Sila Blume
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“Hänsel und Gretel” by Engelbert Humperdinck *IX 1 1854 / The Life You Give
Engelbert Humperdinck, born September 1, 1854, in Siegburg, Prussia [Germany], is the composer known for his opera Hänsel und Gretel. Humperdinck studied at Cologne and at Munich. In 1879 a Mendelssohn scholarship enabled him to go to Italy, where he met Richard Wagner, who invited him to assist in the production of Parsifal at Bayreuth.…
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Maria Montessori *IX 31 1870 / The Life You Give
Maria Montessori, born August 31, 1870, in Chiaravalle, near Ancona, Italy, is the educator and originator of the educational system that bears her name. The Montessori system is based on belief in the creative potential of children, their drive to learn, and the right of each child to be treated as an individual.After graduating in…
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Hermann Nitsch *VIII 29 1938 / The Life You Give
Hermann Nitsch was an Austrian avant-garde painter, composer, and performance artist who worked in experimental and multimedia modes. He was a co-founder of the notorious art movement known as the Viennese Aktionists. With his project Orgien Mysterien Theater (“the Orgiastic Mystery Theater”), Nitsch immersed his audiences in scenes and symbols heavily charged with meaning: religious…
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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe *VIII 28 1749 / The Life You Give
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, born August 28, 1749, in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, is the poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, critic, and amateur artist, considered the greatest German literary figure of the modern era. Goethe is the only German literary figure whose range and international standing equal those of Germany’s supreme philosophers (who…
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Recurring Music Series / Symphony, Mahler #7
The Recurring Music Series aims to investigate the meaning, source, and relevance of music — piece by piece, time after time, and again. Especially when it comes to music pieces, but also cinematic works, by the first viewing/listening the individual seems incapable of grasping the magnitude, and minuscule details of the work. Beyond the fact…
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Elvis Costello *VIII 25 1954 / The Life You Give
Elvis Costello, born Declan Patrick McManus, on August 25, 1954, in London, England, is the singer-songwriter who extended the musical and lyrical range of the punk and new wave movements.The son of musicians, Costello was exposed to a mix of British and American styles—dance-hall pop to modern jazz to the Beatles—from an early age. During…
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Karlheinz Stockhausen *VIII 22 1928 / The Life You Give
Karlheinz Stockhausen, born Aug. 22, 1928, in Mödrath, near Cologne, Germany, is the composer, and important creator and theoretician of electronic and serial music who strongly influenced avant-garde composers from the 1950s through the ’80s. Stockhausen studied at the State Academy for Music in Cologne and the University of Cologne from 1947 to 1951. In…
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Lili Boulanger *VIII 21 1893 / The Life You Give
Lili Boulanger was born on August 21, 1893 in Paris, France, to a musical family. Her mother, father, and sister Nadia were all trained composers or performers. When her father, Ernest, was only 20, he won the Prix de Rome. This coveted prize, which provided a year’s study in Rome, was the greatest recognition a…
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