Naxos musical apps for Advent feature 25 complete tracks behind numbered doors. Each day, a new door is ‘unlocked’ to reveal a new piece of seasonal music from Naxos’s classical music catalogue.
Tap on a door a day … is it a Christmas carol or an instrumental piece? Is it an old favourite or a new discovery?
Celebrate the Advent season with a delightful selection of music tracks from Naxos!
“Naxos is simply an amazing company.” — Fanfare, 2013
FEATURES · 25 complete tracks — over 1 hour — of classical music. · Excellent performances. · Replay any track as many times as you like. · All music available offline. · Simple and quick to use.
MUSIC INCLUDES ‘Ding, dong, merrily on high’, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Mozart’s ‘Sleigh Ride’, ‘In dulci jubilo’ and Handel’s ‘Messiah’ among much-loved classics and lesser-known gems!
MUSIC INCLUDES ‘Gabriel’s Message’, Tchaikovsky’s ‘Nutcracker’, Bach’s ‘Christmas Oratorio’ and Adams’ ‘O Holy Night’ among much-loved classics and lesser-known gems!
Nota bene: Both apps were last updated on November 9, 2015. I have just installed both of them on my phone and they are both playing without problem. I recommend them to you for your consideration and seasonal classical musical enjoyment.
I had been disappointed to find both that both of these were no longer in the Google Play store, so I went to the Naxos website directly and clicked on … dead links. Thus, it was that I e-mailed Naxos customer service to say how much I had enjoyed them last year, was so sorry to see that they had disappeared, and that I hoped they would see fit to bring them back.
Et pis voilà, mesdames et messieurs: I just got an e-mail that both Naxos classical music Advent Calendars have been restored to the Google Play store. I just went and checked on both, and Deibus gratias!.
I was home watching TV and cutting up a steak when I got the call at 8PM. A friend of mine worked at a famous hotel in LA and one of the guests made a last minute request for a DJ to play the hotel bar. Someone that could get there and start playing in an hour. The bar frequently had live bands play, but never a DJ. So with little to no time, my wise and generous friend thought to throw a gig my way.
“Yeah, I can get there in an hour. Am I getting paid?”
“Yes, you’ll get paid.”
“What kind of party is it? What am I playing?”
“Someone’s renting out the bar for a private party. And that someone is… The Artist… formerly… known… as… Prince.”
That sentence was not real to me. Still not real. I had no time to really think or say anything but, “What? You serious? Yes. Be there as soon as I can.” Got off the phone and my stomach turned. Only a handful of people in the world have imprinted their music that much in my brain. And couldn’t he just call up any of the best DJ’s in LA to come play for him? Why’s he gonna trust someone who is by all means an unknown? I’d been DJing parties and bars for years but going from that to Prince is an Olympic leap.
The next half hour felt like a panic attack. I made a list of songs to play for Prince and his private Prince party. Ok, no Prince songs. He doesn’t want to hear himself. No MJ. I don’t want to insult him or anything. Didn’t they have beef in the 80’s? No hip hop. Can’t picture him rocking out to Kendrick. I thought of who he was influenced by and dragged some James Brown and Stevie songs into the playlist. Isley Brothers, Curtis. Great. 8:20PM. I still have to get ready even though I could spend the next month picking songs. I quickly close my laptop and get dressed. Pack up my turntables, mixer, cables and run them all to the car as I’m sweating through this black suit.
I get to the hotel with about five minutes to set up. The bar is completely empty aside from a couple of servers and my friend who made the call. And the room is almost lit exclusively by candlelight. I’m told to set up my turntables on the grand piano, which is also covered with candles, making me feel like hip hop Liberace. A waitress tells me there’s like an 80% chance Prince doesn’t show up. He just likes to rent out the bar in case he and his friends wander through the hotel and feel like stopping in. “But you should start playing music anyway in case he comes in. Who knows.” So I start playing songs to the very empty bar. The anticipation is a killer. My friend gives me a much needed glass of whiskey before taking off.
