#rossini’s adventures in writing

[leporellian]

i do think that the barber of seville- the opera, or at least rossini's take- does a better version of introducing figaro than the barber of seville (the play) does. and exactly why the opera introduction works while the play introduction doesn't is because of the audience's placement relative to figaro himself.

beaumarchais makes the audience way too comfortable with the character. for one thing, figaro's entrance is casual. he comes in tweaking a song he's been writing- this is a figaro vulnerable enough with the audience to immediately show us something unfinished, which is an immediate breach.

then, once he and the count cross each other's paths (in an almost startlingly mean exchange where the count immediately insults figaro to his face and tells him he's gotten too fat to recognize- beaumarchais's script has a certain meanness that works in some ways and doesn't in others), figaro goes into a VERY long recount of his past adventures, which is too long to screenshot properly so just take my word for it.

this is all entertaining, and some details are interesting, such as figaro's ambition to become a playwright. but it's probably only interesting to those who come back to read it after having seen the figaro operas, because there's no way an audience would be willing to sit through all this exposition. and it also immediately soils any sort of mystique figaro has. figaro is a nuanced character but he is still a trickster, and one of the most captivating parts of tricksters is how enigmatic they actually are.

but the opera has a fantastic solution to all of this. you're no longer figaro's friends whom he is telling everything to; as for all of figaro's insight he is also cynical enough to lack genuine friends. you're his customers.

there's a reason this aria is one of the most famous moments in operatic history. besides the fact that it does slap, it is the most perfect introduction to this character and this world. figaro treats the audience as he does everyone else. he's selling you on himself. there's multiple strokes of genius here- for one thing, figaro tells you all this directly, and there's no way to tell whether or not he's being genuine. the music and libretto even toy with this by purposely shooting for exaggeration. already, his somewhat unscrupulous character is defined without ever even being stated directly- and yet, god damn he's putting up one hell of a sales pitch. at every opportunity he remains curiously distanced from his audience. this figaro would never show the audience an unfinished song lyric, heaven forbid! this figaro is a showman. and in that showmanship another detail is completely overlooked: it is stated in the plays that figaro only takes up the barber job when he realizes he can't make money as a playwright. given there's no mention of anyone else there, figaro is telling all of this to himself. he's ultimately selling himself on himself- perhaps one of his most gaping insecurities of all and it's laid out in a way where the audience doesn't even notice. god damn. it's a work of art.

and that's one of the biggest keys to this character. his weaknesses. must be laid out exactly where the audience can deduce them, but they cannot be directly stated and figaro cannot allow himself to get close enough to the audience for them to clock him immediately. just as a strange detachment marks him from the other characters, it has to mark him from the audience.

there's a common complaint that figaro in the marriage of figaro (mozart's opera) appears less competent than his barber of seville self; but this isn't actually a character inconsistency: the figaro we see in marriage is more intimate with the audience, even if he appears uncomfortable about it. the figaro in marriage allows us to see his mistakes, although he doesn't do so willingly. and remember that while mozart's marriage was written after barber it was still written as a companion piece to an earlier barber of seville opera: by this point, we know figaro, although we still do not entirely understand him. (this effect would have probably been heightened had daponte been allowed to keep more of figaro's original last-act speech from the play instead of being forced by the censors to discard it; for that speech is the exact moment where figaro drops every pretense and finally makes himself palpable to the audience. after that point we do not see figaro expose himself in such a way again until one of his very last lines in the original play, when bartolo tells him that he will surely make friends with his new fortune: "-do you think so?")

this is also another sort of dock point for a lot of the operas masquerading around as the 'third' figaro opera. he's an admittedly tough nut to crack, so either he resumes his position as the vulnerable trickster in marriage without any of the corresponding emotional drive in order to suggest the detachment of his character without going the mile and committing to it, or he's reduced to a prop, or he's actively torn to pieces in what appears to be little more than the composer and librettist having their 'mid-2010s DC superhero movie' moment. marriage basically laying the character as bare as he gets certainly makes it a difficult task but it isn't impossible- or at least as impossible as opera-making teams seem to think it is.

[siena-sevenwits]

Coffee or tea? Tea is my go-to and the one that properly has my heart, but coffee is special and indulgent and full of associations (one of my coffee-obsessed characters who got me into liking coffee at all, driving into the city with my mom, solo adventures to the coffee shop to write.)

