Frank Sinatra - My Way (Live At Madison Square Garden, New York City / 1...

HIT-STORY: ‘My Way’ by Frank Sinatra

Published August 24, 2022, 2:22 PM

by Robert Requintina, Manila Bulletin

Released in March 1969, singer Paul Anka wrote the hit ballad “My Way” with crooner Frank Sinatra on his mind.

In 1968, Frank hinted to Paul that he was ready to bid showbiz goodbye.

“Kid, I’m fed up. I’m gonna do one more album, and then I’m out of here. You never wrote me that song you always promised. Don’t take too long,” said Frank, 51, to Paul, then 25, in a book entitled “The Life of A Song.”

One sleepless night, Paul sat down at a piano and sensed himself becoming Frank.

“That’s how I got the first line: ‘And now the end is near, and so I face the final curtain’ I thought of him leaving the stage, the lights going out, and started typing like a madman, writing it just the way he talked: “Ate it up…spit it out.”

Paul finished writing the song at 5 a.m. He immediately called Frank to inform him about the song. “When I played the song for him, he said: “That’s kooky, kid. We’re going in.”

These days, “My Way” is still also one of the favorite karaoke songs around the world.

In the Philippines, at least 12 people were shot dead following altercations over the song from 2002 and 2012, according to the book.

In 2016, the UK’s Co-op funeral company revealed that “My Way” is now UK’s most popular choice of funeral song.

Frank passed away on May 14, 1998. He was 82. But “My Way” was never played at his funeral.

The complete lyrics to the song “My Way”:

“My Way”

And now, the end is near

And so I face the final curtain

My friend, I’ll say it clear

I’ll state my case, of which I’m certain

I’ve lived a life that’s full

I traveled each and every highway

And more, much more than this, I did it my way

Regrets, I’ve had a few

But then again, too few to mention

I did what I had to do

And saw it through without exemption

I planned each charted course

Each careful step along the byway

And more, much more than this, I did it my way

Yes, there were times, I’m sure you knew

When I bit off more than I could chew

But through it all, when there was doubt

I ate it up and spit it out

I faced it all and I stood tall and did it my way

I’ve loved, I’ve laughed and cried

I’ve had my fill, my share of losing

And now, as tears subside

I find it all so amusing

To think I did all that

And may I say, not in a shy way

Oh, no, oh, no, not me, I did it my way

For what is a man, what has he got?

If not himself, then he has naught

To say the things he truly feels

And not the words of one who kneels

The record shows

I took the blows

And did it my way

Yes, it was my way.

(Courtesy of azlyrics.com)

Skyline Pigeon (Piano Version)

Harry Belafonte & Nana Mouskouri,Try to remember

~ Waltz of Roses ~ Eugen Doga - Gramofon¨¨˜"°º★¸.•´★¸.•*´¨)

Eugen Doga (born 1 March 1937) is a Romanian and Russian composer from the Republic of Moldova.

A creator of three ballets "Luceafărul", "Venancia", "Queen Margot", the opera "Dialogues of Love", more than 100 instrumental and choral works – symphonies, 6 quartets, "Requiem", church music, and other, plus music for 13 plays, radio shows, more than 200 movies, more than 260 songs and romances, more than 70 waltzes; he is also the author of works for children, the music for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games in 1980 in Moscow.

In Moldova, the years 2007 and 2017 (when the composer celebrated his 70th and 80th birthdays, respectively) were declared the Year of Eugen Doga. Chișinău's main pedestrianised thoroughfare has been named Eugen Doga Street in his honour.

The World Intellectual Property Organization (Geneva) in recognition of his outstanding achievements in music awarded him with a special certificate in 2007

Since 1972 with his concerts he has traveled all over the territory of the former Soviet Union, also some foreign countries.

"The image of the person is defined by his deeds that ultimately benefit people and society. And the concerts that I give in Chișinău, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kursk or Bucharest, are aimed at precisely this idea of bringing people together, preserving the ideals that make people kinder, more tolerant, that make flowers bloom, and the sun shine brighter,"- says Eugen Doga.

Eugen Doga's concerts took place in the biggest concert halls. They "gathered huge audiences", and they still do so today. "...There were so many offenses because of Eugen Doga's concerts; people just did not want to talk to me. They told me: "I have been asking you for three years, and you can't arrange Eugen Doga's concert." And I really couldn't, because he was very busy. In Leningrad there was a concert orchestra conducted by Anatoly Badhen, a wonderful orchestra, unequaled in the Soviet Union, which played high-quality music. This orchestra for many years gave a lot of concerts with Eugen Doga's music everywhere, throughout the Soviet Union" – Mikhail Murzak. Philharmonic Director of Chișinău (1972–1988 years).

