season's
maple syrup. Perhaps one will come in your direction!
THEE: Re: trying to catch up...
I liked your rant about 'customer defined' stuff. Kind of
reverses the 'supply and demand' idea. Instead of us wanting
something, and buying it. They supply it, and create a demand
for it. Oh, I was reading an angry article about the Benneton
clothing ads. Have you seen any of these? They are against
capital punishment, and have little sweet interviews with people
on death row. The problem, the families of the victims are very
upset. I don't buy name brand clothing anyway...but the ads do
seem sick.
Hmm...3 PJ memberships...no questions asked. Yeah, you've got my
vote! Worked for Schmoke years ago when Chicken Little (or some
Chicken place)...gave out free dinner coupons to anyone that
voted. Neopotism. My favorite Ice Cream flavor.
I don't know if people will think 'Godfather/Marlon Brando when
you are called 'Mr.Don'. He was called Don Corleone. If you
watched the beginning of the original Godfather, Brando was the
50ish man playing with a cat behind a desk. And...to me...you
will always be Donald...if that helps.
Yipes!! That's terrible about the traffic fatality. Cars are
really dangerous. Daily I'm aware of that. People drive like
they forget what can happen.
I don't know what jokari is.
Thanks for that great web on the binaural stuff. It really
explained it well. I'm feeling so much better about the PJ stuff
now. Oh, rumor time. There is a rumor...that PJ might be on
Letterman 4/12. If it's confirmed... I'll tell you....if you
care.
You going to have to find a way to be less irresistable to
Lenell...what can I say. Cute that she's already found a way
around the system using a pencil.
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