QUOTE OF THE DAY – TUESDAY, MAY 9, 2017: DR. NEIL deGRASSE TYSON ON THE SIMILARITIES (& DISTINCTION) BETWEEN SPACE EXPLORATION AND THE ART OF COMPOSITION
Today’sQuote of the Daycomes to us from the aforementioned American astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, and is selected in honor of the doctors’ fascinating appearance this evening on WQXR to discuss Holst’sThe Planets suite.
Today's quote is deemed by the author of this blog as beingsoundbyte-worthy- Dr. Tyson certainly has a fully loaded arsenal from which to choose from!
Listen below to a snippet* from this evening's interview:
Footnote:
*listen to the full program (archived) now on WQXR.org
Wait..."what he did was weng throught the playbook of not only what each of these gods did in life, but what influence they might have in your astrological charts and then composed pieces based on them."
I'm confused...didn't planets have noting to do with deities? Am I wrong?
Nevertheless an interesting program. Thanks for the heads up!
No, you are not mistaken in your observation. Holst himself indicated that the suite had nothing to do with deities of classical mythology. The connection between the two is - and has been (almost since the works' premiere) - a product of (understandable) misinterpretation due to the shared names of the Roman gods in question.
There is much literature on this very subject available - you can find an informative piece linked in the footnotes section of my previous post.
Despite Dr. Tyson's error, the scientific value - if not simply for his insightful commentary on the art of composition itself - make this interview one well worth the watch.
He also offers some fascinating insight and musical perspective on Mercury and Neptune.
Wait..."what he did was weng throught the playbook of not only what each of these gods did in life, but what influence they might have in your astrological charts and then composed pieces based on them."
ReplyDeleteI'm confused...didn't planets have noting to do with deities? Am I wrong?
Nevertheless an interesting program. Thanks for the heads up!
Hello classical_music_fan,
DeleteNo, you are not mistaken in your observation. Holst himself indicated that the suite had nothing to do with deities of classical mythology. The connection between the two is - and has been (almost since the works' premiere) - a product of (understandable) misinterpretation due to the shared names of the Roman gods in question.
There is much literature on this very subject available - you can find an informative piece linked in the footnotes section of my previous post.
Despite Dr. Tyson's error, the scientific value - if not simply for his insightful commentary on the art of composition itself - make this interview one well worth the watch.
He also offers some fascinating insight and musical perspective on Mercury and Neptune.
-Rose.
Hello Rose..
ReplyDeleteIndeed he did ;)
Sorry about the typos by the way.. I was attempting to quote deGrasse at th same time I was listening to the interview..glad you understood it! Lol
It happens :)
DeleteAs it turns out, I immediately knew what you were referencing - it stood out to me as well (the soundbyte in question).
-Rose.