His music was performed by the Choir of TV and radio Moldova, the Russian state Symphony orchestra of cinematography, Academic Choir "Doina", The George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra,the Moscow chamber orchestra "The seasons", Leningrad Concert Orchestra,Academic Grand choir "Masters of choral singing", Orchestra of the Moldavian Philharmonic "Sergei Lonkevich", Moscow city Symphony orchestra "Russian Philharmonic", The national Symphony orchestra of the public company "Teleradio-Moldova", the Presidential orchestra of the Republic of Moldova, Children's choir "Liya Ciocarlia", Large children's choir of the USSR Gosteleradio, Orchestra of the Romanian National Opera Ias and other groups.

(HD 720p) "Autumn Rose" by Ernesto Cortazar - His music and his life

Ernesto Cortazar II was born in Mexico City into a family of composers. Ernesto's father, Ernesto Cortazar Sr., was an accomplished composer respected in his field and was named president of the Society of Authors and Composers.

When Ernesto Cortazar II was 13 he tragically lost both of his parents in a horrible auto accident. Despite tragedy Ernesto preceded with his intense studies by attending a music academy, and by age 17, he began scoring for movies.

At age 18, Ernesto completed his very first musical score for the motion picture "La Risa de la Ciudad". The main musical composition for this film was Ernesto's piano piece titled "River of Dreams." With this film, Ernesto Cortazar won the award for Best Background Music for a Latin American Film at The Cartagena Festival. Since then, Ernesto has composed musical scores for more than 500 motion pictures.

Ernesto traveled to more than 25 countries and performed his original compositions for political figures such as President Menem of Argentina, Nikita Krushev of the USSR and entertained in such prestigious venues including The Kremlin (USSR) and The Mexican Presidential House.

Ernesto's incredible performance was requested and enjoyed by many of Hollywood's biggest celebrities including Charlton Heston, Danny de Vito, Michael Bolton, Octavio Paz, and The Rolling Stones.

Ernesto Cortazar found even bigger fame being the #1 artist on the #1 music website in the world. Out of 130,000 artists Ernesto leaded the way with over 14,000,000 downloads to his compositions on MP3.com fromm 1999 to 2001 and his sites were visited for more than 4,000,000 viewers.

Including the U.S., Ernesto sold over 30,000 CD's to 69 countries without any record label, management company or agency.

In 2001, Ernesto moved from Los Angeles to Tampico, Mexico to live his last years near his family. Ernesto Cortazar II died in 2004 but his legacy remains with his music and his two sons, Ernesto Cortazar III and Edgar Cortazar, who are succesfull songwriters on the Latin Market.

Deutscher Jazzmusiker Rolf Kühn gestorben

Rolf Kühn galt als einer der wenigen deutschen Jazzmusiker von internationalem Ruf.

Er spielte mit Benny Goodman, John Coltrane und Chick Corea, leitete das NDR-Fernsehorchester und komponierte zudem die Musik zahlreicher Filme. 

Der Jazzmusiker Rolf Kühn ist tot. Er starb im Alter von 92 Jahren in Berlin, wie die Familie, die Agentur und die Plattenfirma des Klarinettisten am Montag bekannt gaben. Kühn galt als einer der wenigen deutschen Jazzmusiker von internationalem Ruf. Der gebürtige Kölner spielte mit Benny Goodman, John Coltrane und Chick Corea und gründete mehrere Bands. Kühn leitete das NDR-Fernsehorchester und war Musikalischer Leiter im Berliner Theater des Westens. Neben seinen Alben komponierte Kühn zahlreiche Film- und Fernsehmusiken.

In den nächsten Monaten sollte der Klarinettist noch in mehreren deutschen Städten Konzerte geben, unter anderem mit seinem Bruder, dem Jazz-Pianisten Joachim Kühn. Rolf Kühn starb den Angaben zufolge am 18. August.

„Rolf wird immer als der inspirierende, sanfte, innovative und jung gebliebene Künstler und Mensch in Erinnerung bleiben, der er war“, teilten Kühns Ehefrau Melanie, sein Bruder sowie die Agentur Jazzhaus Artists und das Label Edel/MPS mit. „Er lebte ein erfülltes Leben, das bis zu seinem letzten Tag der Musik, der Kultur und der Freude gewidmet war.“

Quelle: dpa/Gregor Fischer

Jules Massenet / Thais / Meditation - His music and his life

Alternate titles: Jules-Émile-Frédéric Massenet

Born: May 12, 1842 France

Died: August 13, 1912 (aged 70) Paris France

Jules Massenet, in full Jules-Émile-Frédéric Massenet, (born May 12, 1842, Montaud, near Saint-Étienne, France—died August 13, 1912, Paris), leading French opera composer, whose music is admired for its lyricism, sensuality, occasional sentimentality, and theatrical aptness.