Early bird or night owl? My brain crashes around 7:30 PM, and then wakes up again properly around 9:30 and stays turned on till frighteningly late - or rather early.

Chocolate or vanilla? Well, chocolate, of course.

Spring or Fall? Fall is all things beautiful. It is the very shortest season where I live, but it is the real New Year. My birthday, my new school year, my fresh motivation.

Silver or gold - You are gold / You are all I see / You are aurum scarce and meant for kings...

Pop or alternative - I like both! Tough pick. I often have trouble knowing exactly where the line is, especially with all the indie folk I listen to that has something of a pop sound.

Freckles or dimples - Freckles.

Snakes or sharks - Snakes. Specifically the little garter snakes that are always slithering across my path

Mountains or fields - The wonderful Rockies!

Thunder or lightning - Ideally both, but thunder is a joy whether I get to watch the storm or not. Nothing better than sitting in an old, old building, sipping tea and feeling the thunder shaking in the building's fibres.

Egyptian mythology or Greek mythology - Well, Greek!

Ivory or scarlet - Scarlet's my favourite colour, after all!

Flute or lyre - I think it's the lyre.

 Opal or diamond - Neither are high on my radar, but I do like the sheer variety of opals

Butterflies or honeybees - Honeybees, but I love bumblebees even better. They're just so clumsy and good natured and round, and for many years it was believed they could not sting, because they so seldom do! 

Macarons or eclairs - I used to live in St. Therese residence in college, and we were supposed to throw a big party for the other residences themed around our patron saint. We didn't want to do a roses theme, so we took our cue from the fact that in her final illness, she told one of the other nuns that she was craving a chocolate eclair. Great big chocolate eclair party! Good memories.

Typewritten or handwritten Handwritten for poems and snail mail, typewritten for everything else.

 Secret garden or secret library - Library.

 Rooftop or balcony - I often go up on the roof of my parents to stargaze or watch fireworks, and occasionally see aurora.

Spicy or mild - I could compete with the British Empire of old in terms of my desire to obtain all the spice.

Opera or ballet - Opera, you have my whole heart! Especially the bel canto era! Rossini was one of my teen obsessions!

London or Paris - I desperately need to go back to London.

vincent van gogh or claude monet - Van Gogh. Though I am sentimental about the animation of "Linnea in Monet's Garden" from my childhood.

Denim or leather - Leather

Potions or spells - Potions. 

Ocean or desert - There is no joy to compare with a two hour trip on BC ferries.

Mermaids or sirens - I need to enjoy more stories with mermaids in them, but obviously I will choose them over sirens.

 Masquerade ball or cocktail party Is this a question? Masquerade!!

@telthor Thanks for tagging me! Anyone who ought to be in bed right now is officially tagged.

[dariaandjanelanefanboy]

Busoni – Piano Concerto in C Major A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire…Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and orchestra are equally utilized. Actually, while the piano does have important structural aspects to it, the pianist overall is constantly struggling to play over the booming orchestra, to the point where the virtuosity goes unnoticed in comparison. That’s probably a major reason why we rarely see it in concert: it’s a beast to play, but the difficulty isn’t easily highlighted so it’s hard to “show off” to the audience. Written at the beginning of the century, the work isn’t like the shadowy and bleak works of his more mature years, rather it is an over-the-top unapologetic love letter to the grandiose decadence of late 19th century piano concertos. Here it might be adequate to say “Too many notes”. In fact, Alfred Brendel even said this work was “monstrously overwritten”. So why does it have a niche cult following? Why is it still being picked up [a mild resurgence in recent years I’ve noticed]? Despite the pianistic writing at times, the work is well balanced. It follows the structure as seen in the drawing that Busoni had conceptualized here in the video: a grand solemn temple in the middle, two busy vibrant gardens on either side, and then two polished ornate temples bookending the row. In following this structure, we start with a grand movement, opening as if in media res, with a Brahms like theme paired with Lisztian pyrotechnics and Beethoven drama. The next movement is a rushing scherzo that is somehow both heavy and rapid, defying physics it seems. The third movement is a large scale meditation of an operatic theme that is excruciatingly Teutonic with its modulating build up. The following movement is a heart racing tarantella, taking Italian street songs a la Rossini and making them as frantic and animalistic as possible, a build up that makes me think of wild animals stampeding out of a zoo and causing all kinds of havoc. After the insane cadenza and obligatory brass fanfare, we settle down a bit with a choral setting [yes, I forgot to mention this concerto has a choral finale] of a hymn to Allah from an early 19th century play by Adam Oehlenschläger, Aladdin.] The work ends in a stately coda. The constant use of climaxes, the blazing orchestra, the hyperactive pianist, it all comes together as an almost postmodernist parody of the Romantic piano concerto. I like to think of it as the story of a Liszt or Thalberg type showman pianist trying to show off to the audience fighting the conductor/composer who doesn’t have the work written with him in mind. I know I’ve probably been making fun of this work more than praising it, so here is the praise: it brings to mind the wonder of sitting in an audience watching a concert live, being awestruck and marveling at the abilities of the musicians creating magic out of sound before our eyes, both physical and mental achievements. This is a space of magic, of dreams, of adventure and exploration, of naivety that we wish we could return to. Movements: 1. Prologo e Introito: Allegro, dolce e solenne 2. Pezzo giocoso 3. Pezzo serioso 4. All’Italiana: Tarantella: Vivace; In un tempo 5. Cantico: Largamente, “Die Felsensäulen fangen an tief und leise zu ertönen”[”[”Deep and quiet, the pillars of rock begin to sound”]