A giant spread of appetizers is covering the bar and getting sweaty. Spring rolls, cheese, orange juice. An hour goes by. Then another hour. A no-show. I’m kind of bummed out but also very relieved. I don’t know how I’m going to react if he walks in that door. So I’m just playing the set of my life to nobody. It’s like I’m getting paid to practice and listen to whatever I want on the bar’s sound system.
At 12AM the door opens and some guy walks over to me and without a greeting he says,
“Hey man. He’ll be here in 15 minutes. What are you gonna play when he walks in?”
“Oh I got some stuff lined up. Some older Stevie Wonder, the JB’s.”
“Yeah. Yeah, he likes that. Anything like that, Earth Wind & Fire, Chic.”
“Yeah I got Chic! I’ll play that.”
“And he wants to hear Janelle Monáe when he walks in. You got that?”
“Yup. Yup. Janelle Monáe.”
“Cool, he’ll be here in 15 minutes.”
I didn’t have any Janelle Monáe. I ran out to the concierge desk in the lobby to get the wifi password, ran back and started downloading a bunch of Janelle Monáe off of iTunes. Right on time as I cue up the track, the door opens and I catch a quick glimpse. Full on afro, turtleneck and a gold chain. I want to say he had a cane, but I was trying not to look directly at him. I didn’t want to throw him off or maybe infuriate him by making eye contact. Prince was in the room. I was just musical wallpaper. He and a friend sat down at a couch about fifteen feet away from me.
The grand entrance song blended straight into James Brown’s Talking Loud and Saying Nothing. I played Ike & Tina Turner, Charles Wright, Omar’s The Man, and Gust of Wind by Pharrell. My head was pretty much glued to the turntables, sticking to my no look philosophy, but I could hear bits of conversation. Hearing that Prince voice in person was something strange. It just belongs on record or on microphone. I start dishing out some other favorite tracks of mine, Think Twice by Jay Dee and Alicia Myers I Want to Thank You. There’s zero reaction to the songs I play. I’m still worried I’m not playing what he wants to hear. Is he gonna throw a spring roll at me?
A little later that guy from earlier comes back into the bar and walks straight over to me.
“Hey man. Just want to let you know, they love your music.”
“Oh really? Thanks. Do they want to hear anything in particular?”
“Nope. Just keep playing what your playing.”
Oh it’s on now. I can finally breathe and I’m getting props from the man himself, or from the middleman himself. And then it hits me. There’s only two people in there. Prince and a girl. I’m not there to DJ a private party. I’m there to DJ a date. Prince is on a date and I’m the entertainment.
I saved my set list from that night and I don’t remember playing half the songs on it. All I know is I was in deep concentration, mixing out of my mind. Messenger man came in one more time and said Prince might try to play the piano. When it was time, he would pop his head in the door and give me the cue to stop DJing. I had never seen Prince perform, so a private piano ballad to his woman and myself sounded alright. I stayed looking at that door for a while until Prince’s date walked over to me.
“Hey, so what’s the name of this song? He likes it and wants to know.”
“It’s a Smith’s cover. This Charming Man by Stars.”
She sat back down and relayed the info, to which he nodded his head. Now I’m stumping Prince with cool music. I play another track. She comes over to me again and asks, “What’s this one? He wants this on repeat.” Blacker 4 The Good Times by Ballistic Brothers. So I play that song a couple more times in a row. It’s now 4AM and I’m just a little delirious from being on my feet DJing for 7 hours. And I’m running out of music. My song selections are all over the map at this point. Esperanza Spalding, ESG, Broken Bells.
At around 4:30 Prince gets up off the couch and walks floats right over to me. He looks me in the eye, starts shaking my hand and says in a deep Prince voice,
“Thank you. That was very enjoyable.”
“Thanks. Glad you enjoyed it.”
In my mind it was that smooth but there’s no doubt I was speaking gibberish.
And just like that he left the room with his date. He didn’t put any moves on her in the bar, but I like to think I helped him out by setting the mood for whatever happened next. I stopped the music and the lights went on.
And that was the best night of DJing I ever had or ever will have.
