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.
Tuesday August 7th
Condolences today, as famed composer and conductor Marvin Hamlisch has passed at 68 years old. He was well known for scoring music included multiple films, such as The Sting, and won a Tony for A Chorus Line.
Last week on the program you heard a track from Bucky and John Pizzarelli, a father and son duo. We'd mentioned that Bucky likely wasn't still actively recording. We were mistaken. We got word from Alex Pangman that the 86 year old jazz guitarist has been recording, and new material is due out in 2013. Keep on keeping on!
It took 4 planes and more than 100 people, but we've finally done it. We've accomplished the largest freefalling snowflake in skydiving history. You might think it will look impressive, but you can't possibly imagine it being THIS impressive.
Sometimes it isn't WHAT you get as a gift, but that the gift is there at all. For example, Feist's performance at Osheaga in Montreal this weekend. One fan thought it necessary to walk through an entire crowd with a tree above his head. It made no sense, but Charles Spearin accepted the symbolic gesture and proceeded to play it as a percussive instrument.
The NASA Mars Curiosity Rover has hit the red planet. And what to do first? Cruise around of course. It's just like the summer you got your first car all over again.
In Jamaica, sprinting is as important as hockey is up here. They live and breathe competitive sprinting even through their high school years. It makes sense that the country comes together to watch their most successful product: Usain Bolt. But when everybody in a nation has the same idea, problems arise. The power couldn't handle the demand, and a blackout ensued. Luckily, one child had a portable radio. The crowd hushed to listen together, and erupted together with the result.
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 ).