Great evening.....

at the Met, last night---a complete performance of Nabucco, Verdi's third opera, conducted brilliantly by James Levine and performed by a great cast. What an opera! More comprehensive and detailed than I ever expected---I thought that like a lot of Verdi's early operas, I would find a brilliant moment, followed by a kind of "oom pah pah" stretch, but it never happened. The music is inspired from beginning to end. The opera also fascinates because its two parts (as performed at the Met last night) seem like two different operas, the first battle focused and intense, the second, meditative and redemptive. It all focuses around Nabucco being struck by a bolt of lighting, towards the end of the first part---then from all powerful and vengeful he becomes disoriented and later full of peace and forgiveness. It is known that Verdi always wanted to make an opera out of King Lear----but scenes from the second part of the opera, almost seem like Lear scenes. It made me want to listen carefully to all of Verdi's other operas, that he wrote before Louisa Miller, which, I think precede Verdi's three "early" operas, Trovatore, Rigoletto and La Traviata. Much to think about---really a transcendent experience!
Not much else to report since last post-----tonight, the long awaited New Year's Eve; I expect to repeat last year's pattern: begin around 8:30 at South fourth and probably around 11, jump on the J crossing to Essex, where La Flaca is. Will celebrate New Year's there---however I am keeping things open and everything is subject to change. Will let you know...