SHIFT on Thursday, May 23rd 2013: When music meets great writers.
Welcome to Shift, where Tom Allen takes you on a daily musical journey from the stalwarts of Classical music to the cutting edge of Contemporary tunes. Join us here on CBC music for a round-up of the stories of the day, some videos of music (or maybe just videos interesting to music fans) and a place to speak your voice.
Audio
Click to Listen to the Entire Broadcast of SHIFT from May 23rd
Classical knows all:
More life tips today from classical music - this time on how to succeed in on-line dating.
Love at First Sight:
Mozart would have been amazed to know that the fantastic opening moment from his opera The Magic Flute - in which Tamino falls in love with Pamina by merely gazing at her picture - could become part of everyday life, but it has. With on-line dating people fall in love with pictures all the time. They change their lives to eventually be with the real people behind those pictures and sometimes they stay together.
Still, if that's you - if you've fallen in love with a picture of beauty - make sure you learn from Tamino's foolishness. Is there an information page on this person? Does he or she have a horrible, shrieking monster for a mother, and does she have a platoon of Amazonian, dragon-slaying women as her protectors? Best find out.
The Great Writers Shift:
We also spend some time today with songs inspired (and written) by great writers.
We start with Greg Brown's haunting song on William Blake's The Chimney Sweeper from Songs of Innocence and Experience. To my ears, it captures the very beauty of Blake's original vision.
We also play a set of songs sung by men and inspired by Shakespearean women. We don't know if John Mayer is thinking of Olivia from Twelfth Night, or just someone like her, but either way, she's an inspiration.
If you're hoping to get your inner Olivia going, here's everything she says.
John Mayer - Something Like Olivia
In King Lear, Cordelia is the daughter who is foolish enough to tell her kingly misguided Dad exactly what she thinks of his policies. For that she's exiled.
The Tragically Hip's Gord Downey wants you to know he's NOT Cordelia
Lastly, if only poor Ophelia could have been as merry as Levon Helm and The Band made her seem. Maybe if Hamlet spent more time playing the tuba instead avenging his father's death...
In other news:
- Carole King has been honoured for her giant contribution to American song. Huzzah, we say!
- Even in America, where your cola, your waffles and your chewing gum are laced with caffeine, people are getting edgy.
You can contact us at SHIFT with your ideas, questions, or anything else by sending us a message on our Facebook page. Through email, you can reach show producers Alison Howard ( alison.howard@cbc.ca ) or Alex Redekop ( alex.redekop@cbc.ca ) or Pete Morey ( peter.morey@cbc.ca )