The son of an ironmaster, Massenet entered the Paris Conservatoire at age 11, subsequently studying composition under the noted opera composer Ambroise Thomas. In 1863 he won the Prix de Rome with his cantata David Rizzio. With the production in 1867 of his opera La Grand’ Tante (The Great Aunt), he embarked on a career as a composer of operas and incidental music. His 24 operas are characterized by a graceful, thoroughly French melodic style. Manon (1884; after Antoine-François, Abbé Prévost d’Exiles) is considered by many to be his masterpiece. The opera, marked by sensuous melody and skilled personification, uses leitmotifs to identify and characterize the protagonists and their emotions. In the recitatives (dialogue) it employs the unusual device of spoken words over a light orchestral accompaniment. Also among his finest and most successful operas are Le Jongleur de Notre-Dame (1902), Werther (1892; after J.W. von Goethe), and Thaïs (1894). The famous “Méditation” for violin and orchestra from Thaïs remains part of the standard violin repertory.

Several of Massenet’s operas reflect the succession of contemporary operatic fashions. Thus, Le Cid (1885) has the characteristics of French grand opera; Le Roi de Lahore (1877; The King of Lahore) reflects the Orientalism—a fascination with Asian exotica—that was also prevalent in the 19th-century European and American art market; Esclarmonde (1889) shows the influence of Richard Wagner; and La Navarraise (1894; The Woman of Navarre) is influenced by the end-of-the-century style of verismo, or realism. Also prominent among Massenet’s operas are Hérodiade (1881) and Don Quichotte (1910).

Of Massenet’s incidental music, particularly notable is that for Leconte de Lisle’s play Les Érinnyes (1873; The Furies), which contains the widely performed song “Élégie.” In 1873 he also produced his oratorio, Marie-Magdeleine, later performed as an opera. This work exemplifies the mingling of religious feeling and eroticism often found in Massenet’s music. Massenet also composed more than 200 songs, a piano concerto, and several orchestral suites.

As a teacher of composition at the Paris Conservatoire from 1878, Massenet was highly influential. His autobiography was entitled Mes Souvenirs (1912; My Recollections).

How I Love You - Engelbert Humperdinck

The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore

That's how I grew up. And later during my radio shows with the best of the 60's, 70's, 80's.

Raymond Lefevre & Orchestra - La reine de Saba (Live, 1987) (HQ)

We Praise Thee, O God from Handel's Dettingen Te Deum

Franck Pourcel - Morir de Amor

James Last - Abide With Me

Abide With Me; fast falls the eventide;

The darkness deepens; Lord with me abide.

When other helpers fail and comforts flee,

Help of the helpless, O abide with me. 

Swift to its close ebbs out lifes little day;

Earths joys grow dim; its glories pass away;

Change and decay in all around I see;

O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

Not a brief glance I beg, a passing word;

But as Thou dwellst with Thy disciples, Lord,

Familiar, condescending, patient, free.

Come not to sojourn, but abide with me.

Come not in terrors, as the King of kings,

But kind and good, with healing in Thy wings,

Tears for all woes, a heart for every plea—

Come, Friend of sinners, and thus bide with me.

Thou on my head in early youth didst smile;

And, though rebellious and perverse meanwhile,

Thou hast not left me, oft as I left Thee,

On to the close, O Lord, abide with me.

I need Thy presence every passing hour.

What but Thy grace can foil the tempters power?

Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be?

Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me.

I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;

Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness.

Where is deaths sting? Where, grave, thy victory?

I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.

Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;

Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.

Heavens morning breaks, and earths vain shadows flee;

In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

James Last - Abide With Me

Words: Henry Lyte, 1847.

The Stage Manager- A Musician’s Best Friend

 by Janet Horvath, Interlude

What Are the Duties of a Stage Manager?

Cello

Stage managers of orchestras have a very important role. A good one takes expert care of our instruments and the musicians, soloists and conductors— meeting their every wish and whim. The stage manager is the one who announces, “Orchestra… On stage please. Orchestra on stage.” They’re the ones that proffer a towel to a sweating conductor and indicate to the soloists how to maneuver through the string section to get to center stage. They’re the ones who set up the stage and who know exactly the instrumentation for every piece. Different set-ups often occur in one program.

