Beautiful Feet

I tried this today and it is very cool: Daily Prayer for your mp3 Player from Pray-as-You-Go, a British Jesuit project.

From the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels and Martyrs, Rome. © Garry Glowacki, 2009.

I was recently taken to dinner at La Bruschetta Restaurant at 1317 St. Clair Ave. W. between Dufferin and Lansdowne. I've eaten at some pretty upscale Italian restaurants in this city but this is a notable place both in terms of cuisine and atmosphere. Silvia Piantoni welcomed us warmly--not as 'clients' but as people. She discussed the menu in a way that showed her love of the food, not just as today's fare. And, yes, the eponymous appetizer was fantastic! We took her advice and had the insalata with mushrooms, gorgonzola and fresh figs--the latter a first for me, and I appreciated that the cheese did not overpower the salad. My companion marveled over his flaky black cod and I enjoyed the best penne (homemade) arrabiata I've ever had. A pino grigio was served properly chilled not cold, which was a refreshing change. We shared a torta (della) nonna, a light ending to a perfect meal. I hadn't intended to blog about this Umbrian gem, but my friend was right in ...

from Eternally Cool Blog on Facebook

"Unfolding" CD release concert Sunday July 12th 8:00pm admission $8 El Mocambo (1st floor) 464 Spadina Ave Tel: (416) 777-1777 Composer-pianist John Farah performs works from his new CD "Unfolding" on piano, rhodes and electronics, fusing contemporary composition with electronica.presented by John Farah and Dross:tik Records http://www.drosstik.com

from Eternally Cool Blog: Pope Sergius on the Street; it’s an image from Piazza Magione in Palermo depicting Pope Sergius (reigned 687-701), the first Pope born in Palermo. By street artists Sten and Lex.

They will be in Guelph, at Crimea Street Studio. 4 sessions: Fantastic Fantasy July 6-10. Ages: 8-10... Passion for Painting July 13-17. Ages: 11-13... Making Faces August 17-21. Ages: 8-10... Bust-it-open Bookworks August 24-28. Ages: 11-13 Run by artist Phil Irish, profiled below. For more info contact him via www.philirish.com or on Facebook.

DAKOTA , a quirky Canadian film which you know is refreshingly different, but ya don't realize what it is until they mention toonies! Good fun, not too heavy AND it's got a couple of tracks by Royal Wood whom I've plugged here previously.

Scott Belluz, Countertenor © V.Wells 2009 I had a meet-up after the press night for Tapestry’s The Shadow with that role’s artist, countertenor Scott Belluz. We had an engaging conversation about new opera works, music education and his performance in this new opera by Omar Daniel and Alex Poch-Goldin. [What follows is my paraphrase of our discussion and any errors or omissions are entirely mea culpa.] I commented that I knew a teenager who was totally hooked on Tapestry Opera , and wondered what was the appeal of this company that it could be considered a cool entertainment option for the partying demographic. Scott felt that it was twofold in nature. The subject matter of Tapestry’s productions is very current which is atypical of what we usually think of as opera, so the content is automatically appealing. He also pointed out that the youth of the composers and librettists and performers involved also contributes to a common, current worldview, and the material is therefore ve...

Scott Belluz (countertenor) as The Shadow; photo © Michael Cooper, CooperShoots There must be something in the water here: Canada turns out a lot of outstanding opera productions and stars, and thank God for that. Last night I had the pleasure of seeing another homegrown operatic world premiere: The Shadow presented by Tapestry New Opera Works . Part thriller, part cautionary tale, this strong piece was composed by Omar Daniel and written by Alex Poch-Goldin (see details in last week's post, below). I say strong because the work itself really doesn't need any propping up by external elements--although the very fine cast and well-appointed visuals certainly heightened the dramatic effects. Might as well accuse me now of partiality because this is yet another rave review of a Tapestry project. This is a consummately professional company whose studio members always deliver: there's never Over The Top acting or bad props or distracting shortcuts. These touches allow us to focu...