I’m gonna talk about how the character of the Winter Soldier relies heavily on sound throughout the film because it’s one of the first things I picked up on during my numerous re-viewings and I think it’s one of the strengths of the film in terms of film technique.
For starters, the Winter Soldier is a really interesting character because he’s one of the titular characters and he’s key to the plot, but he has hardly any lines of dialogue and he’s only in it for maybe a third of the film. But the reason the Winter Soldier has such a presence in the film is because of the strength of Sebastian Stan’s ability to act using just his face and body and also the techniques that the film uses to establish details about his character that aren’t revealed through plot or dialogue. WS has only six real scenes in the film, which are:
First encounter with Nick Fury on the streets of D.C.
Shooting Nick Fury at Steve’s apartment
Speaking with Alexander Pierce
The Causeway
The Bank Vault (”But I knew him”)
Final Battle
So how do you establish the presence of a character who has six scenes during the film? The answer is to use every film technique at your disposal, and this film especially relies on sound. The Winter Soldier has to be one of the creepiest themes I’ve ever seen for a character because it utilizes a lot of metallic noises, robotic clanging, and inhuman screaming, which matches perfectly the visceral diegetic sounds of WS during the film, like the sound of the metal arm. It’s a far cry from what a normal character theme would be, because The Winter Soldier theme is for a presence, not for a person, which works so well given his legendary status as an assassin (“most of the intelligence community doesn’t believe he exists”).
The film uses sound in a major way to fill in the details about his character that can’t be shown on-screen, as well as to establish him as an inhuman figure that has the ability to morph what goes on around him, adding to his threatening presence. Firstly, when he’s first introduced to the audience and to Nick Fury on the streets of D.C., the music, which had been an exciting combat theme mirroring the action, suddenly goes very quiet and what you hear is what I can only describe as a hollow sound, a few notes of the WS theme. It’s a sound very evocative of a desolate wasteland. WS is unique because you never see him ‘enter’ a scene; he’s always there, and as soon as he appears, the sound in the film changes to mirror his presence. This happens when he appears and ambushes Fury’s car and the sound grows very quiet and haunting, and also during the scene where he appears in Alexander Pierce’s kitchen, but it also happens in a much larger way when he gets the shot at Steve’s apartment.
When Steve and Fury are talking, the song It’s Been a Long, Long Time is playing as diegetic music in the background to mask their conversation. It’s symbolic, because the lyrics mirror Steve and Bucky’s relationship, but it also serves a practical function within the storytelling. However, as soon as WS takes the shot and Fury goes down, the music very obviously warps in a really horrifying way that is more psychological. As Steve and Sharon and Fury are talking, their voices still sound normal, but the music playing, which logically should sound exactly the same, suddenly takes on a chilling, haunting quality. All because WS has appeared and distorted the scene. Essentially, the Winter Soldier is a character that is able to distort the reality of every scene in which he appears, because he’s a character that stands outside of reasoning and the fabric of reality itself. (Which makes a lot of sense given that he’s a character who was thought dead, but has in fact been alive for seventy years and has become the world’s deadliest assassin). Even when he doesn’t appear, such as when Steve and Natasha and Maria are watching Fury in the ER, as soon as Steve mentions “he’s fast; strong. Had a metal arm,” the WS music creeps back in because the Winter Soldier doesn’t need to be on the screen in order to ‘be’ there.
