No, this isn’t a prank. Lithuanian composer Mindaugas Piečaitis really did make a piece of orchestral music, and the cat, Nora, holds her own in comparison to more bloated practitioners of contemporary music. Not a bad effort, to be honest, and yes, it’s available through Apple Music, though there is no information on whether Nora is properly compensated for her performance.
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As today is my 52nd birthday, I thought I would take a walk down memory lane. Today is also the 35th anniversary of New Order’s first major collection album called Substance, which was released on this day in 1987. As it turns out, it was the first compact disc I ever bought, and though I don’t own it anymore, I have my digital copy to remind me of how excited I was (and still am) hearing this album.
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Delicious Tunes is one of Europe’s finest labels dedicated to the best of modern African music. This track is from legendary Angolan guitarist and singer Paulo Flores, and if you wish more of his music, visit the label’s website here or visit Paulo’s Spotify account.
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The Boomtown Rats and I seem to be on the same wavelength. Serbian summers are nasty!
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Sad news to report today. Julee Cruise, who served as the muse for the David Lynch-directed TV series (and movie) Twin Peaks, and who had a massive hit with the song Falling, which was composed by Angelo Badalamenti, has passed away at the age of 65. She had been suffering from lupus since at least 2018, when she announced her condition. I had the pleasure of saying a few words to her during my earlier Facebook days, and she struck me as being a kind, unpretentious person. Rest in peace.
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Enjoy the pleasures of Trio Paloma, Serbia’s answer to mariachi music!
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Vangelis has passed away in Paris at the age of 79. His reputation needs no introduction to connoisseurs of music, especially those into soundtracks. For my money, Blade Runner was the jewel in his crown. May he Rest In Peace.
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One of the perks of being a teacher in the Czech Republic has been the fact that I run into students who are both bright and interesting. I have to offer a hat tip to my student Michal Szabó for hipping me to this appreciation of the Digital Compact Cassette (DCC), a format which should have taken off far more than it did.
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Today is a very sad day for us here at MYNTH. Klaus Schulze, the legendary composer and keyboardist, passed away on the 26th of April. He was 74. We wish to acknowledge his passing by posting one of my favorite performances.
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Polish jazz legend Zbigniew Namysłowski has departed the world. He played alto saxophone, flute, cello, trombone and piano, and was equally at home playing straight-ahead jazz or acidy funk. He also played on what is considered to be the holy grail of Polish jazz albums, Krzysztof Komeda’s classic LP Astigmatic, as well as collaborating with local luminaries like Janusz Muniak, Leszek Możdżer, Vladislav Sendecki, Michał Urbaniak, and Andrzej Trzaskowski. He was 82. You can read his obituaries here and here. Requiescat in pace.