Day 2 - 263 -- Beauty to Begin the Day

The day began with sunshine and over the morning cup of chai, an amazing rendition of a piece of music composed almost 130 years ago. I find it moving and relaxing in a juxtaposed manner. It was featured on Kelly and Michael Live -- not the place I'd expect to hear or see this performed. The music reminded me of how much I truly miss having a ballet company close by -- we have had only one dance evening at the performing arts series in 18 years and flying elsewhere for a weekend can become very challenging.

This single piece is part of a larger suite of 14 short pieces. Several years after it was composed, a solo ballet was choreographed for Pavlova. It became her signature piece. The inspiration for this choreography was a poem by Tennyson, one of my favourite poets. It is generally performed in an orchestra setting, but can be done with two instruments only as in the selection shared here today. It also has been played on the theramin -- an early electronic instrument used on the original Star Trek theme and played by Sheldon Cooper once in Big Bang Theory <grin>. For the selection used today, listen to the accompaniment of the piano -- it is a stunning arrangement. The melody takes centre stage so it can be easy to miss the nuances of the keyboard. This version highlights a favourite cello player. The whole is beautiful beyond words. Enjoy!

Le Cygne (The Swan) -- Yo Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott (composed by Saint Saens as part of the Carnival of the Animals; later as the music for The Dying Swan choreography)