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Sep. 20th, 2008
Evelyn Glennie performs barefoot.
Friday evening's Baltimore Symphony Orchestra concert opened with Wagner - "Brunhilde's Immolation" - yeah, it's Wagner. All the percussion toys for Glennie were already out on the stage at the beginning, so it looked odd. Then after the Wagner, the lights dimmed and we started hearing eerie noises and then Glennie comes creeping up the aisle, hunched over and playing what looks like a bird cage with a drum head on the bottom, using a violin bow on the bird cage bars. Very creepy. And, as mentioned, she's barefoot. The piece was Michael Daugherty's "UFO" consisting of five movements: Traveling Music; Unidentified; Flying; ??? [yes, that's its name, no, I don't know how it's pronounced]; and Objects. The ??? movement consists solely of Glennie and the contrabassoon. A lot of the piece was jazzy - could definitely hear hints of "Mission: Impossible" and Pink-Panther-theme type jazz in it - but a lot of it was just spacey - new agey and gimmicky, the sort of thing that reminds me that one person's "playful and joyous" is another person's "that's not music, it's sound effects!" I wouldn't want to buy the piece on CD, because a great deal of what made it interesting was watching Glennie in action - even though she was looking sort of spacey and new-agey herself - barefoot, long hair, sort of hippie-style loose calf-length dress. Anyway, over all, a success.
The second half was Holst's Planets, a piece I love love love. Mostly it went spectacularly well, although there was one teeny burble in the trumpets at one point. No matter, it is always a gorgeous piece. It also includes a contrabassoon, so the evening was definitely contra-intensive!
Continuing the outer space theme, next week is Mahler's "Titan" - well, Mahler wasn't thinking of Saturn's moon but after hearing The Planets, how could I help but make that connection?
My own apparel was mixed - I wanted to dress up for the opening weekend of the season, and bought* a turquoise sweater and brown-and-turquoise plaid skirt - and then discovered that since we haven't finished unpacking after moving in June, I had no idea where my brown shoes were. I wound up wearing brown ankle boots that looked rather silly with panty hose, but it was that or sneakers, my black and silver band concert uniform shoes, or my motorcycle boots! If I had gotten the turquoise tights to go with the sweater, I think the boots would have looked better, but I didn't. Note to self: for next weekend's concert, either find more of your clothes or more of your shoes, so that stuff matches! And definitely before niece's wedding in November, which is another occasion I intend to wear some of today's clothing purchases.
*Cindy-the-librarian and I went clothes shopping Friday afternoon, to collect some autumn clothing. We resisted more than we purchased, but some purchases were made. I do have several occasions coming up this fall to dress up. I also bought some knee socks just for fun;![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
fadethecat, I think you would be envious of some of them, like the over-the-knee ones that would look terrific with your boots.
Friday evening's Baltimore Symphony Orchestra concert opened with Wagner - "Brunhilde's Immolation" - yeah, it's Wagner. All the percussion toys for Glennie were already out on the stage at the beginning, so it looked odd. Then after the Wagner, the lights dimmed and we started hearing eerie noises and then Glennie comes creeping up the aisle, hunched over and playing what looks like a bird cage with a drum head on the bottom, using a violin bow on the bird cage bars. Very creepy. And, as mentioned, she's barefoot. The piece was Michael Daugherty's "UFO" consisting of five movements: Traveling Music; Unidentified; Flying; ??? [yes, that's its name, no, I don't know how it's pronounced]; and Objects. The ??? movement consists solely of Glennie and the contrabassoon. A lot of the piece was jazzy - could definitely hear hints of "Mission: Impossible" and Pink-Panther-theme type jazz in it - but a lot of it was just spacey - new agey and gimmicky, the sort of thing that reminds me that one person's "playful and joyous" is another person's "that's not music, it's sound effects!" I wouldn't want to buy the piece on CD, because a great deal of what made it interesting was watching Glennie in action - even though she was looking sort of spacey and new-agey herself - barefoot, long hair, sort of hippie-style loose calf-length dress. Anyway, over all, a success.
The second half was Holst's Planets, a piece I love love love. Mostly it went spectacularly well, although there was one teeny burble in the trumpets at one point. No matter, it is always a gorgeous piece. It also includes a contrabassoon, so the evening was definitely contra-intensive!
Continuing the outer space theme, next week is Mahler's "Titan" - well, Mahler wasn't thinking of Saturn's moon but after hearing The Planets, how could I help but make that connection?
My own apparel was mixed - I wanted to dress up for the opening weekend of the season, and bought* a turquoise sweater and brown-and-turquoise plaid skirt - and then discovered that since we haven't finished unpacking after moving in June, I had no idea where my brown shoes were. I wound up wearing brown ankle boots that looked rather silly with panty hose, but it was that or sneakers, my black and silver band concert uniform shoes, or my motorcycle boots! If I had gotten the turquoise tights to go with the sweater, I think the boots would have looked better, but I didn't. Note to self: for next weekend's concert, either find more of your clothes or more of your shoes, so that stuff matches! And definitely before niece's wedding in November, which is another occasion I intend to wear some of today's clothing purchases.
