MUSIC SATURDAY - JOHANN HASSE

“Has it struck you that the music which is regarded as the most sublime in western civilization, which is the music of Bach, is called baroque?” - PierreSchaeffer

Johann Adolph Hasse, byname Il Sassone (born March 25, 1699, Bergedorf, near Hamburg—died Dec. 16, 1783, Venice) was an outstanding composer of operas in the Italian style that dominated late Baroque opera. Hasse began his career as a singer and made his debut as a composer in 1721 with the opera “Antioco”.

He went to Italy, where he studied with Nicola Porpora and with Alessandro Scarlatti and where his opera seria “Sesostrate” (1726) established his reputation; in Italy he became known as “il Sassone” (the Saxon). After spending several years in Venice, where he married the celebrated mezzo-soprano Faustina Bordoni (c. 1700–81), he became music director of the Dresden Opera (1731). He resided in Dresden from 1739 to 1763, when he retired and went to Vienna.

His last work for the stage was “Ruggiero” (1771), written for the wedding of the archduke Ferdinand at Milan. Hasse’s compositions include more than 60 operas, many of them to librettos by Pietro Metastasio, and nearly a dozen intermezzos, as well as oratorios, masses, and instrumental works. His music was enormously popular during his lifetime; its chief characteristics were melodic beauty and formal balance. His operatic overtures had considerable influence on the development of the symphony, especially in northern Germany.

Hasse’s extensive addition to the repertoire of contemporary church music continued to have occasional performance in Dresden. His oratorios, some with texts by Metastasio, have largely disappeared from repertoire. Hasse’s instrumental music includes flute concertos, and solo, duo and trio sonatas.

Here are some of his Sonatas and Trio Sonatas:
Trio Sonata in F major for oboe, violin and basso continuo
Trio Sonata in D minor for oboe, violin and basso continuo
Sonata No. 5 in E minor for violin and basso continuo
Sonata in G major for oboe and basso continuo
Sonata in F major for chalumeau, oboe, bassoon and basso continuo
Trio Sonata in C major for oboe, violin and basso continuo.

FOOD FRIDAY - VEGIE POT PIE

“I don’t want to spend my life not having good food going into my pie hole. That hole was made for pies.” - Paula Deen

Our Winter continues and nothing better to come home to in the evening than a hearty Winter vegie pie steaming hot from the oven… Here is a favourite recipe of ours. I must admit that often we cheat and instead of fresh vegies we use a packet of mixed, snap frozen vegies from the freezer, which is convenient and the next best thing to fresh ones from greengrocer.

Vegetarian Pot Pie

Ingredients

2 Tbs. corn flour (=cornstarch)

 1 and 1/3 cups prepared creamy potato-leek soup

1/2 tsp. dried crushed rosemary

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

500 g mixed vegetables (carrots, peas, cauliflower, turnip, etc), cubed, parboiled and drained

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed 

Method

Position oven racks in middle and bottom positions, and preheat oven to 230˚C.

Whisk 2 Tbs. cold water into corn flour in medium saucepan. Whisk in soup, rosemary, and cumin, and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium, and simmer 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat, stir in vegetables, then spread mixture in 23 cm deep-dish pie pan.

Unfold puff pastry, and place over vegetable mixture; allow pastry to drape over pie pan. Trim pastry edges with scissors or sharp knife so that it fits tightly in pan. Prick pastry all over with fork or knife. Bake 15 to 18 minutes, or until puff pastry is puffed and golden.

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ALL ABOUT OREGANO

“Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, producing varied fruits with coloured flowers and herbs.” - Francis of Assisi

Oregano (Origanum vulgare) is a common species of Origanum, a genus of the Lamiaceae (mint) family. It is native to temperate western and southwestern Eurasia and the Mediterranean region. Oregano is a perennial herb, growing from 20–80 cm tall, with opposite leaves 1–4 cm long. Oregano will grow in a pH range between 6.0 (mildly acidic) and 9.0 (strongly alkaline), with a preferred range between 6.0 and 8.0. The flowers are purple, 3–4 mm long, produced in erect spikes. It is sometimes called wild marjoram, and its close relative Origanum majorana is known as sweet marjoram.

Oregano has purple flowers and spade-shaped, olive-green leaves. It is a perennial, although it is grown as an annual in colder climates, as it often does not survive the winter. Oregano is planted in early spring, the plants being spaced 30 cm apart in fairly dry soil, with full sun. It prefers a hot, relatively dry climate, but does well in other environments.

Many subspecies and strains of oregano have been developed by humans over centuries for their unique flavours or other characteristics. Tastes range from spicy or astringent to more complicated and sweet. Simple oregano sold in garden stores as Origanum vulgare may have a bland taste and larger, less dense leaves, and is not considered the best for culinary uses, with a taste less remarkable and pungent. It can pollinate other more sophisticated strains, but the offspring are rarely better in quality. The related species, Origanum onites (Greece, Turkey) and O. syriacum (West Asia), have similar flavours. Some varieties show a flavour intermediate between oregano and marjoram. The ‘Greek Kaliteri’ cultivar  is a small, hardy, dark, compact plant with thick, silvery-haired leaves, usually with purple undersides. It has an excellent reputation for flavour and pungency, as well as medicinal uses, with a strong, archetypal oregano flavour (in Greek i kaliteri means ‘the best’).

