Pueri, Concinite

This beautiful motet by Johann Ritter Von Herbeck was first performed in the Imperial Chapel in Vienna on Christmas Day 1868. Listen to the Wiener Sängerknaben perform Pueri, Concinite: 

 

Time for Slowtech?

The New York Times technology columnist David Pogue has for ten years been writing about the latest personal tech gadgets. But even for him there seems to be a little too much of all this new technology:

it’s mind-frying to contemplate the millions of dollars and person-years that were spent on products and services that now fill the Great Tech Graveyard: Olympus M-Robe. PocketPC. Smart Display. MicroMV. MSN Explorer. Aibo. All those PlaysForSure music players, all those Palm organizers, all those GPS units you had to load up with maps from your computer.
---
Everywhere I go, I meet people who express the same reaction to consumer tech today: there’s too much stuff coming too fast. It’s impossible to keep up with trends, to know what to buy, to avoid feeling left behind.
They’re right. There’s never been a period of greater technological change. You couldn’t keep up with all of it if you tried.
Well, here’s a dirty little secret: It’s almost too much for me, too. Heck, it’s my job to stay on top of this stuff — and even for me, it’s like drinking from a fire hose. I do my best — I read all the blogs, devour the magazines, attend the conferences and listen to the PR pitches — but I sometimes feel as if I’m furiously paddling my surfboard on the top of a tsunami wave.
In other words, if you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone, and it’s O.K. to let yourself off the hook.
And for that, let us give thanks. Now, can you put down that iPad and pass the gravy?

Publisher Peter Osnos, writing in the Atlantic, seems to agree:

Facebook and the iPad were this year's champions of brilliant marketing, with Mark Zuckerberg as Time's Person of the Year -- both icon and demon at 26 -- and Steve Jobs' ascendance into a stratosphere of unmatched technical celebrity. They deserve the recognition, but as we confront the inevitable next wave of what engineers and salesmen conjure, there is a case to be made for placing our digital exploration and consumption on pause; in the meantime, happy holidays.


PS
I think there are millions of us who share the same feelings. So, maybe it´s  time for somebody to start a SLOWTECH movement?

PS 2
When writing this piece, I did not realise that there already is a Slowtech "movement", judging from this book, which sounds quite interesting.

The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army - now working in 122 countries - has since its founding in 1865 done a great job in helping the needy. Christmas is a good time to give a contribution to this important work!

A Winter Sunset

(click on picture to get a larger image)

This time of the year the sun sets early here in the North of Europe. I shot this image through the living room window at 4.42 PM this afteroon. Below the sinking sun you can see a glimpse of the Danish coast.

Glenn Gould

A quote:

I think that if I were required to spend the rest of my life on a desert island, and to listen to or play the music of any one composer during all that time, that composer would almost certainly be Bach. I really can’t think of any other music which is so all-encompassing, which moves me so deeply and so consistently, and which, to use a rather imprecise word, is valuable beyond all of its skill and brilliance for something more meaningful than that — its humanity.

Glenn Gould

PS

It is difficult to disagree. In my case the desert island disc would be the Goldberg variations performed by Gould. Watch and listen here, or here, to see if you agree.  

Blackbird

(Click for a larger image)

This is not going to be a bird spotting blog, but I cound not resist adding these two photos of a blackbird in my garden, which I shot a couple of minutes ago!

Me & Bobby McGee with Janis Joplin

Janis Joplin´s life was full of problems, but in her best moments she was a great performer. My favourite has always been her version of Kris Kristofferson´s Me & Bobby McGee. Here is a rare studio rehearsal with only one guitar accompaniment.