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True confession: instrumental movie sound-track that raises neck bristles, eye ducts, or other weird physical effects: Theme to Exodus ... I read the book, never saw the Paul Newman movie, was unsurprised to hear this being replayed on top 40 stations during its hit week. It was beyond the valley of uncool, but I understood why this one gutted a few people.....

I have loved the Exodus Theme ever since I first saw the movie in 1960. While I was a junior in high school, I actually scored a swing version for the Rincon High Jazz Band. The initial results weren't too bad, considering my age and the fact that this was my first effort, but the trombone parts didn't quite work. I always had trouble with the bass clef. ^_^

My favorite version of the Exodus Theme is that played by the piano duo Ferrante and Teicher. This was a big hit during the early 1960s, and when Ferrante and Teicher performed in Tucson, I went to see them. It was one of the better concerts I have ever attended. I highly recommend their album All Time Great Movie Themes to those who are fans of movie music, as I am.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6lW7ZRniJ8

Ghs

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Exodus, and Mila 18, were my introductions to history which I had never been told of, nor read of , enough to understand them. I and my girlfriends read Exodus at ages about 12 or 13, awed and speculative, realizing that our fathers all probably knew these things but did not tell us. It was another world, the past , yet we knew there was an Israel. We wept for David and Jordana, we adored Ari, the movie came along later for us and some of us (me) were not allowed to go see it because it was a school night. The turgid music is appropriate, but somehow, it does not echo the music that was then in my heart.

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Another beautiful love theme is from the movie Spartacus. A few years ago, Chris Sciabarra (a huge jazz fan) clued me in to this remarkable version by the legendary jazz pianist Bill Evans (from Conversations with Myself, 1963). Here you will hear Bill Evans playing with himself (so to speak), i.e., Evans used overdubbing to record all three parts.

Ghs

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Okay, one more and then I will stop -- for now.

The Russia House was not a great movie, by any means, but it provided Jerry Goldsmith the opportunity to compose one of the best love themes, Katya, ever to grace a film. This is an unabashedly romantic tune, done in the sweeping, dramatic, old-fashioned way.

Ghs

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Exodus, and Mila 18, were my introductions to history which I had never been told of, nor read of , enough to understand them. I and my girlfriends read Exodus at ages about 12 or 13, awed and speculative, realizing that our fathers all probably knew these things but did not tell us. It was another world, the past , yet we knew there was an Israel. We wept for David and Jordana, we adored Ari, the movie came along later for us and some of us (me) were not allowed to go see it because it was a school night. The turgid music is appropriate, but somehow, it does not echo the music that was then in my heart.

Nicely put, Carol Jane Stuart.

Ghs

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Okay, one more and then I will stop -- for now.

The Russia House was not a great movie, by any means, but it provided Jerry Goldsmith the opportunity to compose one of the best love themes, Katya, ever to grace a film. This is an unabashedly romantic tune, done in the sweeping, dramatic, old-fashioned way.

Ghs

Thank you

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Speaking of knife edge X, those of us of a certain age, even those who have never been to Las Vegas, have been subjected over the years to endless song stylings of one Wayne Newton. "Danke schoen", he croons and re-croons, "darling, danke schoen". As a member of the German nation I hold you accountable expect a little astringent Goethe in compensation. Merci!

I can empathize with your plight, Carol, but have to plead not guilty. :smile:

In addition to being already unnerving after listened to only one single time, that "Danke Schoen" song is also an 'earworm' sticking in the head and you can't get rid of it. I'm actually humming it right now although I could never stand it.

I must look for an antidote in the emotional music section to get "Danke Schoen" out of my head fast. Let's see...

Ah, I think I've found something. Here's the theme from the unforgettable film Dr. Zhivago.

Bitteschön:

Boy did I have a crush on Omar Sharif back then ...! And how I envied Geraldine Chaplin and especially Julie Christie who could be so close to him!

Several years later, as I was finally reading the novel, I got into a veritable 'conflicit of imagination': for to my surprise, Dr. Zhivago was described in the book as 'not very good looking'. Since I could in no way reconcile this with the great-looking 'Zhivago' Omar Sharif, I ended up with two different 'optical' Zhivagos. the one in the movie and the one in the novel.

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May

Speaking of knife edge X, those of us of a certain age, even those who have never been to Las Vegas, have been subjected over the years to endless song stylings of one Wayne Newton. "Danke schoen", he croons and re-croons, "darling, danke schoen". As a member of the German nation I hold you accountable expect a little astringent Goethe in compensation. Merci!

I can empathize with your plight, Carool, but have to plead not guilty. :smile:

In addition to being already unnerving after listened to only one single time, that "Danke schoen" song is also an 'earworm' sticking in the head and you can't get rid of it. I'm actually humming it right now although I coud never stand it.