Oregano is an important culinary herb, used for the flavour of its leaves, which can be more flavourful when dried than fresh. It has an aromatic, warm, and slightly bitter taste, which can vary in intensity. Good-quality oregano may be strong enough almost to numb the tongue, but cultivars adapted to colder climates often have a lesser flavour. Factors such as climate, season, and soil composition may affect the aromatic oils present, and this effect may be greater than the differences between the various species of plants.

Among the chemical compounds contributing to the flavour are carvacrol, thymol, limonene, pinene, ocimene, and caryophyllene. Oregano’s most prominent modern use is as the staple herb of Italian-American cuisine. Its popularity in the US began when soldiers returning from World War II brought back with them a taste for the “pizza herb”, which had probably been eaten in southern Italy for centuries. There, it is most frequently used with roasted, fried, or grilled vegetables, meat, and fish. Oregano combines well with spicy foods popular in southern Italy. It is less commonly used in the north of Italy, as marjoram generally is preferred.

The herb is widely used in cuisines of the Mediterranean Basin, the Philippines, and Latin America. In Turkish cuisine, oregano is mostly used for flavouring meat, especially for mutton and lamb. In barbecue and kebab restaurants, it can be usually found as a condiment, together with paprika, salt, and pepper. The dried and ground leaves are most often used in Greece to add flavour to Greek salad, and is usually added to the lemon-olive oil sauce that accompanies fish or meat grills and casseroles. Oregano is used in the southern Philippines to eliminate the odour of carabao or water buffalo when boiling it, while simultaneously imparting flavour.

In Austrian folk medicine, oregano was used internally (as tea) or externally (as ointment) for treatment of disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, respiratory tract, and nervous system. Traditionally, oregano has been used in Mediterranean countries as an aid to digestion in the form of tisanes, as a topical remedy for infections in the form of poultices for the skin and as a dietary aid to lowering blood pressure.

Oregano oil is under research for its potential use on foods or skin as an antibacterial agent. It is also tested for its ability to reduce the methane production in cows, which emit 70-120 kg of the greenhouse gas per year per cow. Origanum vulgare viridulum extracts inhibited the growth of HepG2 hepatic cancer cells. Herbalists use the herb as a powerful antibacterial and antifungal agent, that has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-parasitic properties. It’s typically taken as a supplement or used as an essential oil.

In the language of flowers, a sprig of the fresh herb without flowers means: “You have piqued my interest”. A sprig of the herb in flower means: “You have filled my heart with gladness”.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,
and also part of the Food Friday meme.

POETS UNITED - PREDATOR & PREY

“Whatever deceives men seems to produce a magical enchantment.” - Plato

For this Mid-Week Motif, Poets United has set the theme of “Predator and Prey”. The motif states: "Life exists with both the spirits of predator and prey. As in animal kingdom so in human society. The most interesting point is that predator and prey evolve together. One, in order to eat and the other to avoid being eaten."

Here is my contribution:

Selene the Enchantress

Your eyes are made of flint and limpid quartz

And evil witchcraft is in your arcane gaze.

Your eyes the green of serpents, fireflies, lizards;

The sweet laurel, the bitter deadly nightshade,

A touch of balsam mixed with fiery poison!

You speak and siren sings while nightingale warbles:

So sweetly sung, but words that hide fatal meanings.

Your voice enchanting music to my ears,

Your pearly teeth biting each syllable

Making it shout in barbarous pleasure.

Your lips inflamed like a gaping wound,

Your kiss, cold as sepulchral marble,

Yet it burns me with infernal fires.

Your lips are scarlet like a strawberry,

A bite and sweet blood gushes - juice of the forbidden fruit…

The vice of your embrace crushes me,

I die and suffocate whispering your name.

My hands caress your supple skin

As your silver nails gash my flesh,

Exposing raw sinew, tense tendon.

Up in the sky the sickle of a moon

Cuts swiftly the thin thread of my life.

Virginal Artemis laughs and in her blood-stained hand

Lies yet another trophy – her prey vanquished,

In a hunt that from the start was doomed.

The illustration above is from the work of Susan Seddon Boulet.

TRAVEL TUESDAY #39 - STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN

“Good wishes alone will not ensure peace.” - Alfred Nobel

Welcome to the Travel Tuesday meme! Join me every Tuesday and showcase your creativity in photography, painting and drawing, music, poetry, creative writing or a plain old natter about Travel!

There is only one simple rule: Link your own creative work about some aspect of travel and share it with the rest of us! Please use this meme for your creative endeavours only.

Do not use this meme to advertise your products or services as any links or comments by advertisers will be removed immediately.

