Feb 252006
Feb 242006
Feb 232006
Feb 212006
The speculations on Canon’s release are over, DPReview has a preview of the Canon 30D that was released today. In short: not much new from the 20D. More flexible ISO settings and a larger screen. What is this? They should’ve called it Canon 21D. 
Not much of a version bump, while 10D to 20D was significant. With the release of the 5D I was hoping for some of the features to be brought down to the x0D line, but only the LCD made it. Oh well, I guess they want to keep me drooling for a 5D instead. I’ll be keeping my 20D, though. The 85mm f/1.2 lens looks cool, though. 
Feb 212006
Feb 192006
About two weeks ago I bought a Harpsichord (Jørgen Bengaard). Of cause it wasn´t new and I consider it more to be a donation since it was very cheap. It wasn´t the harpsichord I was looking for either. I needed one that I could bring with me at any concert I might do. But this was unlike any Harpsichord I have ever seen before. There were foot-pedals (toggles) and 16´-stops and was as heavy as any grand piano (it held an iron frame). But I had to buy it!!! and now I found out that there is absolutely no information saying anything about this kind of instrument. It seems that most early musicians (of our time) would rather that it had never existed! So in the future you will find many posts regarding this particular kind of harpsichord that must have been the obvious choice of instrument for the not-quite-so-early Harpsichordist. My first priority will be to find a recording of the instrument from the time it was build…
Feb 192006
Feb 192006
Mogens‘ Canon 10-22mm rocks. That was what I read out of the lineup of Nikon, Sigma, Tokina and Tamron wide-angle zoom leenses. It’s conclusion was to buy a Nikon, but further down argues that he prefers the Canon with lower distortion and price. I’ll borrow Mogens’ lens and put some pictures here. Meanwhile, my take on wide angle has been my Canon 20mm f/2.8 (hmm, no pictures online yet, I’ll have to do something about that. I’ve had the lens for like half a year now) and fish eye lens adapters like the 0.42x I was sent instead of what I’d actually bought or my father’s 180 degrees fisheye adapter. That works well also, but 10mm is awesome!
Listen to original recordings of early music. That´s a dream we all share, because we will never be able to know exactly how old music was played in its time. This is not possible – but I´ve just discovered a homepage where it is possible to listen to very early music. Both wax cylinders an tinfoil recordings gathered right here at tinfoil.com. Interesting to hear how people sang and played around 1890-1913; in the years just before the sinking of Titanic (yes! it is possible to hear a recording of ´Nearer My God to Thee´ from those years!) Well, have a listen (and a laugh). Cylinders of the month!
Feb 172006
Feb 172006
Therefore, the owner of the lens did not have any idea that there was someone living inside the lens. I found this quote when searching on how to clean lens fungus. Not that I have found any on my lenses, but a very interesting lense just turned up but with some fungus. Read more on lens fungi and how to remove them.
Feb 162006
Wanting to get a different sound from my cornetto, an oboe playing friend of mine and I mounted a reed instead of the regular mouth piece on it. I wanted more of a crumhorn sound but ended up with something that sounded fantastic on every 20th try and otherwise was really hard to play. Lots of strange sounds coming as well. But I like the idea. Here are the photos. First the reed, then two full-length versions of my Moeck cornetto with the reed and finally the normal mouthpiece.
Feb 152006
Feb 132006
Feb 112006
Trying to research what areas of Greece the eight church modes came from I used Google Maps. But to my surprise, neither searching for geographic places nor getting details of Greek cities worked very well with Google Maps for Mac. I hope Google will aquire more detailed shots for cities outside the US and make searches available also for historic places such as for instance Troy, where according to Mattheson the Phrygians with their mode lived.
Feb 112006
We already know that Mattheson disliked French singers, but he doesn’t spare the British either. Quoting chapter 9 in Der Vollkommene Capellmeister paragraph 13-14: ...Germans generally produce more basses and tenors but the Italians more altos and sopranos than all other regions: together with the more rugged climate and lifestyle also beer drinking contributes to this in the case of the Germans; but the Italians are the opposite in both respects, and in addition there is the frequent castration.
Thus it is also certain that for example in England there are not by a long shot as many well-trained voices, and in France everyone sings mroe out of the throat and not from the chest as in Italy, where the voices are more sonorous, clear, pure and expansive
Feb 092006
Feb 072006
Feb 052006
Get it here