I must look for an antidote in the emotional music section to get "Danke schoen" out of my head fast. Let's see...

Maybe this will work. This is Wayne Newton's 1962 television debut, when he was still playing with his brothers. 8-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZOHdZoEgfU

Ghs

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I actually like this. But then I've always been a sucker for sing-alongs with coal miners. [ ... ] I listen to my share of schmaltzy tunes on occasions, depending on my mood. In fact, I will sometime use music to elicit certain emotions. I will also use music to gauge what kind of mood I am in.

Too right, this reporting, this elicitation of certain emotions.

Curious, George, to gauge or to discover your mood? I love the metaphor but can't figure out the machinery of testing.

This is a bit difficult to explain, so I will begin with a different "gauge" that I have used for many years, one that is more clear-cut. Every writer -- indeed, every creative person -- will understand this.

Sometimes while I am writing, or after I read something I wrote earlier, I get the feeling it is largely crap, especially in terms of style. Well, maybe it is crap and maybe it isn't, but how am I to determine whether I am looking at objective crap or whether I am in a crappy frame of mind -- a perspective that can make things appear to be crap that are not, in fact.

Many years ago I thought of a way to deal with this problem. There are certain specimens of my writing that I know, from years of experience and evaluation, are objectively good, so I use these samples as a gauge. I may read a page from a book that contains some of my best writing ever and see how I react. If I say to myself, "This, too, is crap," then I know that my judgment is off-kilter at that time and therefore not to be trusted. If, on the other hand, I judge the writing before me to be as good as I always knew it was, then my judgment is probably sound, and what I am writing at the time probably is crap.

This method has proven to be very, very useful in judging how much my rational assessments of my own writing have been warped by a temporary mood, or frame of mind.

I sometimes use music in a similar, if more amorphous, fashion, but this is more difficult to explain. There are certain tunes that have been favorites of mine since I was a kid, and I associate specific tunes with certain moods. Thus, if I am pacing around wondering why I am unable to sit down at the computer to get some writing done, I will sometimes listen to some of these "gauge" tunes. If none of them connects, then I know that my frame of mind is chaotic, and that I need to sit down, relax, and sort things out. If, on the other hand, one of those tunes connects, then that will sometimes give me an indication that something specific is troubling me -- something that may not even be related to my writing at all.

Here is another way I use music. In 1984, while I was on a grueling writing schedule for Knowledge Products, Huey Lewis came out with his hit, The Heart of Rock and Roll. I would often play that tune after I got up, and for some reason I would quickly find myself at the computer, working. I then decided to play the tune only when I wanted to get myself to write, and it worked like a charm for several years. It is not as effective now; even so, when I hear the opening "thump-thump, thump-thump," followed by that terrific riff and beat, I sometimes find myself working without even thinking about it. :smile:

I believe it was George Orwell who once observed that we lack an adequate vocabulary to describe the subtle shades of our emotions. I suppose you could say that my "gauges" are an effort to compensate for this inadequacy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIJNoeDyrV8

Ghs

Fascinating. Thank you for sharing such deep insights with us, Ghs.

For the last 15 years, I have grown into the habit of listening to Puccini when preparing for trial. I know some of the opera snobs in the crowd will frown on this, but I swear--for the reasons Ghs articulates--that these "sounds" help me concentrate harder, mainly because of the accumulated experience of the ritual. I have long suspected that the "trial preparation" grooves of my brain, if you will, are neural pathways that are more easily accessible with the aid of specific music.

I have sometimes been concerned that this might be bullshit--although there is some pretty cool brain research in this area (including such innovations as the Feldenkrais method I mentioned here) --but Ghs has now confirmed this from another direction.

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Can't see the video (yet). We've got a new PC and the Adobe Flash Player plug-in is not installed. As I clicked to get it installed, a chart showed up where I was sternly asked: "Do you permit that the following program makes alterations on this computer?"

My family members are currently not at home, and computer analphabet that I am, I don't dare to 'permit' anything here. I don't want to be the one who might foul something up. :smile:

I wouldn't worry about installing the Adobe Flash Player. It is a standard plug-in and won't cause any problems with your computer. The prompt you are getting is oddly worded, but it is merely asking permission to install the device.

Ghs

I just tried it out and it worked, Thanks for your encourgagment. I'm always afraid I might ruin something by pressing the wrong button. :smile:

I have now seen Bill's morning make up video - lol, these are very effective 'concealing tips' indeed, but I'm but am afraid my kindergartners will scream in in fright if I show up with that ...! :D

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Boy did I have a crush on Omar Sharif back then ...! And how I envied Geraldine Chaplin and especially Julie Christie who could be so close to him!</p>

Several years later, as I was finally reading the novel, I got into a veritable 'conflicit of imagination': for to my surprise, Dr. Zhivago was described in the book as 'not very good looking'. Since I  could in no way reconcile this with the great-looking 'Zhivago' Omar Sharif, I ended up with two different 'optical' Zhivagos. the one in the movie and the one in the novel.