mikrokosmos: Busoni – Piano Concerto in C Major A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire…Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and…

[werewolvesandaccordions]

Busoni – Piano Concerto in C Major A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire…Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and orchestra are equally utilized. Actually, while the piano does have important structural aspects to it, the pianist overall is constantly struggling to play over the booming orchestra, to the point where the virtuosity goes unnoticed in comparison. That’s probably a major reason why we rarely see it in concert: it’s a beast to play, but the difficulty isn’t easily highlighted so it’s hard to “show off” to the audience. Written at the beginning of the century, the work isn’t like the shadowy and bleak works of his more mature years, rather it is an over-the-top unapologetic love letter to the grandiose decadence of late 19th century piano concertos. Here it might be adequate to say “Too many notes”. In fact, Alfred Brendel even said this work was “monstrously overwritten”. So why does it have a niche cult following? Why is it still being picked up [a mild resurgence in recent years I’ve noticed]? Despite the pianistic writing at times, the work is well balanced. It follows the structure as seen in the drawing that Busoni had conceptualized here in the video: a grand solemn temple in the middle, two busy vibrant gardens on either side, and then two polished ornate temples bookending the row. In following this structure, we start with a grand movement, opening as if in media res, with a Brahms like theme paired with Lisztian pyrotechnics and Beethoven drama. The next movement is a rushing scherzo that is somehow both heavy and rapid, defying physics it seems. The third movement is a large scale meditation of an operatic theme that is excruciatingly Teutonic with its modulating build up. The following movement is a heart racing tarantella, taking Italian street songs a la Rossini and making them as frantic and animalistic as possible, a build up that makes me think of wild animals stampeding out of a zoo and causing all kinds of havoc. After the insane cadenza and obligatory brass fanfare, we settle down a bit with a choral setting [yes, I forgot to mention this concerto has a choral finale] of a hymn to Allah from an early 19th century play by Adam Oehlenschläger, Aladdin.] The work ends in a stately coda. The constant use of climaxes, the blazing orchestra, the hyperactive pianist, it all comes together as an almost postmodernist parody of the Romantic piano concerto. I like to think of it as the story of a Liszt or Thalberg type showman pianist trying to show off to the audience fighting the conductor/composer who doesn’t have the work written with him in mind. I know I’ve probably been making fun of this work more than praising it, so here is the praise: it brings to mind the wonder of sitting in an audience watching a concert live, being awestruck and marveling at the abilities of the musicians creating magic out of sound before our eyes, both physical and mental achievements. This is a space of magic, of dreams, of adventure and exploration, of naivety that we wish we could return to. Movements: 1. Prologo e Introito: Allegro, dolce e solenne 2. Pezzo giocoso 3. Pezzo serioso 4. All’Italiana: Tarantella: Vivace; In un tempo 5. Cantico: Largamente, “Die Felsensäulen fangen an tief und leise zu ertönen”[”[”Deep and quiet, the pillars of rock begin to sound”]

mikrokosmos: Busoni – Piano Concerto in C Major A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire…Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and…

