5 & 1 Classical Playlists
by Mark Meynell
Begun during the pandemic, the 5 & 1 series was rebooted in early 2024 to offer access to the wonders of the world of classical music.
For many, it's a remote and intimidating world, full of arcane conventions, elitist institutions, and incomprehensible noises! As such, it is an art form widely assumed to have lost its relevance. Far from it!. After all, film music would never sound as it does without the foundations laid even by relatively recent compositions.
So, while many are open to it, they have no idea where to start. Hence, the 5 & 1 series. The idea is simple. Every few weeks, we will post a new theme, under which five short pieces or extracts will be introduced, followed by one substantial composition (which might last anything from ten minutes to an hour). The hope is for at least one piece to connect with in every post, and that this would spur listeners on to explore further exploration.
The music will be as varied as possible, drawn from the last six centuries or so, originating from or evoking many different cultures, as well as the genius of all kinds of musicians.
Happy exploring!
Musical Thin Places: At Eternity's Edge
Thin places—a concept familiar to some Rabbit Room visitors, I'm sure—seem fanciful, if not absurd, to many of our contemporaries. This is the Celtic idea that certain locations on earth have a closer connection to heaven than others, as if the transcendent was almost tangible there. This is not the place for debating the extent or likelihood of such places, merely to suggest that the arts as a whole, and music in particular, can function similarly.
The Seasons: Sumer is icumen in!
During our four years living in Uganda, one of the things I never really got used to was nice weather almost constantly. But then I am English. It was nearly always shirtsleeves' weather, hot but not usually unbearable. Downpours, when they came, tended to come in big bursts with what we called 'fat' rain; but normality quickly resumed. If the temperature did fall, the most one would need was a light sweater...
Previous Playlists