The causeway sequence is probably my favourite in the entire film, because it expands on what we’ve already learnt about WS through sound. The theme appears instantly as soon as he lands on top of Sam’s car, and then goes into a very metallic, action heavy piece of music. What’s really interesting, however, is what happens when Natasha draws WS away from Steve and Sam into the streets. As WS is walking down the street (and another thing to note about WS; he’s threatening because he never runs, only walks), the sounds of screaming and sirens are deliberately pushed far down on the sound hierarchy because what’s actually happening is that the audience is being given a rare glimpse into his point-of-view, which is incredible given that he’s a “villain” and not one of the protagonists. It offers the audience a view of how the Winter Soldier’s mind works. He’s focused solely on the mission, which in that moment is to listen for Black Widow, meaning all other superfluous background noise is deliberately muted because it is irrelevant to him. Then, we hear what he hears: the sound of Natasha speaking, which of course turns out to be a recording and not actually her. Later, after Natasha gets shot, the camera does a pov shift to Natasha and the music pretty much cuts out, which helps to show the audience just how terrified of WS she is (the shaky, handheld pov camera shot), which is something incredibly rare for this character because the only other person we’ve ever seen Black Widow scared of is the Hulk. Then WS jumps back into the shot on top of the car, rifle pointed straight at Natasha in what I personally consider to be the single best shot of the whole film, and the WS theme surges back in in a really terrifying way, because both Natasha and the audience know in that instant that if Steve hadn’t appeared at that very moment, Black Widow would be dead.
All of this is great stuff, but the cincher for me in why this film is superior to every other superhero movie in terms of technique is that in addition to establishing the Winter Soldier’s inhumanity through sound, sound also plays a huge role in establishing his humanity, which happens almost at the very instant Steve mentions the name “Bucky.” At the bank vault, when WS is asking who the man on the bridge was, the sound of the robotic, metallic WS theme is deliberately pushed back in favour of an emotional note that is clearly evocative of Steve.
All of this culminates in the scene of the final battle, which takes the established haunting Winter Soldier theme and plays that out while Steve and WS are fighting, until the instant Steve tells him “you know me.” As soon as Steve engages him in conversation, the Winter Soldier theme disappears and instead you get a piece of deeply moving music playing as Steve tells him that he’s not going to fight him, that he’s his friend, and that “I’m with you till the end of the line.” Then it goes into that emotional piano piece as Steve falls into the Potomac and Bucky dives in after him. Essentially, what’s happening here is that for two hours this character has been crafted as a robotic, inhuman assassin who distorts the fabric of reality and morphs every scene he’s in simply through his presence, but suddenly he’s now being treated like a character; an actual person. All because Steve Rogers is treating him like a person. Steve Rogers is the one thing that keeps the Winter Soldier human, and the film manages to tell us that simply through sound.
And this is why CA:TWS stands above every other superhero movie in terms of technique, in my opinion.
Singing was as natural as breathing for Ralph Edmund Stanley, who was born Feb. 25, 1927, on Big Spraddle Creek in Dickenson County, Virginia. His first public performance was in church, and when he was 11 years old, his mother said he could either have a pig or a banjo. Luckily for music fans everywhere, he chose the latter. His style of banjo picking — which, like the man himself, had no frills — would go on to influence countless musicians. Most people will recognize his voice from the movie O Brother Where Art Thou?. He was 89 years young. #bigfoodbiglove #ralphstanley #bluegrass #countrymusic #banjo #southern Won’t you spare me over til another year Well what is this that I can’t see With ice cold hands takin’ hold of me Well I am death, none can excel I’ll open the door to heaven or hell Whoa, death someone would pray Could you wait to call me another day The children prayed, the preacher preached Time and mercy is out of your reach I’ll fix your feet til you cant walk I’ll lock your jaw til you cant talk I’ll close your eyes so you can’t see This very hour, come and go with me I’m death I come to take the soul Leave the body and leave it cold To draw up the flesh off of the frame Dirt and worm both have a claim O, Death O, Death
while i can mainly only speak for sapphic playlists, ive noticed in general that the lgbt playlists were making are really white, cover heavy and… straight?
so heres a (very unabridged) list of lgbt musicians that deserve to be on your playlists way more than that cover of lego house. in alphabetical order:
Against Me! if youre trans & alternative and dont know abt against me – lead by trans frontwoman and punk rock mum laura jane grace – then idk what youre doing. ik theyre p well known, but i still never see them in playlists.
