Daffodils in my garden

Just a couple of  pictures that I shot today:

Willam Wordsworth´s famous poem "Daffodils" might be a suitable companion:

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
 
Continuous as the stars that shine
and twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretched in never-ending line
along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
in such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
what wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

Nicolai Ghiaurov sings "Ella giammai m´amo"

Bulgarian bass Nicolai Ghiaurov (born 1929) sings "Ella giammai m'amo" from Verdi´s Don Carlo.

The AMG Allmusic Guide to Classical Music describes his voice in this way:

During his prime, his voice was among the richest and most sonorous basses of the twentieth century, and even as much of its freshness and bloom was gone toward the end of his career, it retained its expressiveness and technical excellence.
I hope you enjoy his singing as much as I do!

Three sea shanties

There is a wealth of sea shanties on offer on YouTube. I have chosen three of my own favourites.

If you are new to shanties, here is a short description (from Wikipedia):

Sea shanties (singular "shanty", also spelled "chantey"; derived from the French word "chanter", 'to sing') were shipboard working songs. Some speculate that shanties may have been sung as early as the 15th century though there is little evidence to support this claim. The shanties that survived to be collected and preserved date from the 19th century through the days of steam ships in the first half of the 20th century.---
In the days when human muscles were the only power source available aboard ship, sea shanties served a practical purpose: the rhythm of the song served to synchronize the movements of the sailors as they toiled at repetitive tasks. They also served a social purpose: singing and listening to songs is pleasant; it alleviates boredom and lightens the burden of hard work, of which there was no shortage on long voyages in those days

Phil Beer: "Blow, Boys, Blow!"

Sweet Roseanne, performed by Gadaya

French sea shanty, performed by Les Souille´s de fond

A certain sign of spring: The first luxury cruiser

Today could be considered the inofficial opening of the spring and summer season in this part of the world. About half an hour ago I spotted the first luxury cruise ship - the Aidasol - this spring. That is as good a spring sign as anything. The 258 meter long ship is on its way to Oslo. Let´s hope this is the start of a great cruising season!

Jim Reeves remembered

Most young people probably do not know anything about Jim Reeves, the great country and popular music singer, who tragically died in an airplane crash at the age of 40 in 1964. But we, who were young at that time, will never forget his mellow and manly baritone voice ...

Stunning pictures taken by a mobile phone

There was a time when cameras in mobile phones were essentially a joke. This has now changed. One of the UK´s most wellknown arial photographers, Jason Hawkes, has shot a number of stunning pics using a Nokia N8 phone:

Jason´s photos can be viewed here (with new pictures added daily).

The world of Argentine tango

I have never visited the birthplace of tango, but through records, films and live performances the world of Argentine tango has always fascinated me. Probably it is the intensity and passion that feels so appealing. There have been - and still are - many great tango performers and dancers in Argentina, but below I would like to introduce a couple of my own favourites.

As an introduction, here is a nice compilation of Argentinian tango illustrated by clips from old Argentinian films from the 1930s:

The legendary Francisco Canaro and his orchestra (and  two of the famous vocalists of that time):

Tango is, of course, great for dancing. If you would like to improve on your dancing skills, this couple shows what you can do:

For those who would like to know more about the history of tango this is an excellent site.