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(Samuel Barber - American composer and visionary, all hundred years worth)

Not wanting to let the weekend go by without paying tribute to one of the great American composers of the 20th Century (Samuel Barber who would have turned 100 on March 9th), I thought I would post something a little unusual and probably not heard in a very long time. Samuel Barber rehearsing the Boston Symphony Orchestra in his Symphony number 2 from June 23,1951. It's worth noting that this is probably one of the few occasions this symphony was performed, as Barber was said to have suppressed its performance from the early 1950s on, making this rehearsal not only unique but no doubt historic.

I've always been fascinated by the process; how things evolve, how an artistic work is shaped. And listening to a composer conduct his own work makes the end result of the that work come alive.

Unfortunately this broadcast, part of the NBC Radio series Boston Symphony In Rehearsal is just a half hour long - that was all the time allotted by the network. So even though it's not the entire rehearsal, which no doubt lasted several hours, it offers a interesting glimpse into the evolution of a performance. And Samuel Barber the musician.

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(Frank Costello at the Kefauver Crime Committee Hearings - taking the Fifth to new vistas)

With the Korean War grinding on and the country gearing up for the 1952 elections, the big spectacle of the year on Radio and Television was the Kefauver Crime Committee Hearings on Capitol Hill. Organized crime had become a way of life and gambling was its biggest commodity. With Mafia figures lined up to testify (or refuse to testify as was the case), the country was riveted to each new revelation and intrigued by the parade of exotic names attached to the hearings and being grilled by 1952 Vice-presidential hopeful Estes Kefauver.

The Cold War was also in full bloom, with the trial of accused spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and General MacArthur relieved of his command in Korea.

All in all, 1951 was a pretty interesting year and far from a dull one.

But then, most aren't dull in retrospect anyway.

And the same is true with this one.

don't forget . .

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(What it is, is Baseball)

One last salute to Baseball before it all goes away until next year. This one, from a program called Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow ran a history of baseball up to August 12, 1951 (the date of the broadcast).

Check it out and keep it for that snowy day in January to remind yourself Summer eventually comes.