the rix mix

Charles Ives composed a wonderful piece titled "4th of July" that imitates exploding fireworks. Among his many other works appropriate for Independence Day, I recommend "Organ Variations on America," which would sound terrific accompanying fireworks, & "Putnam's Camp," capturing the effect of hearing two marching bands at the same time, a common occurance during parades. Both are realaudio streams.

Sticky & mostly cloudy today. Had a five minute torrential downpour that would've caused serious flooding had it gone on for ten or fifteen. The 4th of July may be my favorite holiday, but two years ago I decided that attending fireworks alone was a drag even if they were easy to get to. This year the convenient local community display was moved to a county park where the thousands of out-of-county people picnicking there all day will just decide to hang around until after dark. One of the nicest places on the 4th is Cliffwood Beach NJ, provided the green flies & mosquitoes are tolerable. Local residents bring their own illegal explosives, & you can see other fireworks across the bay on Staten Island. Boardwalks are good, too. My family always went to a park by a lake in Cranford. It's a romantic date, actually; dusk & dragonflies, & until a few years ago the 4th always brought out my nostalgic, patriotic side (listen to the Charles Ives music, his America moves me still). That was when I thought the United States would never wage another pre-emptive war based on lies, & believed the gradual expansion of human rights in this country had moved beyond the point where they could be halted & pushed back. Oh, well. Last year on the 4th I was profoundly depressed by Iraq. This year I feel resigned. I'm probably all the more in need of a modest small town celebration relatively free of patriotic bombast. & hey NBC, What's with the frequent crowd shots? When I watch fireworks, I don't keep turning around to see how the people behind me are reacting. CBS did a much better production of the Boston show. Generally superior music, too.

Labels: holidays, music, New Jersey, postcard