Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Overhyped and still fantastic!

I wanted to write this blog about India. About Linux, or at least about something I know, lest I turn into yet another taking-head blogger. But sometimes I have this need to scream something out loud. This time, it is all the fault of a dead Russian.

I'm talking about Tchaikovsky, the great composer. Not to be confused with Tchebychev, the great Mathematician. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is famous for his compositions, most notably the Nutcracker suite.

As I write this, I'm listening to the Swan Lake, about the tenth time in a row. It is remarkably moving. It starts out with a very pure melody, something you'd recognize immediately. It is absolutely brilliant. Not being a musician, I cannot tell you what makes it so remarkable. But listen to it in solitude, and you'll immediately know that this is a work of pure genius.

It has been overused as the backing soundtrack for many movies and animation. College students have heard of it, even if they haven't heard it.

Despite the hype, it is still pure pleasure. Easy on the ears, and excellent food for imaginative thought.
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4 comments:

  1. nov 15's post....

    r u really very sure that psychology majors use big words and even they dont know what they r speaking about?

    This is a vague statement u made. Unless U've been a psychology major.. n experienced it first hand... still am not sure..
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  2. i was drawn by the declaration, "an honest blog".
    curious, i read your first post, but do not, most likely due to my lack of insight; i am sure, understand what the utterly boring swan lake [[and the entire western classical music] has to do with india.

    p.s. you come across as an intellectual snob.
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  3. Anuj, sorry to disappoint you. I try to talk about India as often as I can, but I do get derailed sometimes. Will try to stay on track. Though I might still post off topic, I'll balance it with something on-topic, at least.

    Western Classical music actually has nothing to do with India, you're right about that. But I hope it wasn't my taste in music that made me sound like an intellectual snob. I do like Indian Classical just as much, in addition to a wide variety.

    Still, I'm glad you took the time to post your comment. Comments like these help improve my blog...
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  4. Red Soul, I have come across many people who use big words in an attempt to appear smarter, Not all of them are psych majors, though. :)

    I do agree that I wasn't completely precise. My point was about using large words, big phrases to sound smart. It is something I've experienced, sitting in on a few psych classes in a University, or listening to large chunks of management-speak. It is hard for me to tell if there is some deep meaning behind the words, but my guess is that there isn't. There are few things that need to be complicated in that manner.

    I could be wrong. It was opinion, and not fact.

    I looked at your blog, and liked your writing style a lot. Thanks for posting this commend, and your blog. Hope your immunity to the coffee wears off. :)
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