I am also excited because...
My dear wife bought tickets to see the Washington Opera production of Samuel Barber's Vanessa and in 24 hours we'll be in our finery and situated in velvet seats in the Kennedy Center Opera House. Vanessa is an amazing work, it's a masterpiece of American opera 2nd only to Porgy and Bess. So this weekend will be a musical one: Vanessa tomorrow, a workshop on the GIRM on Saturday and The Dream of Gerontius on Sunday. Can anyone help walk my dog this weekend?
Call me a snob, but I'm attracted to the 5-course meals of music like Vanessa and Gerontius. They are "unsung" masterpieces - never to be heard on the radio right after Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, never to be covered by a marching band. My mom won't be whistling any ditties from either while she makes tomato sauce. They speak to the wonder of creation - that when you believe you've heard, seen, smelled and tasted it all there's still more that's come from God in the form of beauty.