Angel Haze / Raen Roes black & native american two-spirit rapper with the brilliant freestyle rewrite of ‘same love’
Bloc Party indie rock band from east london led by kele okereke, coolest man on earth, ended oasis w his snark (seriously)
Chris Garneau french-american indie singer reminiscent of spektor’s anti folk, often discusses trauma with very sad, floaty music. very androgynous voice
Coeur de Pirate french-canadian singer with a more folky vibe reminiscent of of monsters and men. oh, and shes dating laura jane grace. put them both in the same playlist. please.
Daskinsey4(warning for nsfw imagery in the link) fuzzpedal britpop from bristol with a fun, bouncy tone
Doria Roberts 90s american folk singer/songwriter. political and confident. put ‘honey jar’ in your playlist please just do it.
Ezra Furman gay american alternative rock singer similar to neutral milk hotel
Ferras indie pop singer with a strong bowie influence vocally
Frank Ocean yes, you know who he is. have you listened to him? have you? i dont care if you only listen to harsh noise folk backwards – listen to frank ocean.
Gerard Way we all know gerard fuzzpedal emo king friends with ljg way and still i see more artic monkeys in these gaylists (gay playlists)
Grace Petrie folk singer from the midlands, england whose bbfsies w billy brag. has two modes: angry gay, sad gay. what more do you need?
Hayley Kiyoko ok ok ik we all know her shes the token woc in your playlist im putting her on the list anyway because im in love with her
Honeywater has a dubious place on the list due to the other fella but.. this is amandla stenbergs band. amandla. they make music. remember that.
the Hoosiers the british indie band behind ‘goodbye mister a’
Indigo Girls this is fucking lesbian heritage right here. Old Skool lesbian country singers right here.
the Internet classique gay triphop led by my dream girlfriend, syd the kyd
Jasmine Kennedy soft sad indie folk from the north of england. her sweet, quiet music ranges from melancholic to happy ending bliss. shes stage buddies w grace petrie too. put ‘cardigan sweater’ in your playlist. do it.
JD Samson & MEN nonbinary dance music officianado JD Samson and her new band after le tigre. loud and fun and gay
Jussie Smollet he plays jamal in empire. admittedly, he hasnt brought out his own stuff yet, but his music for empire is beautiful soulful R&B
Kaytranada a gay music producer whose worked with all the big names, including collaborating with the internet. gay squared.
Neon Hitch bisexual rroma indie pop singer from the uk
Rachael Yamagata melancholic, blues inspired folk-pop with a smooth, deep voice
Shamir nonbinary synthpop singer known for his androgynous voice and catchy, light hearted tunes such as ‘on the regular’ and ‘make a scene’
Sia bisexual pop-ballad queen who sings often abt trauma, mental illness, and abuse
Soko kristen stewarts girlfriend. indie singer with a high, airy voice whose music ranges in topic from trauma to homophobia to the surreal. put ‘who wears the pants’ on your playlist.
Spoonboy genderqueer punk singer from washington dc. try ‘sexy dreams’
Tegan & Sara look, ok, i know everyone knows abt tegan and sara. the lesbian band. so why are they never on sapphic/lesbian playlists? why?
Thao & Mirah folk/country lesbian mirah teams up w thao, who afaik is also sga, for an album of soft, sweet folk music
Tracy Chapman seriously ok this is History. this is the woman behind ‘fast car.’ very political american folk singer from the 90s. i love her. shes amazing.
Tunde Olaniran R&B / hiphop singer from michigan with a loud, take-no-shit style
Willow Smith yes, the willow smith. she wrote two love songs dedicated to marceline from adventure time. thats all you need to know. shes perfect.
also, yknow what, spoken word poetrys getting quite popular now. heres a few lgbt spoken word poets to put in the start or end of your playlist to shake it up:
rice questions – answer simple questions and donate free rice to people in poverty!!
click to give –
just click a button to donate (it costs nothing) food to animals
shelters, people in poverty and homeless veterans; mammograms to fight
breast cancer; therapy for people on the autism spectrum; alzheimer’s
and diabetes research; a book to a child; protect wildlife habitat
This might be the apex of the internet. No, really. You can set it to low and slow and sleepy and it hits something in the hindbrain that kind of melts away anxiety.
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