Stockholm is the capital of Sweden and the most populous city in the Nordic countries, with 925 934 people living in the municipality, approximately 1.4 million in the urban area, and 2.2 million in the metropolitan area. The city is spread across 14 islands on the coast in the southeast of Sweden at the mouth of Lake Mälaren, by the Stockholm archipelago and the Baltic Sea. The area has been settled since the Stone Age, in the 6th millennium BC, and was founded as a city in 1252 by a Swedish statesman Birger Jarl. It is also the capital of Stockholm County.

Stockholm is the cultural, media, political, and economic centre of Sweden. The Stockholm region alone accounts for over a third of the country’s GDP, and is among the top 10 regions in Europe by GDP per capita. It is an important global city, and the main centre for corporate headquarters in the Nordic region. The city is home to some of Europe’s top ranking universities, such as the Stockholm School of Economics, Karolinska Institute and Royal Institute of Technology (KTH).

It hosts the annual Nobel Prize ceremonies and banquet at the Stockholm Concert Hall and Stockholm City Hall. One of the city’s most prized museums, the Vasa Museum, is the most visited non-art museum in Scandinavia. The Stockholm metro, opened in 1950, is well known for its decoration of the stations; it has been called the longest art gallery in the world. Sweden’s national football arena is located north of the city centre, in Solna. Ericsson Globe, the national indoor arena, is in the southern part of the city.

The city was the host of the 1912 Summer Olympics, and hosted the equestrian portion of the 1956 Summer Olympics otherwise held in Melbourne, Australia. Stockholm is the seat of the Government of Sweden and most government agencies, including the highest courts in the Judiciary, and the official residencies of the Swedish monarch and the Prime Minister. The government has its seat in the Rosenbad building, the Riksdag is seated in the Parliament House, and the Prime Minister’s residence is adjacent at the Sager House. The Stockholm Palace is the official residence and principal workplace of the Swedish monarch, while the Drottningholm Palace, a World Heritage Site on the outskirts of Stockholm, serves as the Royal Family’s private residence.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

Add your own travel posts using the Linky tool below,and don't forget to be nice and leave a comment here, and link back to this page from your own post:

MOVIE MONDAY - STAND BY ME

“I spent my whole childhood wishing I were older and now I'm spending my adulthood wishing I were younger.” - Ricky Schroder

We watched an old favourite movie last weekend, one which we had watched more than 25 years ago, but it was watched again with pleasure and great satisfaction. It was the 1986 Rob Reiner movie “Stand by Me” with a screenplay by Raynold Gideon, based on the novella by Stephen King. It stars Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O'Connell, Kiefer Sutherland and Richard Dreyfuss.

The film is set in Castlerock, Oregon in the Summer of 1959. Four 12 year-old boys, Gordie, Chris, Teddy and Vern, are fast friends and as boys at that age do are seeking adventures and new experiences. When they learn of the general location of the body of a local boy who has been missing for several days and presumed to be killed by a train, they set off into woods to see it. Unfortunately for the four friends, the town’s bullies are also out to find the body for the same reason. This will lead to all sorts of trouble and it will also lead to the four boys discovering a lot about each other and themselves.

The film is about the pain and pleasure of growing up, it’s about the blessings of friendship and the heartache of loss – loss of people, loss of the sense of wonder, loss of happy times and loss of innocence. It looks at what makes us who we are and how our family, friends and foes can shape our character and so determine how we become the sort of adult we are. It is a coming-of-age movie and it is filled with nostalgia and the ache of how good some things used to be, even if they didn't feel good at the time we lived them.

The casting in this movie is inspired and every actor does a great job in bringing to life King’s detailed and rich novella. The leader of the four friends is Chris Chambers (River Phoenix), a strong boy who has to deal with how unfairly he’s been treated. Gordie Lachance (Will Wheaton) idolises Chris and he too has to deal with a “situation” at home since his brother died. Teddy Duchamp (Corey Feldman) is the renegade revolutionary whose war-wearied father has influenced him greatly. Vern Tessio (Jerry O’Connell) is the plump and nervous “tag-a-long friend” who plays an important role in the story. The leader of the older bullies is Ace Merrill (Kiefer Sutherland), who plays a villainous role with great aplomb. An older Gordie (Richard Dreyfuss) narrates the film and we see here perhaps King’s autobiographical ruminations.

Running at 89 minutes, the film packs a lot of action, many a memorable scene, some wonderful dialogue, humour, poignancy and drama. This is a wonderful movie about kids, for kids, but not only for kids. It is a great example of how a movie can be made for children without patronising them and without assuming they are senseless idiots. If you haven't seen it, go find it and watch it!

ART SUNDAY - VELÁZQUEZ

“I would rather be the first painter of common things than second in higher art.” - DiegoVelázquez

Diego Velázquez (ca 1599–1660) was one of the most famous artists of the 17th century. Although his early paintings were religious-themed, he became renowned for his realistic, complex portraits as a member of King Philip IV’s court. In his later years, the Spanish master produced a renowned portrait of Pope Innocent X and the famed group portrait of “Las Meninas”. He died on August 6, 1660, in Madrid.

Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez was born in Seville, Spain, circa June 6, 1599. At the age of 11, he began a six-year apprenticeship with local painter Francisco Pacheco. Velázquez’s early works were of the traditional religious themes favoured by his master, but he also became influenced by the naturalism of Italian painter Caravaggio. Velázquez set up his own studio after completing his apprenticeship in 1617. A year later, he married Pacheco's daughter, Juana. By 1621, the couple had two daughters.

In 1622, Velázquez moved to Madrid, where, thanks to his father-in-law’s connections, he earned the chance to paint a portrait of the powerful Count-Duke of Olivares. The count-duke then recommended Velázquez’s services to King Philip IV; upon seeing a completed portrait, the young king of Spain decided that no one else would paint him and appointed Velázquez one of his court painters. The move to the royal court gave Velázquez access to a vast collection of works and brought him into contact with important artists such as Flemish baroque master Peter Paul Rubens, who spent six months at the court in 1628. Among Velázquez’s notable works from that period were “The Triumph of Bacchus”, in which a group of revellers falls under the powerful spell of the Greek god of wine.

Velázquez travelled to Italy from June 1629 to January 1631, where he was influenced by the region’s great artists. After returning to Madrid, he began a series of portraits that featured members of the royal family on horseback. Velázquez also devoted time to painting the dwarves who served in King Philip's court, taking care to depict them as complex, intelligent beings. Along with his painting duties, Velázquez undertook increasing responsibilities within the court, ranging from wardrobe assistant to superintendent of palace works.

Velázquez made a second trip to Italy from 1649 to 1651. During this time, he was given the opportunity to paint Pope Innocent X, producing a work that is considered among the finest portraits ever rendered. Velázquez also produced a portrait of his servant, Juan de Pareja, which is admired for its striking realism, and the “Venus Rokeby”, his only surviving female nude.

Velázquez returned to his portraiture after rejoining the Madrid court, his technique more assured than ever. In 1656, he produced perhaps his most acclaimed work, “Las Meninas”. In this snapshot-like painting, two handmaidens dote on future empress Margarita Theresa while Velázquez peers from behind a large easel, ostensibly studying the king and queen, though his gaze meets the viewer’s. In 1658, Velázquez was made a knight of Santiago. After being tasked with decoration responsibilities for the wedding of Maria Theresa and Louis XIV, Velázquez became ill. He died in Madrid on August 6, 1660.

Velázquez is remembered as one of the great masters of Western art. Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali are among the artists who considered him a strong influence, while French Impressionist Édouard Manet described the Spanish great as “the painter of painters”.

Above, is his “Vieja friendo huevos” (1618, ‘Old Woman Frying Eggs’), now in the National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh. This is a homely painting of an everyday scene painted at about the time that Velázquez got married and before he joined the Spanish Royal Court. Such genre paintings were commonly executed at the time and in it one could admire the technique of the artist, not only in the resemblance of the painted images to the real people depicted, but also in the successful rendering of the objects depicted: The transparency of the glass flask, the shine on the brass basin and mortar, the hardness and whiteness of the glaze on the earthenware, the weave of the basketwork and the softness of the fabric of the clothes. The subject matter could be viewed as a simple depiction of a commonly observed scene in any Spanish household, but also an allegory of food as sustenance and the bounty of the Spanish land for provision of nutrition to a growing population.

MUSIC SATURDAY - BONPORTI

“The violinist is that peculiarly human phenomenon distilled to a rare potency - half tiger, half poet.” - Yehudi Menuhin

Francesco Antonio Bonporti (11 June 1672 – 19 December 1749) was an Italian priest and amateur composer. He was born in Trento. In 1691, he was admitted to the Collegium Germanicum in Rome, where he studied theology. There, he also studied composition under the guidance of Giuseppe Ottavio Pitoni and, although it is not confirmed, violin with Arcangelo Corelli.

Back in his native Trento, he was ordained a priest in 1695. In 1740 he moved to Padua, where he lived until his death. He influenced Johann Sebastian Bach in the development of the invention, and in fact several of his works were mistakenly included in a set of Bach’s inventions. In reality, Bach had transcribed for harpsichord four violin pieces from Bonporti’s op. X (1712). Bonporti’s musical works consists of twelve collections, published between 1696 and 1736. He died in Padua in 1749.

Here are his “Invenzioni a Violino Solo” op. 10 with Chiara Banchini (Violin solo), Jesper Christensen (Harpsichord), Gaetano Nasillo (Violoncello).

FOOD FRIDAY - LEMON STEAMED PUDDINGS

“Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.” - Victor Hugo

Our Winter seems to be dragging on this year, with quite a few rainy days, cold temperatures and wind now and then. The grey days give way to dark, cold nights and it seems the gardens in particular are having a hard time. Most tress are still bare and the blossom is in no hurry to arrive this year. A few magnolias that have started to bloom are rather reluctantly unfurling their buds and even the Spring bulbs are delayed. Wintertime calls for comfort food and what better than this traditional English dessert treat?

