TGIF

I slept until nearly one o'clock this afternoon.  Guess I was a little tired, huh?  Anyway, there was nothing in my news feeds that would magically transform me into a vociferous babbler of blarney.  Thank God It's Friday, soooo... we can just go ahead and get the weekend started with some Beautiful Music and Muscular Men.  

I heard a piece by today's featured composer on Venice Classic Radio last night causing me to head to You Tube looking for videos by Gaetano Donizetti, an Italian composer from Bergamo in Lombardy. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, Donizetti was a leading composer of the bel canto opera style during the first fifty years of the Nineteenth Century.  His most famous opera being Lucia di Lammermoor.  However today we are going to explore Donizetti's more instrumental works.  Included in today's play list are Sinfonia a soli instrumenti di fiato in G minor; Concertino in C minor for flute and chamber orchestra; Concertino in F major for oboe and chamber orchestra; Concertino in D minor for violin, cello and orchestra; Concertino in G major for cor anglais and orchestra; Concertino in B flat major for clarinet and orchestra and Sinfonia in D minor per la Morte di Capuzzi.  You may also hear Donizetti's Quartet for Strings Numbers 3 and 5 over on my tumblr.  Unfortunately, the performance artists are not listed for either video so I cannot give the much deserved credit where it is due.  

As for the aforementioned Muscular Men, those you will find in abundance when you take a slow cruise and peruse down the page after the play list.  These exquisite examples of true art in the male form are sure to provide plenty of Fantasy Fuel for a Friday.  If you are feeling a little adventurous with your fantasy, head on over to my tumblr to check out the Dragon and Shark Hottie of the Day!  Thanks for stopping in, stop by tomorrow for the Saturday at the Symphony Evening Concert.  Until next time as always, Enjoy!