My blog is about books, but this post isn’t about books, so
please pardon my digression. Tonight I attended a Siberian Virtuosi concert. They are a State Ensemble of Violinists
from the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) -- a republic of Russia. Siberian Virtuosi consists of 11
violinists and one pianist, and the musicians range in age from 16 to 26. They
are AMAZING, so if they are performing in a city near you, I highly recommend
that you go. They played 18 concert pieces, most of which were classical
pieces. The most impressive part? All violinists had all 18 pieces memorized! During/right
after the concert, I had many an inspiring thought thanks to this concert.
(1) Learn Russian.
(2)
Learn to play the violin.
(3)
Memorize 18 pieces of difficult music (or one concerto).
I expect none of the above will ever actually happen … :-)
I also
expect that Mia, the main character in “If I Stay,” would love to listen to Siberian Virtuosi. She may be a cellist
to their violins, but they are all string instruments. And like Mia, I expect
the immensely gifted troupe of Siberian
Virtuosi have a deep appreciation for classical music and music in general.
[“If I Stay” can be found here.]
I decided I would share a new food experience that tied in nicely to watching and listening to the ensemble from Russia.
ReplyDeleteOn October 19, I ate RUSSIAN food for the first time. Visiting my brother in St. Louis (STL), I ate at Astoria European Cuisine (a.k.a. Astoria Kabob House) with him, our parents and his girlfriend. For appetizers, we ordered pelmeni, handmade Russian beef dumplings tossed with butter and dill. I ordered the golubtzy, which are cabbage rolls stuffed with ground beef and rice. I also tried some Russian borsch, a beef and beets soup served with sour cream. I enjoyed all the food I tasted, and I love beets, so I especially enjoyed the Russian borsch.
If you happen to be in STL or the STL area, I recommend that you try Astoria for some different cuisine. It can seem a little pricey with prices ranging up to $17, but I could easily make two meals out of my order.