A Conductor For Our Time: Klaus Mäkelä

For Guy’s friends who fear that classical music (for him) means just opera, here’s another perspective: We’re hearing lots about conductors these days, and while I would be the last person to slight Bradley Cooper’s brilliant Maestro (I loved it), I’m also happy to invite readers and friends to learn about a young man who …

SLA at 115: Welcoming Our Future

Guy St. Clair was recently invited to write for the re-launched Information Outlook, the professional journal of the Special Libraries Association. Guy had previously written SLA at 100: From “Putting Knowledge To Work” to Building the Knowledge Culture—A Centennial History of SLA (The Special Libraries Association) 1909-2009, published in 2009. An online version of SLA’s …

The Frick’s Angel

[Special thanks to Kevin Manion for his generous assistance with this post, originally published June 24, 2022.] Since you are reading what is generally referred to as “Guy’s personal blog,” it makes a certain kind of sense to say, once again, how we New Yorkers seem to have a special appreciation for what is available …

“Turandot” Returns Triumphantly to the Met

The Met’s Final Dress Rehearsals are one of the great pleasures at New York’s opera house, and none I’ve ever attended has disappointed. The idea is, of course, that it is a rehearsal, but it is after all referred to as “final.” So at this point, the show is ready, and despite occasional comments from …

The Mérode Altarpiece of the Annunciation

Having shared a favorite masterpiece depicting The Annunciation in my Holiday Greetings post (sent on Christmas Day), I’m thrilled to be reminded about another version. My dear friend Dellie Johnson, whom I’ve known longer than either of us wishes to remember, sent this, with a charming note:  Loved the piece on the Ghent Altarpiece.  It …