[tinas-art]

Busoni – Piano Concerto in C Major A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire…Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and orchestra are equally utilized. Actually, while the piano does have important structural aspects to it, the pianist overall is constantly struggling to play over the booming orchestra, to the point where the virtuosity goes unnoticed in comparison. That’s probably a major reason why we rarely see it in concert: it’s a beast to play, but the difficulty isn’t easily highlighted so it’s hard to “show off” to the audience. Written at the beginning of the century, the work isn’t like the shadowy and bleak works of his more mature years, rather it is an over-the-top unapologetic love letter to the grandiose decadence of late 19th century piano concertos. Here it might be adequate to say “Too many notes”. In fact, Alfred Brendel even said this work was “monstrously overwritten”. So why does it have a niche cult following? Why is it still being picked up [a mild resurgence in recent years I’ve noticed]? Despite the pianistic writing at times, the work is well balanced. It follows the structure as seen in the drawing that Busoni had conceptualized here in the video: a grand solemn temple in the middle, two busy vibrant gardens on either side, and then two polished ornate temples bookending the row. In following this structure, we start with a grand movement, opening as if in media res, with a Brahms like theme paired with Lisztian pyrotechnics and Beethoven drama. The next movement is a rushing scherzo that is somehow both heavy and rapid, defying physics it seems. The third movement is a large scale meditation of an operatic theme that is excruciatingly Teutonic with its modulating build up. The following movement is a heart racing tarantella, taking Italian street songs a la Rossini and making them as frantic and animalistic as possible, a build up that makes me think of wild animals stampeding out of a zoo and causing all kinds of havoc. After the insane cadenza and obligatory brass fanfare, we settle down a bit with a choral setting [yes, I forgot to mention this concerto has a choral finale] of a hymn to Allah from an early 19th century play by Adam Oehlenschläger, Aladdin.] The work ends in a stately coda. The constant use of climaxes, the blazing orchestra, the hyperactive pianist, it all comes together as an almost postmodernist parody of the Romantic piano concerto. I like to think of it as the story of a Liszt or Thalberg type showman pianist trying to show off to the audience fighting the conductor/composer who doesn’t have the work written with him in mind. I know I’ve probably been making fun of this work more than praising it, so here is the praise: it brings to mind the wonder of sitting in an audience watching a concert live, being awestruck and marveling at the abilities of the musicians creating magic out of sound before our eyes, both physical and mental achievements. This is a space of magic, of dreams, of adventure and exploration, of naivety that we wish we could return to. Movements: 1. Prologo e Introito: Allegro, dolce e solenne 2. Pezzo giocoso 3. Pezzo serioso 4. All’Italiana: Tarantella: Vivace; In un tempo 5. Cantico: Largamente, “Die Felsensäulen fangen an tief und leise zu ertönen”[”[”Deep and quiet, the pillars of rock begin to sound”]

mikrokosmos: Busoni – Piano Concerto in C Major A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire…Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and…

[hushilda]