I, too, had that "conflict of imagination," only the other way about, since I read the book first.

Speaking of Omar Sharif, did you ever see "The Yellow Rolls-Royce"?

The movie (1964) is a triptych of romantic segments from the lives of three different owners of the car. One part features Ingrid Bergman and Omar Sharif. Another has Alain Delon. The writer was Terence Rattigan. imdb link

Ellen

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Boy did I have a crush on Omar Sharif back then ...! And how I envied Geraldine Chaplin and especially Julie Christie who could be so close to him!</p>

Several years later, as I was finally reading the novel, I got into a veritable 'conflicit of imagination': for to my surprise, Dr. Zhivago was described in the book as 'not very good looking'. Since I could in no way reconcile this with the great-looking 'Zhivago' Omar Sharif, I ended up with two different 'optical' Zhivagos. the one in the movie and the one in the novel.

I, too, had that "conflict of imagination," only the other way about, since I read the book first.

Speaking of Omar Sharif, did you ever see "The Yellow Rolls-Royce"?

The movie (1964) is a triptych of romantic segments from the lives of three different owners of the car. One part features Ingrid Bergman and Omar Sharif. Another has Alain Delon. The writer was Terence Rattigan. imdb link

Ellen

II haven't seen "The Yellow Rolls-Royce" but it sounds like an interesting film. The sujet of segments from the lives of different owners of a car has also been employed in one of my favorite films, Helmut Käutner's "In Those days" (1947).

As for Omar Sharif, the only other film I have seen where he played was "Lawrence of Arabia". But at that time, I was more smitten by Peter O'Toole's blue eyes ... :smile:

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BOTTOM LINE:

I will never post on your site again. I would prefer not to have anything further to do with you or to communicate with you again. Quite frankly, your weakness and double standards disgust me.

Did you get that, Michael? Phil will never post on your site again. Your weakness and double standards disgust him.

>You can't answer every subaspect in a question period, but note that she

>packs in ...with her characteristic blend of common sense and philosophical

>principle...more helpful points and essentialized principles on this issue

>than any ten, long-winded, rambling OWL posts.

>

>Can I suggest that people read this over several times before posting any

>further on this topic?

>

>Can I suggest that they learn to write and think using ultra-precise English

>as she does?

>

>Can I suggest that people look at the undercarriage of their vehicle to see

>if there are already wheels there...before they reinvent them?

>

>Can I suggest that students of Objectivism actually try to learn from Rand

>before making up their own illogical fantasies?

>

>She is wrong or incomplete some of the time on some details, but those of

>you who have studied Objectivism as thoroughly as I have would be surprised

>how seldom.

>

>--Philip Coates

>

>...Okay, now I think I'm really done with this :-)

>Subject: Anti-Intellectual Insults vs. Legitimate Criticism and

>Essentializing

>

>A strong and even harsh criticism of

>people's -methods- is not an "insult" - even if it is in summary form and

>doesn't list all the concretes. As opposed to, say, attacking their

>character or accusing them of evasion. It is legitimate since thinking and

>writing methods (rationalism, failure to concretize, concrete-boundedness,

>excessive wordiness, academic writing styles) are crucial areas for

>development and have to be opened up for criticism as much as when someone

>makes a -content- error.

>

>It's the thinking and writing methods that are life and death here, and bad

>methods which are the Achilles heel of the Objectivist movement. They are my

>central area of interest and focus. And I intend to "hammer" people on their

>errors in this area every chance I get.

>

>Only Objectivists seem to be too touchy, too flawless to have these things

>criticized, I'm afraid, Eyal. When I've made criticisms in a professional or

>educational context, regularly I get: i) "wow, thanks for pointing that

>out", ii) "I'll think about your criticism", or iii) "I don't agree with you

>on this point and here's why..."

>

>It's as though the highly intelligent and articulate Objectivists on this

>list too often think it is only the content of their ideas which is

>legitimately to be questioned. But if you call them rationalistic (or

>criticize their imprecision or long-windedness, or saying they are

>reinventing a wheel Rand already built which is what I just did)...it's a

>mortal insult.

>

>It's as if they think the criticism were accusing them of a character flaw

>the equivalent of saying someone is deliberately evading. Rather than an

>honest error.

>

>I think it's because one's habitual methodology (the area of thinking or

>communication or social skills criticisms) cut very deep, and feels like an

>attack on who one is. I certainly felt that way for a while when Peikoff

>ripped the papers and talks I did for him to shreds. I felt crushed. But I

>had to admit many of this points. And I didn't take it personally. And I

>went back for more. Next time he asked for a volunteer to have a new asshole

>ripped for him, up went my hand.

