Open Question: What do you know about the Composers?

I want to know every single little fact you know about any composer. Any facts that will make that composer stand out. I give you a few facts that I know: Wagner, as is well known, was a favourite composer of the Nazis. What is not as well known is that half a before Hitler's rise to power, in 1881, Wagner was advocating 'racial cleansing’ (Rassenreinigung). His polemical book 'Das Judenthum in der Musik' was written because of his deep-seated resentment of any Jews who achieved success in his field. Even Hitler’s concept of the Final Solution was adapted from Wagner’s term ‘Die grosse Losung’, though Wagner called only for the expulsion of Jews from Germany. Chillingly, he also suggested that during a performance of Lessing’s pro-Jewish play ‘Nathan der Weise’, the theatre should be filled with Jews, locked and burnt down! The Nazi slogan ‘Deutschland erwache!’ (‘Germany awake!’) was coined by Wagner â€" Hitler was merely quoting. The faeces-coloured uniform worn by Hitler’s brown-shirt thugs was inspired by the title of Wagner’s diary, ‘The Brown Book’. Not a pleasant fact, but unfortunately true. (What’s your opinion of Wagner now?) Another fact is that Verdi was a fervent supporter of the Risorgimento, the movement for the reorganization of the numerous small Italian states into one country. The theme of resurgent nationalism in his early operas, the frequent clashes with the censor (who suspected him of revolutionary tendencies), his political career in the 1860’s when he sat reluctantly for five years in the new Italian parliament â€" all these things endeared Verdi to the general public. The symbolic leader of the nationalist movement was Victor Emmanuel, the future king of Italy â€" Vittorio Emmanuel, Re d’Italia. Thus all over Italy the initials V.E.R.D.I. were to be seen, the cries of ‘Viva Verdi’ heard vociferously in the opera house as they were in the street. After the premiere of ‘Falstaff’ in 1893, Victor Emmanuel, by then king of a united Italy, offered to ennoble Verdi, but he declined. ‘I am a peasant’, he told the king. And yet another fact is that Prokofiev was an outstanding chess player. In 1909 he drew with Emanuel Lasker â€" world chess champion for an astonishing 27 years â€" in an exhibition in which Lasker was playing several opponents simultaneously. Later, in 1914, Prokofiev played in three simultaneous exhibitions given in St Petersburg by the future world champion, the Cuban player Jose Raul Capablanca. After losing in his first two attempts, in his third try Prokofiev beat Capablanca. They are just some of the many of thousands of facts I know about the great composers. What do you know? Those are some interesting facts, del_icious_manager. I am aware of some of them. The facts I'm not familiar with are the ones about Chausson, Alkan, Stradella and Paderewski. They are very intriguing. Let's hope you can extend your list. (Please forgive my mistakes in this question. I did not have time to overlook it. If you find anymore spelling and grammar mistakes, please don't hesitate to let me know). It should be 'I will give you a few facts that I know' and 'half a century before Hitler's rise to power...' I am very strict when it comes to composing a question. All mistakes must be corrected.

Open Question: Have I been making fast progress, slow progress, average progress...?

Speaking in generalities; I know everyone is different. I started piano lessons when I was 10 but quit when I was 12 because my teacher sucked. Well, initially I left because she got way too snotty about my personal life (like giving me crap for calling my parents by their first names instead of 'mom' and 'dad', and when we switched to lessons at my house she wasted half a lesson making me build a barrier against my kitten because my teacher was afraid of cats. Not allergic, afraid) and then later I realized that all I'd learned to do was sight-read well enough to find patterns and fake my way through the rest. We'd never done any theory or anything. I think I made pretty fast progress. There was then a two year gap between lessons, meaning I started again at age 14. Now I'm up to Moszkowski's Spanish Dances (duet arrangements), Bach's little preludes and fugues, and stuff around that level. I'm 16 now. Due to bad family circumstances I can often go a whole week without practicing...but when I do practice I can have whole pieces on the level of the early Bach preludes memorized in two days. So is two years to get from starting back at the beginning to being at the level of music I'm at a long time, short time, or average time for the typical person who isn't a prodigy and has to deal with stuff like school? My parents have never objected to me calling them by their first names. My mom never said, "Go ask Dad if you can do that," she said, "Go ask [my father's name] if you can do that." Honestly, it would be weird if I called them Mom and Dad.