Busoni – Piano Concerto in C Major A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire…Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and orchestra are equally utilized. Actually, while the piano does have important structural aspects to it, the pianist overall is constantly struggling to play over the booming orchestra, to the point where the virtuosity goes unnoticed in comparison. That’s probably a major reason why we rarely see it in concert: it’s a beast to play, but the difficulty isn’t easily highlighted so it’s hard to “show off” to the audience. Written at the beginning of the century, the work isn’t like the shadowy and bleak works of his more mature years, rather it is an over-the-top unapologetic love letter to the grandiose decadence of late 19th century piano concertos. Here it might be adequate to say “Too many notes”. In fact, Alfred Brendel even said this work was “monstrously overwritten”. So why does it have a niche cult following? Why is it still being picked up [a mild resurgence in recent years I’ve noticed]? Despite the pianistic writing at times, the work is well balanced. It follows the structure as seen in the drawing that Busoni had conceptualized here in the video: a grand solemn temple in the middle, two busy vibrant gardens on either side, and then two polished ornate temples bookending the row. In following this structure, we start with a grand movement, opening as if in media res, with a Brahms like theme paired with Lisztian pyrotechnics and Beethoven drama. The next movement is a rushing scherzo that is somehow both heavy and rapid, defying physics it seems. The third movement is a large scale meditation of an operatic theme that is excruciatingly Teutonic with its modulating build up. The following movement is a heart racing tarantella, taking Italian street songs a la Rossini and making them as frantic and animalistic as possible, a build up that makes me think of wild animals stampeding out of a zoo and causing all kinds of havoc. After the insane cadenza and obligatory brass fanfare, we settle down a bit with a choral setting [yes, I forgot to mention this concerto has a choral finale] of a hymn to Allah from an early 19th century play by Adam Oehlenschläger, Aladdin.] The work ends in a stately coda. The constant use of climaxes, the blazing orchestra, the hyperactive pianist, it all comes together as an almost postmodernist parody of the Romantic piano concerto. I like to think of it as the story of a Liszt or Thalberg type showman pianist trying to show off to the audience fighting the conductor/composer who doesn’t have the work written with him in mind. I know I’ve probably been making fun of this work more than praising it, so here is the praise: it brings to mind the wonder of sitting in an audience watching a concert live, being awestruck and marveling at the abilities of the musicians creating magic out of sound before our eyes, both physical and mental achievements. This is a space of magic, of dreams, of adventure and exploration, of naivety that we wish we could return to. Movements: 1. Prologo e Introito: Allegro, dolce e solenne 2. Pezzo giocoso 3. Pezzo serioso 4. All’Italiana: Tarantella: Vivace; In un tempo 5. Cantico: Largamente, “Die Felsensäulen fangen an tief und leise zu ertönen”[”[”Deep and quiet, the pillars of rock begin to sound”]

mikrokosmos: Busoni – Piano Concerto in C Major A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire…Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and…

[mythical-ross]

This is a little extract from the next chapter of Bonds Of Friendship, just so y’all know I haven’t forgotten about it (and for a bit of accountability). I’m semi back to work and I’m hoping a bit of routine will help me focus on stuff a little better, but who knows. Things are weird.

Link closed his eyes and moaned as Rhett’s lips moved down his jaw to his neck. “You’re so fucking hot,” Rhett muttered against Link’s skin. “I can’t keep my hands off you.”

“Don’t,” Link managed to say. He wasn’t sure what he meant - don’t keep your hands off me or don’t say such things.

“Your body is so perfect,” Rhett went on. “I’m so lucky.”

Link felt his cheeks burn. If either of them was lucky, surely it wasn’t Rhett. Link was neurotic and bony, graying and needy; he was lucky Rhett was willing to be friends, never mind… whatever he was now.

“Your neck is so perfect,” Rhett murmured, peppering kisses along Link’s skin to punctuate the words. “Your jawline, your chin…”

Link’s tears that had mostly dried up, started flowing once more. “Stop,” he whispered. He was already feeling so vulnerable, he didn’t need to hear Rhett trying to bolster him.

“And your mouth,” Rhett said, paying him no heed. He lifted his head to bring their lips millimeters away from each other. “I love seeing my cock between your lips.” To emphasise his point, Rhett gave Link’s dick one long stroke from root to tip, fisting at the head to spread his precome.

(More to come, I swear)

[aph-belanu]

ciao! hai qualche raccomandazione di fics in italiano? Mi piacerebbe leggere qualcuno, e ho pensato che forse tu ne sai più di me... grazie! 💖 (scusa se ci sono errori, non sono nativa)

Ah there's no need to excuse yourself, your Italian is more than fine, I appreciate this a lot🥺

Anyway for anyone wondering op has asked a couple of Hetalia fanfics recs in Italian(I'm going to translate the synopsis provided by the authors btw).

Il miele sul bicchiere by _Frame_ (Honey on the glass) @schmedterlingfreud

1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945

All the Second World War from Hetalia's point of view.

Without dictators, heads of the States or political ideologies. The Nations are the protagonists.

[On going: December 1941]

Genre: angst, war, historical

Chapters:220

[The historical fic in Italian.Not really the first fic I'd recommend starting from of course.I love Frame's writing and truly advise you to read her other stuff as well. If you're a gerita lover do read Come perdere la verginità grazie a WikiHow e a un pacchetto di caramelle al malto (How to loose your virginity thanks to wikihow and a box of malt candies )and Tre volte sotto la pioggia (3 times under the rain).If you enjoy op's writing as much as me she has came out with a novel of her own, published by Rossini editore Walpurgisnacht it's an historical fantasy]

Hetalia of the sex by valerydell95 and elfin emrys

Or rather:a tragicomedy in two acts on the art of love.

