March 19 - Leonhard von Call (The Musical Birthday Series, 8th Annual Cycle)

Previous postings for March 19th may be found here:  Max Reger (2019), Josef Matthias Hauer (2020), Robert McFerrin Sr.; Max Reger (2021), Max Reger (2022), Max Reger (2023), Max Reger (2024), and  Max Reger (2025)

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Leonhard von Call (19 March 1767 – 19 February 1815), sometimes referred to as "Leonhard de Call", was an Austrian composer and virtuoso on the mandolin and guitar.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stepping Into the Breach

A virtuoso, he wrote not for other virtuosos but for the people he was teaching or amateurs, and today it is felt by some musicians that his works "made no great technical demands". – Wikipedia

The repertoire for mandolin

Has always been a trifle thin.

Von Call, who recognized this gap,

Was also an obliging chap,

And wrote a bunch of easy rep

To help with the initial prep

Of amateurs and young beginners

Who pined to shine as mandolinners.

 

 

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You say Mandolin, I Say Mandoline

When looking up the mandoline,

   The spelling is the key;

The instrument for slicing thin

    Is written with an "e".

The instrument for serenades

   As played by Herr von Call,

Has neither "e" nor fatal blades, —

   It's safer, overall.

 

 

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August 12 - Peter Ostroushko (The Musical Birthday Series, 4th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for August 12th are here: Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (2019), Joseph Barnby (2020), and Michael Kidd (2021)

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Peter Ostroushko (August 12, 1953 – February 24, 2021) was an American violinist and mandolinist.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pentameters for a Mandolinist

Peter spent more than 40 years as a frequent performer on A Prairie Home Companion. He’s appeared on Austin City Limits, Late Night with David Letterman, even Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood.  His works have been performed by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and the Kremlin Chamber Orchestra, and his music has been featured on public television specials such as Ken Burns’ film The National Parks and Minnesota: A History of the Land, for which Peter won an Emmy. –adapted from peterostroushko.com

You’d think the opportunities were thin

For players of the humble mandolin,

But check Ostroushko’s bio page and see

How manifold the instrument can be.

“But wait!” you say, “Ostroushko was the best.

What’s true for him won’t matter for the rest.

To use a case that’s clearly an exception

Is sophistry, if not outright deception.”

Friend, pause a bit before you thus attack me

For looking at my subject from its acme.

To reach success, we visualize the summit

And then explore the vistas we see from it.

 

 

 

If you enjoy these posts, please help me, and consider sharing.  [Also, please visit my other blog: Alternate Takes: Great Art Repurposed.]