I understand that after decades of listening to tracks of no more than two or three minutes, Grand Music may be very hard to take in

I understand that after decades of listening to tracks of no more than two or three minutes, Grand Music may be very hard to take in. But in honour of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Ralph Vaughan Williams, one of the outstanding composers of the twentieth century, who revived interest in British academic music, I suggest listening to his Sea Symphony, which runs to a little over an hour. The words are by Walt Whitman himself.

Performed by the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by André Previn.

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September digest: archaeological finds, exhibitions, museums, theatre and the Church

In the finale of the Strugatskys' Roadside Picnic, the Golden Ball is told: "Happiness for everybody, free, and let nobody go away unsatisfied!" I do not promise to offend nobody, but the digest really does come free of charge. So, here is the main business of the

Frederic Leighton

Frederic Leighton. “Daedalus and Icarus”, 1869 Daedalus warns his son not to climb too high: the heat of the sun may melt the wax, but Icarus is already gazing into the distance, and the lamentations of a foolish old man interest him not in the least

I understand that after decades of listening to tracks of no more than two or three minutes, Grand Music may be very hard to take in

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September digest: archaeological finds, exhibitions, museums, theatre and the Church

Frederic Leighton

Attempts to resolve the problems of many years of uncontrolled mass migration

Characters from Gogol's "Petersburg Tales" on the pedestal of the monument to Nikolai Gogol on Nikitsky Boulevard, photograph of the 1960s