Acclaimed Iranian-Canadian musician Kiya Tabassian leaves behind the slush, congestion and impersonal towering buildings of his home in Montreal to encounter the deep sources and inspirations of diasporic Persian music. His search takes us on a richly textured journey into the landscape, the poetry, the memory, and above all, the compelling spirituality of the music of southern Iran. In remote mountain villages, Tabassian meets many legendary … [Read more...]

The following footage was shot as a proof of concept test for Payne & Redemption with the 5D Mark II, using a Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM lens, on a Kessler Crane Pocket Jib. A Zacuto Mini Baseplate and rods were used to support the camera and follow focus. All sounds before the record scratch are Foley effects that we recorded separately after the shoot, then later synced in post. The 5D's H.264 source files were edited directly in Vegas Pro, … [Read more...]

by uniondocs Question by John: Why did Che Guevarra set up concentration camps and torture gays? Guevarra's first forced labor camp, Guanahacabibes, was set up in western Cuba at the end of 1960. Che explained... it is for people who have committed crimes against revolutionary morals, to a lesser or greater degree (often thought crimes).... It is hard labor....the working conditions there are hard.” This camp was the precursor to the eventual … [Read more...]

Known as the uprising star in the world of classical guitar, Francis Wan encountered the instrument at the age of thirteen. In just over a year, Francis started to show great promises in the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival, most impressively having won five first prize titles in various classes of guitar performance for three consecutive years, and immediately started his performing career. After graduating from high school, with enthusiasm for … [Read more...]

The Barenboim on Beethoven Live from Berlin sonatas were filmed during a series of eight concerts over a four week period in mid-2005 at the Staatsoper Berlin, where Barenboim serves as General Music Director. They were lavishly shot by the award-winning French filmmaker and documentary director Andy Sommer, whose credits include In Search of Beethoven, concert films with Claudio Abbado and Sir Simon Rattle, opera broadcasts (Tristan & Isolde, … [Read more...]