Not the least of their duties is packing up all the instruments and equipment when the orchestra is on tour— a huge job. Our stage manager, Tim Eickholt, now retired, was someone we trusted implicitly with our instruments. From a family of stagehands, he has an impeccable background as a master designer and builder and he had lots of experience with showbiz. He understood that musicians often hastily exit after performances to get some food and a beer. Tim was so conscientious that after concerts, especially on tour, he would check backstage for any belongings that might have been left behind. He’d find items of clothing like cummerbunds, shoes, belts or socks and worse— instruments, even unpacked. Once I woke up in the middle of the night in a panic, realizing that I had left my cello backstage! Fortunately, it was a local concert and Tim took my cello home with him.

Tim at the ready at the Musikverien Vienna

One concert night the temperature dipped well below zero, as happens often in Minnesota. My warmest down coat was in for repairs. I borrowed my mother’s full-length mink coat to get to Orchestra Hall for that evening’s performance. I lugged the cello outside and into my car, which sputtered in protest when I tried to start it. On the highway my car lit up like a Christmas tree. Everything flashed. Then the car went dead. Somehow I got the car onto the shoulder.

Stranded. For a few moments I sat dumbfounded wondering what I was going to do. I couldn’t be late for the concert! But more important, I knew I couldn’t walk in this frigid weather carrying the cello. With trepidation I left the cello. I started running, in my full-length black mink coat, along the shoulder of the highway towards the nearest exit. A car pulled up and a man said, “Get in. It’s much too cold outside.” So I did, more worried about the cello than for my own safety. The driver took me to the Orchestra Hall. I literally flew down the stairs directly to our stage manager’s office. In tears I told Tim that I had left my cello on the highway. We made a hasty exit and jumped into Tim’s car to find where I left my car, despite the fact that it was almost 8:00 p.m. There was no time to lose. The tow truck had already pulled up beside my car to take it away. Believe it or not we made it back in time for the concert.

There are endless stories of the idiosyncratic behaviors of soloists and conductors. Some artists demand peculiar foods to be brought in backstage. Others need their outfits pressed, fresh towels delivered, ice buckets with drinks, even stationary bikes (as in the case of Christian Tetzlaff) or personal chefs (as in the case of Vladimir Horowitz) and every soloist was personally escorted to the wings of the stage. Tim, always respectful, handled it all.

I remember when renowned violinist Henryk Szeryng came to play the Beethoven Violin Concerto—impeccably, I might add. During the rehearsal he found the stage much too bright. Over and over he said, “The lights, the lights…” Tim turned the lights down and down until the musicians on the periphery of the stage couldn’t see their music. Post haste, Tim had stand lights for all the bass players affixed to their stands.

Ottorino Respighi: Pini di Roma (Pines of Rome), P. 14 – II. Pini presso una catacomba (Pines Near a Catacomb) (Philadelphia Orchestra; Eugene Ormandy, cond.)

Manny at the top of the catwalk rehearsing the Pines of Rome

Other soloists need the heat turned up perhaps due to revealing dresses as well as trying to keep fingers warm. Tim would be the guy to take care of it. And when an offstage musician was required, he’d make sure everyone was set up in the audience balconies or stairwells backstage. Unless, as was the case recently with Ottorino Respighi’s Pines of Rome, for the spooky ancient catacombs movement the solo trumpet, Manny Laureano, was requested to play from the fourth level—a system of catwalks about one-hundred feet above the stage. Manny had to race up the narrow flight of stairs to dizzying heights, where there is no room for even a music stand, just a TV monitor hooked up so could get his cue.

Tim relates that as a very young man he was one of the stagehands at Northrop Auditorium for a new production of a Mozart opera when the Metropolitan Opera still came annually to Minneapolis. Tim was asked to hang enormous, brilliantly painted murals, which he had to install in the middle of the night. Little did he know that these were the very Chagall paintings that now hang at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, which one can see through the windows as you approach the hall. He had no idea what he had in his hands.

Tim never failed to sit in the audience during rehearsals or concerts whenever he could. He always has perceptive opinion about the pieces being performed. And did I tell you that he’s a decorated Vietnam War veteran with a great ear and passion for classical music and the musicians? He especially loves Shostakovich.

THE ROSE / SOMEWHERE IN TIME - Roger Williams

37,332 views Mar 27, 2018 Roger Williams' recording, "Somewhere in Time" is the mesmerizing music score of the 1980 film. This performance, in 2009 was 3 days after his 85th birthday, is Roger Williams' exquisite medley of "The Rose" and "Somewhere In Time," and the epitome of his artistry. Marc Riley conducted the Crystal Cathedral Orchestra. Website: https://rogerwilliamsmusic.com