"Theme night. The bane of humanity. Especially if the theme happened to be that one. Couldn't they just talk about cooking, book, movies or freely speak ill of America? No. They couldn't. They had to make the most embarrassing sexual confessions."

Genre: humour

Chapters:2

[The title is inspired by the episode hetalia of the dead. Frankly one of my favorite comedy fics. Not too challenging if you're looking for something to practice your Italian, as they're only two chapters and the language is more easy compared to other suggestions, given the context. This is also a great excuse to sponsor both authors: they have a tiny special place in my heart, as they give me nostalgia of my first years in the fandom and some of their works are honestly 👌👌 as a team they focused on humour, both pure comedy and crack taken seriously. Check out Ricordi di un cantastorie (a storyteller's memories) by elfin emrys.. And anything else really. Her account is full of one shots, which are a great deal for practice once again. Tw: if you adore Alfred, can't see him do anything wrong or are extremely sensitive to certain subjects, beware reading Insanity as it touches triggering and sensitive topics. It was my first fic one the subject and I liked it a lot(it's not enjoyable, I mean it's well written)]

Caleidoscopio by HamletRedDiablo

The balance of the Sidereal Confederation had been guaranteed from time immemorial by the Axis, the firstborn in the Vatican Vargas family; the Axis was the foundation that sustained the whole universe as it was known.

But a couple of twins would have even made the sky fall, to reunite with their blood.

Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Romantic

Chapters:28

[A great sci-fi, the very first I've ever seen in the Italian fandom. I've seen a translation by the author somewhere on ao3 but I can't really find it right now :( ]

You can find the complete list of the most popular hetalia fanfics on EFP here

Among them I've read and recommend:

Alfred e la mirabolante macchina dell'Ucronia(Alfred and the amazing uchronia machine) by tonycocchi and really any of his works.

Together in Italy by ChiaraLilianWinter(unfortunately uncompleted)

Centoquarantaquattro anni vergine(144 years a virgin)by Princess of the Rose(I like other of her works as well btw but a couple I've simply haven't read out of personal preference or sensibility;she has written about 2p characters as well if that might interest anyone)

die Krähe by Akrois(might not be for everyone,touches sensitive subjects)

Quello che vedi nella tela (what you see on the canvas) by ,once again,RedHamletDiablo

I've heard great things about l'appartamento spagnolo (the Spanish apartment)and even read a parody spurred by it that I can't unfortunately find but only ever read dead man walking (a one shot that belongs to that universe)

Authors:

Check out LadyWhiteWitch (I know she has a Tumblr please let me know if you know the @ so I can tag her) she has great stuff and Generale Capo di Urano, you can't go wrong there's anything for anyone(her Kadın made me cry like a baby).

If you're gerita trash like me you might also like LB Shadow last two works (but her other stuff is great as well!!) aaand definitely _Black or White_'s ffs. And Wanderlust Jake on wattpad. Yes you can find great stuff on there as well , like Farfallaccia 's one shots I've recently discovered.

I also really like we deserve a soft epilogue, my love by @mughettonellaneve (mostly because of the theme at hand ahah very maturely discussed)

If you're a Seborga lover this is for you Liguria&Seborga: Storie d'una Regione Borbottante e di un Principato Indipendente dal '63 (Liguria &Seborga: stories about a complaining region and a principality who's been independent since 1963) keep it close to your heart, I sure do.

If you love Romano and a good humour genre one shot check out La Tigre Blanche.

Please stop me I could go on forever.

All you need is a quick research on EFP really:) it's a very intuitive website.

[notbecauseofvictories]

hi i've always loved the idea of opera but i live in a country where there's no live performances so i want wondering how to get into it or where to start??

What a great question! Even the US—which boasts some amazing opera companies—opera is hard to get into unless you live near a major metropolitan area and have some serious cash to throw around on tickets. I myself would have never gotten into opera in the first place if it hadn’t been for my AP European History class showing The Magic Flute, which is an English translation of the Mozart classic from Kenneth Branagh and Stephen Fry. It’s actually a great introduction, if you can get your hands on it. (I always recommend Magic Flute as a gentle, silly, and very beautiful entry to opera—Mozart knew what he was doing.)