Lemon Steamed Pudding
Ingredients
1 tablespoon butter, at room-temperature, for greasing
4 and 1/2 tablespoons golden syrup
1/4 cup plus 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons),
plus 2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs, separated
1 cup milk
1/3 cup plain flour
Lightly sweetened whipped cream, for serving (optional)
Berries for serving (optional)

Method
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 180˚C. Grease six 180 mL ramekins with the butter and place in a roasting pan.
Whisk together the golden syrup and 2 teaspoons of the lemon juice in a small bowl and then divide the mixture evenly among the ramekins.
Whisk together the lemon zest, sugar and egg yolks in a large bowl. Stir in the milk and flour, alternating 3 times, and then stir in the remaining 1/4 cup lemon juice (the batter will have a very liquid consistency).
Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks in a separate bowl, and then gently fold the egg whites into the batter using a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the ramekins, filling them up to about 1 cm from the top.
Pour hot water into the roasting pan until about halfway up the sides of the ramekins and bake until the cakes have puffed and turned light brown on top, about 45 minutes.
Allow the ramekins to sit in the water for about 10 minutes before carefully removing them. Place a dessert plate on top of a ramekin and invert. If the cake does not naturally release, run a paring knife along the sides of the ramekin and try again. You should see a glossy lemon curd layer on top of the cake, with the treacle sauce running down the sides.
Repeat with the remaining ramekins. Serve warm with a dollop of whipped cream and some fresh berries on the side (if desired).

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ALL ABOUT NASTURTIUMS

“One trophy is good, but two are better. That way, when a hero wears his medals on his chest, at least his steps are level as he walks by.” - Johan Cruyff

Tropaeolum majus (garden nasturtium, Indian cress or monks cress) is a flowering plant in the family Tropaeolaceae, originating in the Andes from Bolivia north to Colombia. The species has become naturalised in parts of the United States (California, New York, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Connecticut). It is of cultivated, probably hybrid origin, with possible parent species including T. minus, T. moritzianum, T. peltophorum, and T. peregrinum. It is not closely related to the genus Nasturtium (which includes watercress).

The first Tropaeolum species was imported into Spain by the Spanish botanist Nicolás Monardes. He published an account in 1569 entitled “Joyful News out of the Newe Founde Worlde” in which he described, among other things, the plants and animals discovered in South America. The English herbalist John Gerard reports having received seeds of the plant from Europe in his 1597 book “Herball, or Generall Historie of Plantes.”

Tropaeolum majus was named by the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus, who chose the genus name because the plant reminded him of an ancient custom. After victory in battle, the Romans used to set up a trophy pole called a tropaeum (from the Greek tropaion, source of English “trophy”). On this the armour and weapons of the vanquished foe were hung. Linnaeus was reminded of this by the plant as the round leaves resembled shields and the flowers, blood-stained helmets. The common name “nasturtium” means “that which makes your nose twist” because of the pungent smell of the leaves.

It is a herbaceous annual plant with trailing stems growing to 1 metre long or more. The leaves are large, nearly circular, 3 to 15 centimetres diameter, green to glaucous green above, paler below; they are peltate, with the 5–30 cm long petiole near the middle of the leaf, with several veins radiating to the smoothly rounded or slightly lobed margin. The flowers are 2.5–6 cm diameter, with five petals, eight stamens, and a 2.5–3 cm long nectar spur at the rear; they vary from yellow to orange to red, frilled and often darker at the base of the petals. The fruit is 2 cm broad, three-segmented, each segment with a single large seed 1–1.5 cm long.

The Elizabeth Linnæus Phenomenon (Das Elisabeth Linné-Phänomen), is the name given to the phenomenon of “Flashing Flowers”. This is seen especially at dusk, when the orange flowers may appear to emit small “flashes of light”. Once believed to be an electrical phenomenon, it is today thought to be an optical reaction in the human eye caused by the contrast between the orange flowers and the surrounding deep green. The phenomenon is named after Elisabeth Christina von Linné, one of Carl Linnaeus's daughters, who discovered it at age 19.

The plant is widely cultivated, both as an ornamental garden flower and as a medicinal plant. It is listed as invasive in several areas, including Hawaii, Lord Howe Island, New Zealand. Nasturtiums are also considered widely useful companion plants. They repel a great many cucurbit pests, like squash bugs, cucumber beetles, and several caterpillars. They have a similar range of benefits for brassica plants, especially broccoli and cauliflower. They also serve as a trap crop against black fly aphids, while attracting beneficial predatory insects.

All parts of the nasturtium plant are edible. The flower has most often been consumed, making for an especially ornamental salad ingredient; it has a slightly peppery taste reminiscent of watercress, and is also used in stir-fries. The flowers contain about 130 mg vitamin C per 100 grams, about the same amount as is contained in parsley. Moreover, they contain up to 45 mg of lutein per 100 gr, which is the highest amount found in any edible plant. The unripe seed pods can be harvested and dropped into spiced vinegar to produce a condiment and garnish, sometimes used in place of capers.

In the language of flowers the nasturtium flower means “conquest; victory in battle”; the seed pods indicate “maternal love, charity;” while the leaves mean “patriotism, love of one’s country”.