>

>I've tried it before on OWL. More

>than once. I've made very serious posts before on many topics such as

>methodology, the problem of induction, and quite a wide range of topics. And

>I didn't get careful, detailed, thoughtful responses.

>

>So, yes, I can learn a lot from writing and exposing to peer criticism my

>more philosophical ideas. I'm sure they will help me improve them.

>Unfortunately my conclusion is that OWL is not the place for this.

>

>I might do something on Solohq.com, a better forum in my view - sometimes

>thoughtful, sometimes silly but where the feedback is often immediate, on

>point, "commonsense", and useful - and important thinkers or skillful

>writers such as Bidinotto, Barbara Branden, Rowlands, etc. have found a

>home. Or I might go outside the Objectivist community entirely.

>

>[ I can't resist pointing out an example from Solo of how to write an

>overview-level (but philosophical) article "for the masses" without jargon,

>rambling, unneeded long-windedness, and sticking closely to Objectivism as

>opposed to being unable to prove why carrots and tarantulas don't have

>rights. An essay that could be published and read by non-Objectivists: Go to

>solohq.com and click on "People" then click on Joe Rowlands. Then click on

>his article "Liking People". ]

>

>I'm baffled at Neil's view that Rand's answer

>(especially combined with Branden in the Newsletter) is of "very little use"

>or contains no relevant "principles". I agree that it is not complete: The

>underlying principle needs to be spelled out, explained, and justified." But

>that doesn't mean this is actually being done on Ow

>

>My very strong (and, yes, stinging) criticisms of people and posts in the

>Objectivist movement should not be taken as lack of respect for those people

>as people. It's directed at certain ideas and methods they might sometimes

>display.

>

>--Philip Coates...insulting, rude, superior (and don't forget arrogant)

>critic

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William, thanks for reposting that long post of mine from OWL. I had forgotten it and I think it's one of my best posts.

Certainly a pretty thorough discussion of the issue of the importance of method and of why it's important to critique it, learn about it in an intellectual movement or discussion forum. I don't like to repeat myself and when I've said the same things more recently I'm not likely to take as much time to lay out my view and my reasons in that much detail.

So, that's helpful - it shows with crystal clarity where I'm coming from and that I was dealing with the very same issues of resentment when one's deep-seated 'thinking methods' are criticized (which I'd forgotten).

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Boy did I have a crush on Omar Sharif back then ...! And how I envied Geraldine Chaplin and especially Julie Christie who could be so close to him!</p>

Several years later, as I was finally reading the novel, I got into a veritable 'conflicit of imagination': for to my surprise, Dr. Zhivago was described in the book as 'not very good looking'. Since I could in no way reconcile this with the great-looking 'Zhivago' Omar Sharif, I ended up with two different 'optical' Zhivagos. the one in the movie and the one in the novel.

I, too, had that "conflict of imagination," only the other way about, since I read the book first.

Speaking of Omar Sharif, did you ever see "The Yellow Rolls-Royce"?

The movie (1964) is a triptych of romantic segments from the lives of three different owners of the car. One part features Ingrid Bergman and Omar Sharif. Another has Alain Delon. The writer was Terence Rattigan. imdb link

Ellen

II haven't seen "The Yellow Rolls-Royce" but it sounds like an interesting film. The sujet of segments from the lives of different owners of a car has also been employed in one of my favorite films, Helmut Käutner's "In Those days" (1947).

As for Omar Sharif, the only other film I have seen where he played was "Lawrence of Arabia". But at that time, I was more smitten by Peter O'Toole's blue eyes ... :smile:

I think you would enjoy the YRR very much. The first episode is very poignant and Rex Harrison upstages everything in the movie, except the car.

--Brant

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  • 3 weeks later...

I think you would enjoy the YRR very much. The first episode is very poignant and Rex Harrison upstages everything in the movie, except the car.

I ordered it, just saw the first episode and think Harrison is so good that he upstages even the car. :smile:

Jeanne Moreau, who plays his adulterous wife, is also excellent.

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I think you would enjoy the YRR very much. The first episode is very poignant and Rex Harrison upstages everything in the movie, except the car.

I ordered it, just saw the first episode and think Harrison is so good that he upstages even the car. :smile:

Jeanne Moreau, who plays his adulterous wife, is also excellent.

His buying the car is a hoot. "Well, I assume it does go."

--Brant

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  • 9 years later...
On 1/31/2012 at 9:41 AM, Brant Gaede said:

I think you would enjoy the YRR very much. The first episode is very poignant and Rex Harrison upstages everything in the movie, except the car.

I re-watched “My Fair Lady” a couple of nights ago. The film stars Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle and Rex Harrison as Henry Higgins. You hear one magnificent song after another.

The downer? Rarely have I seen a lead character be such a villain as Henry Higgins. He was a sadistic monster. Peter  

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