However, in my experience, opera is always on the prowl to find new fans, and is willing to try a lot of different ways of finding them. If you have a public library near you that stocks DVDs, it’s very likely they have some recorded opera performances—even if they’re 1960s productions of Cosi fan tutti and Aida.

If not, here are some great places to find opera recordings online.

YOUTUBE — You might have heard of it? Actually, youtube is a great resource to try out operas, without paying a [insert your local currency here]. You might miss out on subtitles in your language(s) but as Terry Pratchett once put it, opera lyrics (”Love! Love! I love you!” sung in Italian) aren’t much to write home about anyway. Things to try:

Personally, I love this recording of a 2008 La Bohème with Anna Netrebko and Rolando Villazón—the production values! the cast!

This recording of Dido and Aeneas. A little older and lower-budget, but lovely to watch. Purcell is a great English composer, and his arias are a pleasure to listen to.

Unfortunately, more modern operas tend to be covered by copyright and so harder to find. However, here is a recording of The Passenger, an opera about the Holocaust feat. a 1960s libretto reworked in 2010 for its world debut. If you’re not particularly fond of chamber music and Romanticism, this is a good example of what Modern Opera sounds like.

MET OPERA ON DEMAND — If you’ve got a little bit of money to throw around ($15 USD a month) I’ve never found anything to rival the Met’s online database of performances, past and present. It’s basically Netflix for opera. If the Metropolitan Opera hasn’t performed it, it’s not for the novice opera fan anyway. Things to try:

Thaïs (hot priests and the sexually adventurous women who love them)

La Fille du Régiment with Javier Camarena and Pretty Yende (it’s SO GOOD I love a reimagined staging.)

War and Peace by Sergei Prokofiev (………….I had to include a Russian, and it was this or Eugene Onegin, and I prefer Prokofiev)

INTERNATIONALLY 

Unfortunately, my knowledge is very US-specific, but I am reliably informed that Arte, Culture Box, Staatsoper.tv, and Opera.Medici.tv are the places to go for streaming European operas. Definitely investigate those, and look for traditional standards of the opera world: your Puccinis and Mozarts and Verdis and Rossinis are a good place to start. Also, don’t put too much pressure onto one opera; I’ve definitely spent money on tickets I left he theater thinking were a waste of money. Unfortunately, like every genre, quality and personal appeal is variable.

[mikrokosmos]

Busoni - Piano Concerto in C Major

A mammoth, a sleeping Titan of the concerto repertoire...Busoni’s piano concerto is a rarely performed work that is strenuous for the pianist, the orchestra, and the audience all at once. At an hour and 15 minutes in length, it acts like a sinfonia-concertante, where the piano and orchestra are equally utilized. Actually, while the piano does have important structural aspects to it, the pianist overall is constantly struggling to play over the booming orchestra, to the point where the virtuosity goes unnoticed in comparison. That’s probably a major reason why we rarely see it in concert: it’s a beast to play, but the difficulty isn’t easily highlighted so it’s hard to “show off” to the audience. Written at the beginning of the century, the work isn’t like the shadowy and bleak works of his more mature years, rather it is an over-the-top unapologetic love letter to the grandiose decadence of late 19th century piano concertos. Here it might be adequate to say “Too many notes”. In fact, Alfred Brendel even said this work was “monstrously overwritten”. So why does it have a niche cult following? Why is it still being picked up [a mild resurgence in recent years I’ve noticed]? Despite the pianistic writing at times, the work is well balanced. It follows the structure as seen in the drawing that Busoni had conceptualized here in the video: a grand solemn temple in the middle, two busy vibrant gardens on either side, and then two polished ornate temples bookending the row. In following this structure, we start with a grand movement, opening as if in media res, with a Brahms like theme paired with Lisztian pyrotechnics and Beethoven drama. The next movement is a rushing scherzo that is somehow both heavy and rapid, defying physics it seems. The third movement is a large scale meditation of an operatic theme that is excruciatingly Teutonic with its modulating build up. The following movement is a heart racing tarantella, taking Italian street songs a la Rossini and making them as frantic and animalistic as possible, a build up that makes me think of wild animals stampeding out of a zoo and causing all kinds of havoc. After the insane cadenza and obligatory brass fanfare, we settle down a bit with a choral setting [yes, I forgot to mention this concerto has a choral finale] of a hymn to Allah from an early 19th century play by Adam Oehlenschläger, Aladdin.] The work ends in a stately coda. The constant use of climaxes, the blazing orchestra, the hyperactive pianist, it all comes together as an almost postmodernist parody of the Romantic piano concerto. I like to think of it as the story of a Liszt or Thalberg type showman pianist trying to show off to the audience fighting the conductor/composer who doesn’t have the work written with him in mind. I know I’ve probably been making fun of this work more than praising it, so here is the praise: it brings to mind the wonder of sitting in an audience watching a concert live, being awestruck and marveling at the abilities of the musicians creating magic out of sound before our eyes, both physical and mental achievements. This is a space of magic, of dreams, of adventure and exploration, of naivety that we wish we could return to.