POETS UNITED - THE SONG OF A SINGLE WORD

“Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems.” - Rainer Maria Rilke

For this week’s ‘Midweek Motif’, Poets United explores the topic, ‘The Song of a Single Word’. The challenge to participants is: “Choose a word which sings to you. Write a poem from its lyrics – or write a lyrical poem in answer to it.” My word is ‘Celandine’, which I think is a beautiful sounding word describing two different flowers (Chelidonium majus and Ficaria verna), both a sunny yellow colour. My poem below:

Celandine

The longer days of warming breezes

Are days like draughts of heady wine;

No more the icy Winter freezes –

Now blooms the yellow celandine.

The cellar door will open wide,

The sun will heat the greening vine;

As hands in labour useful guide,

Smiles happily the golden celandine.

The swallows build their nests

And ondines sport in seaside brine;

Hearts faster beat, with cupid’s jests,

While blossoms sunny celandine.

I feel my quickened pulse and try

To utter now to the love of mine:

“You are my sun and apple of my eye,

You are my blonden celandine…”

TRAVEL TUESDAY #38 - LHASA, TIBET

“Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” – Buddha

Welcome to the Travel Tuesday meme! Join me every Tuesday and showcase your creativity in photography, painting and drawing, music, poetry, creative writing or a plain old natter about Travel!

There is only one simple rule: Link your own creative work about some aspect of travel and share it with the rest of us! Please use this meme for your creative endeavours only.

Do not use this meme to advertise your products or services as any links or comments by advertisers will be removed immediately.

Lhasa is a city and administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. The main urban area of Lhasa is roughly equivalent to the administrative borders of Chengguan District, which is part of the wider Lhasa prefecture-level city, an area formerly administered as a prefecture. Lhasa is the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau after Xining and, at an altitude of 3,490 metres, Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world. The city has been the religious and administrative capital of Tibet since the mid-17th century. It contains many culturally significant Tibetan Buddhist sites such as the Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple and Norbulingka Palaces.

The Potala Palace (shown here) was the chief residence of the Dalai Lama until the 14th Dalai Lama fled to India during the 1959 Tibetan uprising. It is now a museum and World Heritage Site. The palace is named after Mount Potalaka, the mythical abode of the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara. The 5th Dalai Lama started its construction in 1645 after one of his spiritual advisers, Konchog Chophel (died 1646), pointed out that the site was ideal as a seat of government, situated as it is between Drepung and Sera monasteries and the old city of Lhasa. It may overlay the remains of an earlier fortress called the White or Red Palace on the site, built by Songtsän Gampo in 637.

The building measures 400 metres east-west and 350 metres north-south, with sloping stone walls averaging 3 m thick, and 5 m thick at the base, and with copper poured into the foundations to help proof it against earthquakes. Thirteen stories of buildings (containing over 1,000 rooms, 10,000 shrines and about 200,000 statues) soar 117 metres on top of Marpo Ri, the "Red Hill", rising more than 300 m in total above the valley floor. Tradition has it that the three main hills of Lhasa represent the “Three Protectors of Tibet”: Chokpori, just to the south of the Potala, is the soul-mountain of Vajrapani; Pongwari that of Manjusri; and Marpori, the hill on which the Potala stands, represents Avalokiteśvara.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

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MOVIE MONDAY - THE SEVENTH ART

“Cinema can fill in the empty spaces of your life and your loneliness.” - Pedro Almodovar

Have you heard of film and the movies referred to as the “Seventh Art”? It is certainly more common to see this characterisation in many European languages (French, Italian, Greek, Spanish, etc), than it is in English. It is a term that came into being in the early days of cinema when people realised the rich possibilities of the medium in producing not only entertainment, but also works of art.

Ricciotto Canudo (2 January 1877, Gioia del Colle – 10 November 1923, Paris) was an early Italian film theoretician who lived primarily in France. He saw cinema as “plastic art in motion” and is the one responsible for calling it the “Seventh Art”. In his manifesto “The Birth of the Sixth Art”, published in 1911, Canudo argued that cinema was a new art, “a superb conciliation of the Rhythms of Space (the Plastic Arts) and the Rhythms of Time (Music and Poetry)”, a synthesis of the five ancient arts: Architecture, sculpture, painting, music, and poetry (cf. Hegel’s ‘Lectures on Aesthetics’).

Canudo also provided a platform for Cubism and Orphism, in his publications entitled ‘Montjoie’. The first issue was published on 10 February 1913. According to Canudo this was the only avant-garde magazine. Participating artists included Guillaume Apollinaire, Maurice Raynal, Albert Gleizes and Joseph Csaky. The magazine paid special attention to poetry, prose, articles on art, literature, music and history. The staff included André Salmon, Igor Stravinsky, Erik Satie, Fernand Léger, Guillaume Apollinaire, Blaise Cendrars, Raoul Dufy, Stefan Zweig, Robert Delaunay, Max Jacob, and Emile Verhaeren.

