Walt Disney Concert Hall - Home of the LA Philharmonic

Spent an evening at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA last week, my first visit to the warmest sounding (and looking) concert hall I have ever experienced. It did justice to a deeply satisfying performance of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2 by pianist Emanuel Ax, and managed to take the rough edges off of the LA Philharmonic’s world premiere of Sirens by Swedish composer Anders Hillborg.

Sirens is a modern take on the mermaids of Greek mythology trying to seduce Ulysses with song. Some intriguing sounds coming from the orchestra and a chanting, finger-snapping chorus in the beginning, but the sirens droned on, not very seductively, ending their arias with ear-piercing shrieks when they realized that their charms had failed them (Ulysses had his crew tie him to the mast of his ship so he wouldn’t go overboard and make whoopie with a manatee). An interesting passage came at the very end. As the orchestra slowly faded (Ulysses ostensibly sailing off into the sunset) we heard an intriguing solo melody that we were all convinced was part of the composition. Alas some one forgot to turn off his mobile phone. But it seemed to fit.

Who Was Nicholas?

It is like the Eurovision Awards that gave rise to Abba. Every year I look forward to learning what tweaky travel trend the research firm Euromonitor comes up with. Each November at  World Travel Mart in London it issues a report that usually defines some off-the-wall reason people step forth into this wonderful weird world. A couple of years ago it was “Debauchery Travel” and a certain demographic labeled “debaucherist,” for whom travel is a moveable frat party. This year, for North Americans, it is…sound the kazoo: Deprivation Holidays, the notion that torturing oneself can be a good thing. For Asians it is just as weird, but more on that later.

from The Connected Traveler

Prayer Room at Taipei Airport. It is so refreshing to travel and get a glimpse of civilization away from the rancor of the lunatics, the Elmer Gantrys of cable TV and the politicians looking for votes in dark places.