Open Question: I HATE MY FATHER.....?

I asked quite a few questions regarding my hatred of my family. This is why I hate my dad... He may seem nice when you meet him, but deep down he really does get annoying. I don't hate him too much, I just hate him. Hes always the nicest in our family, but he doesn't care for anything but 4 things: The Dogs, Classical Music, Smoking, and T.V. Its because of him, I have second-hand smoke and now I can't breath very well. He also tells me a lot of stories that offends me like how I was born differently and almost killed my mom. Or how I was born with some disease I really do not want to say in public. He also told me to go to hell once, just because I didn't want to go to school, and I started crying because I was bloody sick as hell. He also threatened me by kicking me out of the house when I was in 1st grade because I started crying after he threw something away. He loves to smoke and watch T.V. and listen to music. He loves to smoke so much he denies its unhealthy. IN FACT he told me that drinking a coke everyday is more dangerous then smoking. That's how addicted he is. Every 5:00 PM He has a cigar smoke and a drink of coffee while listening to music outside. His smoke isn't what I also hate about him. He is deaf as hell! I told him to pick me up from a friends house, and he went to the wrong one! Then he goes home yells at my mom saying he's been outside for 17 minutes waiting for me. Hes never proud of me, and he prefers my older brother and sister over me. Yeah, thats my dad.

Resolved Question: Favorite piece of classical music that you never hear performed?

Anything from Western art music. There's just so much music out there that plenty of wonderful pieces of music commonly get overlooked by orchestras and radio stations. What are you're favorite under-appreciated works? As for me, I can't help but fall into my early college days studying classical saxophone. I'm a big fan of Russel Peck's The Upward Stream, as well as his sax quartet piece Drastic Measures. Ibert's Concertina da Camera comes to mind as well. For more traditional fare, I'd love to hear some of Barber's songs on the radio occasionally. He wrote some wonderful vocal music. The same goes for Mahler's songs. And while I'm on Mahler, I always seem to notice much more performances of his symphonies 1, 2, 5, and 8, but I wish that I would hear more of 9. Although 2 is probably my favorite, I'm a huge fan of 9, and I hardly ever hear it. I would also love to be able to hear an orchestra perform John Adams' Century Rolls piano concerto. It's such a unique sound for a piano concerto, but I have never heard it played, outside of my ipod. How about you guys? I totally used the word "you're" instead of "your". I hate it when I have bad internet grammar... Thank you all for the answers. You guys always put any of my picks to shame! And del.icious.manager...wow what a list. Of course, I guess that's your job, so it makes sense. Doc Watson, great call on the Pearl Fishers Duet. That has to be one of the more beautiful melodies ever written, and it's also short and sweet. There's no reason for that piece not to get more play on the radio. In addition to what I mentioned yesterday, Shostakovitch also came to mind. I'd really like to hear more of his string quartets get air time.

Resolved Question: Favorite piece of classical music that you never hear performed?