The third issue of the second volume of Montjoie, published March 18, 1914, was devoted entirely to the 30th Salon des Indépendants. The article written by André Salmon included photographs of works by Joseph Csaky, Robert Delaunay, Marc Chagall, Alice Bailly, Jacques Villon, Sonia Delaunay, André Lhote, Roger de La Fresnaye, Moise Kisling, Ossip Zadkine, Lucien Laforge and Valentine de Saint-Point. Publication of the magazine stopped on the eve of the First World War.

Canudo later added dance as a sixth precursor, a third rhythmic art with music and poetry, making cinema the seventh art. In Paris, he established an avant-garde magazine ‘Le Gazette de sept arts’ in 1920, and a film club, CASA (Club des amis du septième art), in 1921. His best-known essay ‘Reflections on the Seventh Art’ was published in 1923 after a number of earlier drafts, all published in Italy or France.

So in summary, the Seven Arts are:

1. Architecture

2. Sculpture

3. Painting

4. Music

5. Poetry

6. Dance

7. Cinema

ART SUNDAY - HUNDERTWASSER

“Adopt the pace of nature: Her secret is patience.”― Ralph Waldo Emerson

The eccentric and playfully self-advertising Viennese artist known as Friedensreich Hundertwasser was born as Friedrich Stowasser on 15 December 1928. He did not assume his nom d’artiste until 1949 (‘sto’ meaning ‘one hundred’ in Slavic languages and ‘Wasser”’ meaning ‘water’). Even in adolescence Stowasser brought home reports from school attesting to his “exceptional feeling for colour and form”.

After taking the examinations qualifying for university entrance, Hundertwasser spent three months at the Viennese Art Academy studying under Professor Robin Christian Andersen. Hundertwasser was, however, more indebted to the work of Egon Schiele and Walter Kampmann, which he saw at their exhibitions, than to the brief period of academic instruction.

Hundertwasser travelled extensively in Italy, where he met René Brô, whom he accompanied to Paris. Hundertwasser had thought of continuing formal training at the École des Beaux-Arts but spent only one day at that institution. Instead he found the numerous and adventurous trips he took to Morocco, Tunisia, Nepal, Tokyo and Siberia inspirational for the path he intended to follow. Taking Viennese Jugendstil as his point of departure, Hundertwasser developed an abstract, decorative, two-dimensional and vibrantly colourful, utterly distinctive style distinguished by ornamental spiral and labyrinth forms, circles, meanders and biomorphic shapes.

During the 1960s Friedensreich Hundertwasser was extremely successful, with a 1962 retrospective in the Austrian pavilion at the Venice Biennale and a 1964 retrospective mounted by the Kestner Gesellschaft in Hannover. In addition, the first comprehensive catalogue of his œuvre was published.

Active in the ecological movement, Hundertwasser was committed to making life liveable in a humane environment that was close to nature. He furthered his aims by issuing manifestos and making provocative public appearances, for instance giving a speech in the nude (1968) in Vienna. Between 1968 and 1972 Hundertwasser re-hauled the old sailing vessel ‘San Giuseppe’ at docks in the Venice lagoon, rechristened it ‘Regentag’ [‘Rainy Day’], and going to see in it several times.

So versatile and prolific was Hundertwasser that he also designed coins and stamps for Austria, Senegal and the UN from the 1970s. Moreover, Hunderwasser was the first European artist to have work carved by Japanese master carvers. In 1981 Hundertwasser was appointed head of the master classes for painting at the Viennese Art Academy. The famous Hundertwasser House in Vienna, begun in 1983, attests to Hunderwasser’s skill as an architect. The year before he died, Hundertwasser was working on a catalogue raisonné of his works and presented the Uelzen Station architectural project. Friedensreich Hundertwasser died on a cruise ship off New Zealand in 2000.

The painting above is “Columbus Landed in India”. Signed Friedensreich and numbered 687. Painted at La Picaudière, May 5 - Seeshaupt, May 25 - Venice, Giudecca, July 2 1969. Mixed media: Egg tempera, wax, oil and water colour on paper, primed with chalk and PV (polivenil); mounted on hemp with PV (polivenil) 81 x 111 cm. The painting was sold for 3,932,247 Swedish Kroner (≈$605,000 AUD) at auction. The painting shows the brilliant colours and intricate interlocking shapes characteristic of the artist, as well as the appearance of a spectral face often found in Hundertwasser’s works.

MUSIC SATURDAY - ISABELLA LEONARDA

“Women who seek to be equal with men lack ambition.” - Timothy Leary

Isabella Leonarda (6 September 1620 – 25 February 1704) was an Italian composer from Novara. At the age of 16, she entered the Collegio di Sant’Orsola, an Ursuline convent, where she stayed for the remainder of her life. Leonarda is most renowned for the numerous compositions that she created during her time at the convent, making her one of the most productive woman composers of her time.

