Born in Wilmington, North Carolina and now teaching at Columbia College in South Carolina, Meira Warshauer is a composer whose music, in the words of Ina Ester-Joost, "comes from a place which is beyond music. It's like a prayer ... from deep within the soul". This week Warshauer's music is part of a "double feature" at Pytheas: her recent recording, Like Streams in the Desert (Albany Records) is our FEATURED RECORDING, and her new video, featuring the title track from the CD, is one of our NEW MUSIC VIDEOS. The video, produced by Mike Bregman, uses images by Shoshannah Brombacher, whose art is featured in the CD's booklet - a very effecting combination ... ENJOY!

Our other FEATURED NEW MUSIC VIDEO brings us a unique arrangement and performance of Alfred Schnittke's Gogol Suite by the Scherzo Quartet, a Balalaika quartet from Russia. Well done, and a feast for the ears and eyes...

Kyle Gann (PostClassic weblog), in two musings entitled Declining Literacy (here and here), poses the question, "Why has classical music fallen off the cultural literacy menu?". Join the discussion - this week's FEATURED THOUGHT AND IDEA.

And lastly, FROM THE PYTHEAS ARCHIVES this week brings us a bit of Elia Kazan's classic film On the Waterfront (1956) with an inspired and moving score by Leonard Bernstein. If you've never seen the whole movie, get out and do it! You'll be very glad you did.

Explore, Listen and Enjoy!
Vinny Fuerst
Pytheas Center for Contemporary Music