Anything from Western art music. There's just so much music out there that plenty of wonderful pieces of music commonly get overlooked by orchestras and radio stations. What are you're favorite under-appreciated works? As for me, I can't help but fall into my early college days studying classical saxophone. I'm a big fan of Russel Peck's The Upward Stream, as well as his sax quartet piece Drastic Measures. Ibert's Concertina da Camera comes to mind as well. For more traditional fare, I'd love to hear some of Barber's songs on the radio occasionally. He wrote some wonderful vocal music. The same goes for Mahler's songs. And while I'm on Mahler, I always seem to notice much more performances of his symphonies 1, 2, 5, and 8, but I wish that I would hear more of 9. Although 2 is probably my favorite, I'm a huge fan of 9, and I hardly ever hear it. I would also love to be able to hear an orchestra perform John Adams' Century Rolls piano concerto. It's such a unique sound for a piano concerto, but I have never heard it played, outside of my ipod. How about you guys? I totally used the word "you're" instead of "your". I hate it when I have bad internet grammar... Thank you all for the answers. You guys always put any of my picks to shame! And del.icious.manager...wow what a list. Of course, I guess that's your job, so it makes sense. Doc Watson, great call on the Pearl Fishers Duet. That has to be one of the more beautiful melodies ever written, and it's also short and sweet. There's no reason for that piece not to get more play on the radio. In addition to what I mentioned yesterday, Shostakovitch also came to mind. I'd really like to hear more of his string quartets get air time.

Open Question: I Feel Like Nobody Understands Me?

I'm a 15 year old guy and I feel like this all the time, I feel like nobody really knows me. I have a few friends but not many. They don't really know me. I have lots of things I either can't tell people or I'm scared to tell people about. Nobody really knows who I am or what I'm like. I like things that nobody else I know likes; writing, classical music, music in different languages, poetry, computers, school work and lots of other things. I really don't like any kind of sport, and I don't want to go to parties even if I was invited because I am against drinking alcohol. I feel like I have way too many secrets about my personal life and my family life and I have nobody I can tell them to. I only have 3 other people in my family and I feel like I can't talk to them about anything. I've never had somebody to guide me from a young age or somebody to look up to because I don't have a father. I can't close to anybody but I want to, however, nobody ever gives me a chance. I have thought about joining clubs but they aren't any I would like to go to, I don't like physical activity ot team building activities. It doesn't sound like I'm helping myself much but I'm not sure what to do and I admit that I'm a really picky person. I don't want to be like everybody else. I feel like everybody else is immature and make stupid decisions. (Sorry to judge but that is how people I know act, I'm sure that there are lots of sensible teenagers out there). It seems like everybody else doesn't care about their school work (I admit that I am a nerd) and they only care bout being 'cool'. They do this by not doing any work, going to wild parties, smoking, getting drunk, having sex and being mean to me. I also feel like if I did have somebody to talk to, they would never be able to understand because they are not me and I have so much that is too hard to explain. I don't want to see a doctor or psychiatristst. I feel lonely all the time and I just want a long hug from somebody and to be told that everything is going to be ok. I often cry myself to sleep. What should I do? Thank you

Open Question: Why am I such an ugly loser?

I know I'm ugly myself just wondering if anyone thought the same. Yep, as I said I am ugly so watch out. http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh116/89murph/DSC02569.jpg Yep, I did just post this but I didn't get enough answers because I'm a "greedy ugly troll" I'm an 19 y/o virgin guy (haha funny ain't it). I've never had a girlfriend, kissed etc. People say I'm attractive (I know I'm not otherwise I would have a girlfriend) shy, quiet (Not very), nice etc. Not many girls talk to me probably because I'm ugly and quiet. I need plastic surgery; although people say no there isn't anything wrong with me, there must be otherwise I would have girlfriend by now. I'm not a pervert or jerk, so I don't understand. I would never cheat if I had a girlfriend, I'm not a jerk. I'm not even after sex, I just want to have a girlfriend. I don't drink nor smoke. I shower daily, I dress up to date (yeah my fashion sense is good). This is why I know I'm ugly because everything else I do seems ok (probably not though). I'm not going to become a jerk just to get a girlfriend. Well basically, I'm a loner (not really but I see myself as one). I don't go out (as in to clubs and stuff) much because people probably laugh at me, because I'm so ugly. Like "look at him he's ugly!". No one has said that but that is what they probably think. It could be because I listen to classical music, girls don't like freaks.