Anna Isabella Leonarda was born on September 6, 1620, the daughter of Giannantonio Leonardi and his wife, Apollonia. The Leonardi were an old and prominent Novarese family whose members included important church and civic officials and knights palatine. Isabella’s father, who held the title of count, was a doctor of laws. In 1636, Leonarda entered the Collegio di Sant’Orsola, an Ursuline convent in Novara. Her family maintained close ties with Sant’Orsola as benefactors, which some speculate may have contributed to Leonarda’s influence within the convent. She held various positions of authority throughout her time at Sant’Orsola - as madre (1676), superiora (1686), madre vicaria (1693), and consigliera (1700). The precise significance of these titles is unclear, but superiora was probably the highest office in the convent.

Leonarda was a highly regarded composer in her home city, but her music was apparently little known in other parts of Italy. Her published compositions span a period of 60 years, beginning with the dialogues of 1640 and concluding with the Motetti a voce sola of 1700. Leonarda is credited with producing nearly two hundred compositions during that period, though her only works appearing before 1670 were the dialogues printed by Gasparo Casati. It appears that she was over the age of 50 before she started composing regularly, and it was at that time that she began publishing the works that we know her for today.

Leonarda’s works include examples of nearly every sacred genre: Motets and sacred concertos for one to four voices, sacred Latin dialogues, psalm settings, responsories, Magnificats, litanies, masses, and sonate da chiesa. She also wrote a few sacred solo songs with vernacular texts. Sonate da chiesa refers to her Opus 16, which was historic in that it was an instrumental composition rather than vocal. Only two Italian women are known to have made contributions to instrumental music, each of them publishing only one collection in this field. Leonarda’s Opus 16 is one of these two collections, the other being a composition by Marieta Morosina Priuli.

Though Leonarda’s predominant genre was the solo motet, most of her notable historical achievements came from her sonatas. She was the first woman to publish sonatas, composing many throughout her lifetime. For example, Sonatas 1 through 11 are for two violins, violone, and organ. Sonatas 1, 3, 4, 7, and 8 are “concerted sonatas”: Each of the three instruments has at least one solo passage. Sonata 12 is Leonarda’s only solo sonata and one of her most renowned compositions. It is divided into seven sections with two slow movements which are recitative-like, inviting improvised embellishments.

Leonarda’s intricate use of harmonies is one example of her influence in the cultivation of polyphonic music at Sant’Orsola, as many other Italian nun composers were doing at their own convents during the same period. This style created an atmosphere conducive to the creativity of the musician, allowing for slight improvisation or musical ornamentation. Leonarda’s sonatas, however, are unusual in their formal structure. It is generally held that Arcangelo Corelli established the “standard” four-movement, slow-fast-slow-fast form of the sonata da chiesa. Leonarda’s sonatas, however, vary from as few as four (Sonatas 6 and 9) to as many as thirteen (Sonata 4), and her sonatas in four sections do not follow the slow-fast-slow-fast model.

Additionally, Leonarda uses refrains in a rather unusual way. Sonata 5 is the most regular; Sonata 10 has two refrains, in the pattern ABCDEBDFBG. Sonata 4 has the quite unusual plan of ABCDEFGHIJI'J'I'/'. Sections are essentially of three types: (1) fast sections in duple meter, often with some imitation, derived from the canzona tradition; (2) slow, expressive, homophonic sections in duple meter, related perhaps to the toccata and recitative; and (3) homophonic sections (occasionally with brief passages in imitation) in triple time, apparently related to the dance.

Here are Leonarda’s “Sonate a più Strumenti”, which are a wonderful introduction to the amazing music of this baroque woman composer.

FOOD FRIDAY - JACKET POTATOES WITH SALMON

“My idea of heaven is a great big baked potato and someone to share it with.” - Oprah Winfrey

Our Winter continues and the little bit of sunshine we saw earlier today quickly disappeared under a pall of grey cloud, wind and rain later on. As the cold temperatures persist, the warm kitchen beckons and what better a wintry treat than jacket potatoes?

Smoked Salmon Jacket Potatoes
Ingredients

4 large (≈200g each) washed sebago potatoes

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

150 g sour cream

100 g sliced smoked salmon, finely chopped

1 and 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives (or Spring onions)

1 and 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

25g coarsely grated tasty cheddar

2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh dill

Method

Pierce each potato 5-6 times all over with a fork. Rub oil over the potato skins to evenly coat. Season with salt. Cover the microwave oven turntable with paper towel. Place the potatoes around the edge of the turntable. Cook on High (/800watts/100%), turning potatoes halfway through cooking, for 10-12 minutes or until tender when pierced with a skewer.

Carefully remove the hot potatoes from the microwave. Wrap them in foil and set aside for 5 minutes to cool slightly. Cut one-third from the top of each potato. Use a spoon to scoop out the centres, leaving a 1cm shell. Divide the butter amongst the potatoes and rub it inside each hollowed out potato. Place scooped potato flesh in a bowl.

Add the sour cream to the potato flesh and mash with a fork until well combined. Stir in the salmon, 5 teaspoons of the chives, the lemon juice, cheddar and dill. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon potato mixture into the potato shells. Sprinkle with the remaining chives and season with pepper. Serve immediately.

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