Movements:

1. Prologo e Introito: Allegro, dolce e solenne

2. Pezzo giocoso

3. Pezzo serioso

4. All'Italiana: Tarantella: Vivace; In un tempo

5. Cantico: Largamente, “Die Felsensäulen fangen an tief und leise zu ertönen” [”Deep and quiet, the pillars of rock begin to sound"]

[mythical-ross]

I spat on my own shoe from a standing position to make sure it was possible for the latest chapter of Bonds Of Friendship. I instantly regretted it.

[mythical-ross]

Today’s GMM coincided PERFECTLY with the Kinktober fic I was writing today

[mythical-ross]

I can go from “I must re-read everything I’ve written so far to make sure these characters are acting authentically” to “fuck it, it’s my story, they’ll do what I say” from one sentence to the next.

[mythical-ross]

If anyone’s worried, Memories Of The Future will be back soon. Just been taking a break for Kinktober.

Also working on a new multi-chapter fic whose working title is just “Evil fic”, so that’s nice!

[mythical-ross]

Five Favs

Thank you @apparentlynotreallyfinnish for tagging me! It took me way too long to get to this!

rules: it’s time to love yourselves! choose your 5 favourite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you’ve brought into the world. tag as many writers/artists/etc as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works!

McLaughlin & Woods

The fic inspired by a construction company by that name in my home town and one of the only (or maybe the only) rhink AUs I’ve written. Link hires a handsome contractor to do some work for him and innuendo insues! (If anyone has any suggestions of how I can tag that fic better, please let me know! I’ve no idea how anyone would ever find it)

Knotting

So look... I love Damnyell/Link and when I got to the knotting prompt during Kinktober, it seemed like the perfect excuse for a non-abo, non-bestiality knotting fic. Is it weird? Yes. Does it make sense? Kind of. But that’s why it’s one of my favs (and I may be biased, but I think it’s pretty sexy!). 

Fight 

Another Kinktober fic - one of the lesser spotted non-con rhink fics. If you hate it, I completely understand, but it’s probably the fic of my own that I reread the most. My only regret is that it’s so short! It also kind of makes me laugh that they’re fighting about literally nothing. I didn’t want to put in any specifics or anything that would date it, so it’s just a random, unknown agrument.

Confession

Every Halloween, Rhett and Link throw on a costume, go to a gay bar, and pretend to be a couple for the night. Last year, Link dressed as a priest and Rhett was very into it (and so was Ross). I enjoyed writing this fic soooo much. I definitely have a religion kink and it was really fun to indulge it a little. I was tempted to turn this into a series (and maybe I still will) documenting their halloweens throughout the years. 

Memories Of The Future

Before discovering Rhink, I hadn’t written fanfic in several years, and I definitely hadn’t written anything as long as this. I love the way R&L always talk about their younger selves seeing them now, and it got me thinking about time travel. Looking at it now, I have no idea where this weird version of time travel came from (Quantum Leap?) but I was really pleased with how it turned out! I know we’re meant to write for ourselves and not get hung up on stats and feedback, but I’ll be the first to admit, I can’t always do that. Memories was the first thing (possibly ever) I wrote just for myself. It’s great that some other people enjoed it too though :D

Please everyone do this. It feels really good! 

[mythical-ross]

These Bonds Of Friendship chapters are just getting longer and longer... at this rate the last chapter will just be a 20k standalone fic