*Cindy-the-librarian and I went clothes shopping Friday afternoon, to collect some autumn clothing. We resisted more than we purchased, but some purchases were made. I do have several occasions coming up this fall to dress up. I also bought some knee socks just for fun;
fadethecat, I think you would be envious of some of them, like the over-the-knee ones that would look terrific with your boots.
Please note: the following does not reflect my actual views on rats. I love ratties. They are terrific pets. They are sweet and intelligent. But this is what sprang, full-blown, into my head after reading just the wrong page of a fantasy novel set in a medieval-ish setting, at just the wrong moment.
To Serve Rat
Rats for RenFairs
Rat Drumsticks
Because the rat drumstick is not as meaty as the turkey drumstick, it is only economical to prepare in large batches at once. However, one must take precautions when frying the drumsticks, so that they do not stick together in one large mass. Therefore, after dipping them in the usual batter, roll each drumstick in a coating of finely crushed cornflakes or riceflakes, before stacking in frying basket. Stir frequently while frying.
Rat On A Stick
Although the traditional method of serving rat-on-a-stick is to use the entire body, roasted on its own little spit, the average RenFair attendee is not prepared to deal with removing feet, wings, tail, or head. Therefore, to minimize trouble (and to minimize garbage and leftovers littering the grounds), it is best to prepare rat kabobs of rib, loin, and breast chunks; this satisfies the requirement of being on a stick, while being much easier to eat.
Fried Wings ("Rattalo Wings")
Because the rat wings are quite bony, as with most wings, it is not advisable to serve these to audiences which will be standing, walking around, and talking. Reserve bowls of Rattalo Wings for the dining pavilion, where dishes for the bones can be provided at each table.
Authentic Rat Dishes
Rats-Ear Soup
Perhaps the best known rat dish is the delicacy Rats-Ear Soup. This would be served around harvest time by wealthy land-owners, to prove that they had removed all the rats from their silos before completely filling them (and to show off that they had the servants and chef to prepare such a labor-intensive delicacy). For the less-wealthy, or for those who had enough cats, ferrets, or cobras that they never had a sufficient supply of rats, a Mock Rats-Ear Soup would be prepared using shavings of mushroom. Often the host would purchase a small bag of genuine rats' ears from a market, to sprinkle just a couple into each bowl of Mock Rats-Ear.
Stuffed Rat
Because of the relatively small amount of meat on each rat, to stretch out each serving, a cook would stuff the rat. The fanciest preparation would be to stuff a mouse inside the rat, and an almond inside the mouse; this also served to supplement the amount of protein in the dish. A sauce would be prepared of cream, ground almonds, and, during harvest season, pomegranate seeds.
To Serve Rat
Rats for RenFairs
Rat Drumsticks
Because the rat drumstick is not as meaty as the turkey drumstick, it is only economical to prepare in large batches at once. However, one must take precautions when frying the drumsticks, so that they do not stick together in one large mass. Therefore, after dipping them in the usual batter, roll each drumstick in a coating of finely crushed cornflakes or riceflakes, before stacking in frying basket. Stir frequently while frying.
Rat On A Stick
Although the traditional method of serving rat-on-a-stick is to use the entire body, roasted on its own little spit, the average RenFair attendee is not prepared to deal with removing feet, wings, tail, or head. Therefore, to minimize trouble (and to minimize garbage and leftovers littering the grounds), it is best to prepare rat kabobs of rib, loin, and breast chunks; this satisfies the requirement of being on a stick, while being much easier to eat.
Fried Wings ("Rattalo Wings")
Because the rat wings are quite bony, as with most wings, it is not advisable to serve these to audiences which will be standing, walking around, and talking. Reserve bowls of Rattalo Wings for the dining pavilion, where dishes for the bones can be provided at each table.
Authentic Rat Dishes
Rats-Ear Soup
Perhaps the best known rat dish is the delicacy Rats-Ear Soup. This would be served around harvest time by wealthy land-owners, to prove that they had removed all the rats from their silos before completely filling them (and to show off that they had the servants and chef to prepare such a labor-intensive delicacy). For the less-wealthy, or for those who had enough cats, ferrets, or cobras that they never had a sufficient supply of rats, a Mock Rats-Ear Soup would be prepared using shavings of mushroom. Often the host would purchase a small bag of genuine rats' ears from a market, to sprinkle just a couple into each bowl of Mock Rats-Ear.
Stuffed Rat
Because of the relatively small amount of meat on each rat, to stretch out each serving, a cook would stuff the rat. The fanciest preparation would be to stuff a mouse inside the rat, and an almond inside the mouse; this also served to supplement the amount of protein in the dish. A sauce would be prepared of cream, ground almonds, and, during harvest season, pomegranate seeds.