Wagner In Paris, 2021

Wagner's years in Paris, in the early1840s, as a struggling young composer, and in the early 1860s, when a new production of Tannhauser caused a scandal and a riot in the streets, were neither happy nor successful. His public gloating over France's defeat in the the Franco-Prussian war did not improve matters. But his works continued to be performed here, despite the two more wars with Germany, as much as any of the other greatest opera composers. And Wednesday night, October 6th, he triumphed again, with a symphonic program by the Orchestra de Paris, featuring selections from The Meistersingers of Nuremburg and Tristan and Isolde, and the entire first act of The Valkyrie, performed in oratorio fashion. And I was there for one of the most memorable performances I have heard. Vicki had found me a seat in the first row of the balcony behind the orchestra, where I could literally read the scores over the musicians' shoulders. It was a magical experience, the setting, the music, the performance, and, not least, the reaction of a genuinely enthusiastic and appreciative audience. Five curtain calls!

The setting was the Paris Philharmonie, in the Cite de la Musique, in
Parc de la Villette, in the 19th, one of the world's newest musical venues

Wide view of the Salle Pierre Boulez (the late composer and conductor); a hall in the modern orchestra-in-the-round shape, with moveable balconies, clouds, and other acoustic features that render amplification unnecessary; none of the 2,400 seats are more than 32 meters from the conductor; double-walled; see this article for much more on the hall

Knowing the music as well as I do, and being acquainted with a
variety of performances and recordings, certainly enhanced my
experience

As a former oboist, my eyes and ears were on his parts, here, as
customary, tuning the entire orchestra to A440 

The conductor, Jaap van Zweden...not too distracting as current
conductors go...seemed very popular with both musicians and
audience

At the intermission, the principal oboist places his reed in a reed-case
(ask me sometime about oboe reeds)

Tuning up again

After the glorious coda with Sigmund and Sieglinde and during the
applause and bravos and repeated curtain calls, the conductor
recognizes different soloists and sections of the orchestra: here the
six harpists required for The Valkyrie 

A glorious evening: thank you for encouraging me, Vicki!

Carnavalet, 2

We visited the Museum of Paris, the Carnavalet, earlier in our stay here, but made it only so far as the Revolution. The Carnavalet is a huge and priceless collection, housed in buildings of fitting age and stature. Our second visit was nearly as overwhelming. We finished, but only because the great museum peters out as the history winds down to the present. 

David's sketch for The Tennis Court Oath, 2 June, 1789, when
members of the National Assembly vowed not to leave Versailles
until they had drafted a constitution; widely regarded as the 
beginning of the Revolution

Hubert Robert's The Bastille in the Early Days of Its Demolition
(a symbol of the monarchy, it had to go)

Dr. Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, famous French
inventor

Louis XVI's last few steps...21 January, 1793

Marie Antoinette's

New sheriff in town

But it lasted little more than a decade...Lefevre's
portrait  of Napoleon as a colonel of the Imperial
Guard cavalry

Gerard's portrait of Madame Recamier, not quite
as famous as David's in the Louvre; but finished;
David and the sitter did not get along...

Beautiful furniture of the period

Beautiful, huge scale models in many of the rooms

That storm passed (there would be others) and
Paris resumed its place as the capital of European
culture...above, Lehmann's 1839 portrait of
composer Franz Liszt

Paris as the world now knows it is born: Napoleon
III commissions Baron Haussmann to redesign
and rebuild the city

Whole neighborhoods of Medieval warrens were torn down to
make way for the wide new boulevards; here in the opera district

And the 1890s arrive

Walls of paintings of La Belle Ville

The great exhibition of 1900

Poster advertising one of Sara Bernhardt's plays...
by Alfons Mucha, his first success as a commercial
artist

Proust's boudoir, where the masterpieces were written

Perhaps the highlight for us, Fouquet's fin de siecle jewelry store,
decor by Mucha

An age of great beauty 

From Gertrude Stein's salon

The art deco Rex theater, just a few blocks from us, now being 
renovated

1940s

The philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre in the 1950s

The Pont-Neuf, wrapped by Christo in 1980

An ending in sadness but solidarity

Canal Saint Martin

After the weekend's museum and other excitement, we rested Monday with a stroll over to the Place de la Republique and then up the Canal Saint Martin, over to the Gare de l'Est, and then back through the northern extension of Rue Saint-Denis. Our daily 10K.

Among the theaters in the Grands Boulevards area; we don't
think Paris has a Theatreland like London, but there must be a
dozen or more in the vicinity

Among the pedestrian bridges over Saint Martin's Canal (we'd
done some of the walk before)

At the Gare de l'Est

Perhaps Paris' greatest danger is being
run over by bicyclistes

Rue de Fauborg Saint-Denis; a few blocks north 
of our apartment; the Porte Saint-Denis in the
background

A private alley off the street

Squid Game In Paris!

Returning from our museum excursions on Saturday and Sunday, we were surprised to find huge lines of young personnes wrapped around three sides of the block outside our building...







By Sunday the police arrived to clear the streets

It was Netlix's "Squid Game," in Paris for the weekend

I remain blissfully ignorant of what this is all
about, except that it is Netflx' greatest hit ever,
so far; but you can find out more here if you wish

By Monday morning, the streets were empty and the Kick Cafe 

was returning to normal, and you'd never know what a fuss 

there had been on the weekend