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  • Writer's pictureNigel

Babies 赤ちゃん

Updated: Oct 11, 2023

2023 年 8 月 11 日


Babies. They pee, they fart, they make atrocious smells and scream....and they take over your life.........but one little smile 😊 and you forget all that. One common activity I recall is the frantic scramble for the "pacifier" (US English) "dummy" (UK English) or "Schnullie" (German).....

..........but not here: This is the last thing we want here. Because this is a baby screaming contest....if you don't believe me then click here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naki_Sumo_Crying_Baby_Festival

And last week it was Meiko-chan's turn. Here she is, bawling her head off.....

泣き相撲, Nakizumō...........芽衣子は相撲をとりました!

Whilst her mother can be heard saying "大丈夫" (it's ok!) in the background. The big guy is a Sumo wrestler, and his colleague (not in picture) is also holding a baby - the competitor. As it was, Meiko-chan won, and here she is........sitting in all her glory....on a drum! 芽衣子は The Winner!

Photos: Emi-san


 

It started with a German poet, then a German composer in love, then a colourful Hungarian pianist. Robert Schumann set Friedrich Rückert's Poem, "Du bist meine Seele, du bist mein Herz" to music. It was part of a set of songs which he presented to his lover Clara before their marriage. He entitled it Dedication (Widmung). It was such a great song that Franz Liszt had to make his own version of it (like he did with loads of other music), for which many pianists are no doubt grateful. Emi-san played it last week in Tokyo - thankfully the baby was somewhere else at the time......エミさんは赤ちゃんを家に置いてきたと思います...😅

👏👏👏 えみさん、ありがとう!

I don't know which I prefer - the orginal song or the pianists' transcription - both have their merits. But I never cease to be bowled over by Liszt's version.


Here is the original poem:

Friedrich Rückert (1788-1866)


Du meine Seele, du mein Herz, Du meine Wonn', o du mein Schmerz, Du meine Welt, in der ich lebe, Mein Himmel du, darin ich schwebe, O du mein Grab, in das hinab Ich ewig meinen Kummer gab! Du bist die Ruh, du bist der Frieden, Du bist der Himmel, mir beschieden. Daß du mich liebst, macht mich mir wert, Dein Blick hat mich vor mir verklärt, Du hebst mich liebend über mich, Mein guter Geist, mein bessres Ich!


Well, she had to marry him after that didn't she? Vertont von Robert Schumann (Widmung); Myrthen Op. 25 (As-Dur)


 

Looking out over my roof I see almost cloudless August sky..........as it should be in summer..

夏はこうあるべき

But there is little "as it should be" The next minute it's thundery showers, leaving behind many a puddle......しかし、にわか雨が多いです

...some of which made me pause.....

..............but eventually drove me the next day to take refuge under the solid walls of the Städel....Frankfurt's largest art gallery. フランクフルトの大きな美術館に行ってきました

Here I met some lovers.....せっぷん......接吻

created by the artist Constantin Brancusi in 1908.....what a hug! lucky them! なんて抱擁なんだ.....彼らは幸運です 😉

...and a violin which I'm glad I do not have to tune....Yes, Pablo Picasso must have been pretty confident to gather together some old bits of metal in 1915 and call it "Violine"....

ヴァイオリン・ピカソ

Meanwhile the Romanian sculptur Arthur Segal may have been influenced by drinking tea in London to create this : Still Life with teapot 1926.

When you take a photo of this sort of art it somehow loses its depth, but did try.......

ティーポットのある静物画 1926 年。

As you have probably realized by now, the exhibition was all about reliefs. It was called "Herausragend" - literally "outstanding" (並外れた?), which I thought was a pretty good title.

And any `Cellist could not have missed this.....remember all those fearsome Feuillard studies?.....There were 43 pages of them......!.....in a grim brown cover and costing GBP 2.00......I always found flats easier to play than sharps.....I wonder why that was....🎶?

有名なフランスのチェロ奏者、L. フイヤール

But there was an era in France when the Good and Great were celebrated in bronze medallions........I wonder who deserves a medallion today?

I find the older rooms of the Städel pretty gloomy, not helped by the dark grey walls and the oak floors.....アートギャラリーはかなり暗いです

However, the modern part is quite refreshing.....👍

And outside there is definitely some fun ......外には面白い顔が何人かいます

These creations by Ugo Rondinone seemed to express my feelings......

1) on discovering that the coffee bar was not yet open.......

1.「カフェはまだ開いていません」

2) after that coffee.....

2.「コーヒーの後」

Is this bench for just admiring or may you sit on it?

ここに座ってもいいですか?

As I walked out of the gates of the Städel the sun seemed to be making an effort, so I took a little stroll under the Holbein bridge....

その後少し散歩に行きました


 

Back in the fields of Langen, despite the freaky weather, nature is already showing it's traditional fruits of the season......

りんご

..................mmmmm 😋

ブラックベリー

And the bees are buzzing over this clover field.....クローバー はぎ萩

The View from the Towers - literally - blue skies and cotton wool.....

タワーからの眺め

And a view under the towers. My trusty Stanley plane, which has accompanied me on my violinmaking journey these last 30 odd years.......still sharp...✔️.

私のお気に入りのwoodworking plane.


👍 Thank you for reading "...Babies.."

"......赤ちゃん......."を読んでくれてありがとう



👍 Feel free to share the blog with friends.

よろしければ、リンクを友達と共有してください



👍 And it would be nice to hear from you...!

そしてコメントしてください...





THE END

😉

終わり



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