The Life of the Mind
Yesterday we received a very fun care package from my mother-in-law with lots of pregnancy/baby stuff in it.
Among the things specifically for Elvis (or that we'll share with him) was a CD of Bach's Goldberg Variations, which is just perfect!!! Just the kind of thing that I think he'll enjoy. And a book with accompanying CD of the Carnival of the Animals by Saint-Saëns (well, the music is). The book is lovely with brightly colored illustrations of the instruments and the animals. This will be a lot of fun to share with Elvis. Carnival of the Animals was one of my favorites growing up.
So, of all the worldly things that Elvis now possesses, none of them are on the list of "things one must have upon returning home from the hospital." He only has a ton of books and CDs (as in "compact disc" not "cloth diapers" yet). Not a bad start for one of our kids...sounds like his parents. That's okay. He'll get what he needs in the end; I'm just glad we have a good start on the important stuff. :)
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I have never heard of Carnival of the Animals by Saint-Saëns, so I did a google search. Did you know that there is a follow-up by composer Robert Kapilow called, "And Furthermore, They Bite!"? Now I am going to look for both of them to share with Fuller. He likes Bach too.
Instead of spending money on Baby Einstein CDs, my sister and her husband, Nat, burned some bach CDs for Fuller's Christmas present. The cover of the CD case read, "Uncle Funkmaster Presents: Fuller's Brain Music." It really is precious.
Posted by: mrscrumley | 11.01.05 08:06
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I didn't know of the follow-up by Kapilow. How cute! If you wanted to get Carnival of the Animals, I'll also add that Ogden Nash wrote little poems that go with each movement that are really fun and entertaining. We had that version as a kid, narrated by Hugh Downs. Of course, we had it as an LP then, but I'll bet it's reissued on CD.
I still remember the kangeroo one for some reason:
The kangeroo can jump incredible.
He has to jump because he's edible.
I could not eat a kangeroo,
Though many fine Australians do.
Those with cookbooks, as well as boomerangs,
Like them in tasty kangeroo meringues.
They're all like that. :)
Posted by: Jeannette | 11.01.05 09:59
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Do you remember seeing the Bugs Bunny version of Carnival of the Animals? It "starred" Michael Tilson Thomas as the conductor, and Bugs Bunny as the guest pianist. I can't remember if the orchestra was animation, or a real orchestra (like in Fantasia), but I do know I was just in stitches because it was so hilarious. I have never been a fan of cartoons, especially Warner Brothers, but I remember this as exceptional.
Posted by: mom2 | 11.01.05 14:04
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A great old short video Carnival of the Animals with Saint-Saen's music played by a small orchestra and Ogden Nash's verses recited by Gary Burghoff, filmed at a zoo. I show it piecemeal to my piano students every couple of summers, like 5 minutes every week before the lesson. They really enjoy it. I borrow the video from the library. I want to purchase it on DVD, but I haven't yet been able to find it.
Posted by: Rebecca | 17.07.05 22:07