Our sense of taste perceives four basic flavors; sweet, salty, sour, and bitter, plus a series of nuances, collectively called “mouthfeel.” Among these nuances is menthol, which gives the palate a feeling of freshness and works very well in this dish. Others include astringency, spiciness, tartness, and effervescence.
From _The Family Meal_ by Ferran Adrià
We immediately and pleasantly recall Chopin’s so-called “Butterfly” etude, I want to say almost with a Joplin feel, although that surely gives away how I have no idea what I’m talking about.
I attended an Itzhak Perlman concert yesterday. After suffering Mozart and Beethoven sonatas, I nearly left early but he played this gem after the intermission. A new immediate favorite.
This is a “Gil Shaham” recording, I don’t think Perlman has recorded it.
Afterwards he did two rounds of encores and they were lovely, romantic, and somewhat esoteric pieces. He even played John Williams’ Theme from Schindler’s List.
When it comes to music and literature and the like, I almost exclusively prefer stuff from late 19th to 20th century onward, everything before perhaps being too far removed from the present. All the authors I like love Don Quixote, but try as I might, I can’t stand it. All the composers I love like Bach, but I just don’t see the appeal.
But here we have Rachmaninov interprets Bach, in a way only a composer could (because mere pianists would surely not be forgiven), and it is sublime.
Edit: 1/15/2012. This was Rachmaninov’s own arrangement and Bach’s is nothing like it. Rachmaninov’s isn’t public domain yet.
#5 from The Vespers.
NYNE OTPUSHCHAYESHI raba Tvoego, Vladyko,
po glagolu Tvoyemu s mirom
Ныне отпущаеши раба Твоего, Владыко, по глаголу Твоему, с миром;
In English this first line is rendered “Lord now lettest Thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy Word.”
But in Russian, the wording is closer to this: Now lettest Thou thy servant depart, O Lord, according to thy word, in peace.
