Before our trip last month, Lori and I spent a fair bit of time trying to determine what we wanted to do in Australia. One a whim I decide to try and find out if David Helfgott would be playing any concert there, since he lives there. Just my luck, he was not.

When I got to Oslo however, my luck changed. I was given a entertainment guide for May at the airport and to my surprise, David Helfgott was giving a recital the first Tuesday of my trip. A few questions to various people later, and I found where it was and there were tickets available (at least I thought I knew where I was going).

On the way to the concert, it started to rain and in my rush I took a wrong turn. I ended up in the area of Gamle Logan (the concert hall), but I couldn’t figure out which build was the one I wanted. So, I decided to ask a woman standing under a tree, shielding herself from the rain. “Can you help me?” I asked. She replied, “I think I can,” with a smile on her face. That’s when I realized I was talking to a prostitute. Boy, was she surprised when I asked her for directions.

I did finally find the concert and, at the risk of over using the word, it was amazing. I have to admit, I have not seen many pianists play live, but like wine, I know what I like. I like David Helfgott.

The event was more of an experience that a concert. If you don’t know the story of David Helfgott, I suggest you rent the movie Shine which will give you a Hollywood version (with an great performance by Geoffrey Rush). For now all you need really need to know is he was a childhood prodigy who’s career was almost end by his battle with Schizoaffective Disorder. This affects his communications and relations with the people around him.

After being introduced, David ran out on to the stage giving the crowd two thumbs up, with a look of pure joy on his face. He then shook the hand of everyone in the front row, bouncing from person to person, before sitting at the piano. There he played works by Beethoven, Listz and Grieg, all while talking singing and muttering to himself (a side effect of his disorder).

For two pieces, he was joined by Maria Goldberg, a young soprano, who performed works by Puccini. During her performance I saw something quite unique. After missing a note early in the first piece, she collapsed to the ground in embarrassment. David quickly stopped playing, though he was not embarrassed or mad. He simply went over to comfort her and rally the crowd around her, returning to the piano only when she was ready. After this she performed quite well (I would say flawlessly to my ears). When she finished her pieces, David continued by himself, playing three encores, finishing with Flight of the Bumblebee which was astounding, and will be one of my fondest memories of my trip.

By the title you would think I am writing about just one topic, but not so. I decided I wanted to combine two of my favorite topics, Politics and Movies.

If you have seen a Canada (or even American thanks to “Captain Ed”) channel over the last while, you most likely have heard something about “AdScam.” Well today my mind started wandering (like it does) to some comments made by a former classmate a few years ago who stated that it was no use voting, “because they’ll all be the same.” At the time I tried arguing, but now I not sure if I would.

AdScam focuses on what happened to millions of dollars doled out by our government to firms with strong ties to the governing party. Thus far, prevailing opinion seem to believe that some was kept by the ad firms, and some lined the pockets of the party dishing it out (I stress this is just opinion and not proven, though it does make sense). Now it seems that another political party in Quebec may have been doing the same.
No wonder the youth of our country do not bother to vote. How can they have faith in the institution of government? I’m sure Canada will get out from under this political black cloud, but until we do, we should expect voter apathy to remain high. I mean really, I’m an avid follower of politics and even I find this shakes my faith in my vote.

On a lighter not I saw a refreshing different movie last night, Sin City. Lately, I have been used to Hollywood churning out the same old boilerplate movies (these are the people who remade Ocean’s 11 and then decided it needed a sequel). Sin City however is like nothing I have seen in a long time, if at all. The movie sticks very close to its graphic novel roots, presenting the story almost entirely in B&W and using monologue to drive the story (though without the little square boxes ). It is a little violent, but not real enough to be disturbing. I you are a fan on comics, I suggest you see this movie. If you want something new in a cinematic experience, I suggest this movie. Hell, I suggest this movie.

I know they have been doing it for a while now, but I really hate theaters playing commercials before the movie. Trailers for coming releases I totally understand, in fact I even look forward some of them. I have been know to make a final decision on whether or not to see a movie based on the trailers I will get to see. Commercials on the other hand are just wrong.

I know why the advertiser want the commercials played, where else do they get such a captive audience? It’s not like you are going to get up out of your seat and come back when they are over (like with tv commercials). They’re so loud and you can’t even ignore them really, you just have to sit and watch. Now, so will say, “there are only a couple, does it really hurt that much,” but that is not really the point. I am a big fan of movies and go see them quite regularly. I already put up with the fact that movie prices seem to increase more often than I change my socks. Or the fact that I have to pay $5 for about $0.10 worth of popcorn (I can get twice as much for just over $1 from a local rental store). You would think that the theaters make enough money as it is, but no, they need to sell commercial time to make even more. Maybe someday that money will go to price reductions on tickets and concessions. Okay, maybe not, but a guy can dream can’t he?