Ronald Schranz’s Post

Everything about this photo is perfect – it could easily have an Instagram-worthy caption. But since this is LinkedIn, I'll approach it differently. To be honest, this photo embodies what the Scandinavians refer to as ‘enough’. In Norwegian, it’s ‘nok,’ which is also the name of their currency. In Ukrainian, it’s ‘достатньо,’ sharing a root with the word for ‘prosperity’. So, what am I trying to say? In Norwegian society, there’s a strong philosophy of sufficiency. It’s about having enough – but it’s also not just about that. Take this beautiful Ferris wheel by the opera house as an example. It has a safe and convenient entry and exit, and opera music plays in the cabins. And that’s it – it’s enough to fully enjoy the experience. Safety, comfort, a great view of the sea and the city. Nothing excessive. Nearby, there’s some construction going on, no stalls, no flashy billboards, no over-the-top services that would add extravagance to the scene. That’s not appreciated here. In conversations with Norwegians, I often realize why. They want people around the world to understand moderation. When you have enough, when you’re satisfied – practice moderation. We take from nature without limits, we consume public resources without restraint, and we can't seem to stop when we have enough. What do you think of this philosophy?

Dmitri Shostakovich, the Soviet composer, was a master of subterfuge. Living under Stalin's iron fist, Shostakovich abhorred the dictatorship and the rise of anti-semitism in Communist Russia. He fell in and out of favour with the Kremlin, bravely walking the fine line between artistic freedom and state censorship his entire working life. In 1953, while composing Symphony No. 10 in E minor, he carefully and lovingly weaved traditional Ukrainian, Russian and Jewish folk melodies into the music. These songs, well-known and revered by his audience, subtly, and often humorously critiqued the regime (and Stalin in particular) while always remaining within acceptable forms. This use of familiar melodies allowed him to connect directly with those in the know, and more importantly, to build a sense of resilience and solidarity with them. To tell his story, to the people of Russia, and to the world. Perhaps, as creatives, we can on occasion take a leaf out of his book. We often face briefs that can feel like a straitjacket. Yet these constraints can be the spark for creativity and innovation, to interpret the brief so that it both exceeds client expectations and enables us to flex our creative muscles. It's not easy. It requires commitment. And bravery too. It doesn't mean ignoring the brief, or rewriting it to impose our own ideals. That's just putting the shoe on the other foot, which serves little or no purpose to either party, or the relationship. Instead, I believe it's our capacity to challenge ourselves that really matters; to first explore then transcend our own creative limits. To reach out with purpose to our chosen audience, challenge perceptions, and win hearts and minds. Striking this balance helps keep both music and design lively, impactful and fun. And it keeps our feet on the ground too. #creative #shostakovich #design

The Jazz Singer - An evolution and an embarassment almost 100 years old On October 6th 1927, The Jazz Singer came out bringing a HUGE change in the movies industry, because it was the first feature film with sound - it even had songs in it! Moviegoers and film people were shocked and amazed by the new era of the "talkies". But ... the subject of the film (a white Jewish singer dresses up and performes as a black lazz singer) had leading man Al Johnson perform with a blackface, something that brings embarassment when viewed in today's ethics. In spite of this significant issue, the songs are beatifully performed and it is a movie that marked a pivotal moment in film entertainment, also highlighting the cultural change needed, that was followed after a long-long time (and is still on its way, in some ways). The relevant point for today: Techonological advances create amazing new possibilities, but the real cultural changes needed, come at a much slower pace - and we really need to focus on that, educate ourselves, question our assumptions and do better! #TheJazzSinger #ModernEthics #Talkies

21.05.2024 | 9:00 pm | Eschschloraque   Bande á Part Tanzbare Veranstaltung für Außenseiter   presents   “WHAT IF LIVING WAS JUST KILLING TIME” by G I A D A G R I E C O (dance) and A S E R E T (music)   „The  p i e c e  comes from reflections and a deep sense of emptiness and fullness. We exist in this reality without having to do anything. Either the members of our family or the people who used to surround us since the moment we were born, are the first examples on how to be part of a life routine.  We learn everything from scratch observing what is around us, we receive an education based on the culture where we were raised in and we think everything reflects the way we were taught to do. Institutions give us knowledge and our crossed paths with others give us a sense of community. What we experience as mistakes give us wisdom and adventures make us marvel. But what if we arrive at one point when we have built everything that we thought we wanted and we fulfilled the desires of the ones we care for and we also took decisions that made us proud of ourselves but then in the end we happen to have a glimpse of deep consciousness and we realize something else. WHAT IF LIVING WAS JUST KILLING TIME is a touching and somehow hydronic way of wasting time, on deciding how to use the time we received as a gift.  As I am doing right now, writing this. And you are doing so, reading it. So, as an artist, I choose to dance this unchangeable imaginary timeline. My will is to waste seconds, minutes and maybe hours honoring movement and the life I was given with it, celebrating the unknown and laughing about it but also mourning it. I consciously take the decision of being present in this eternal dilemma we constantly fill with duties and appointments, avoiding thinking about the purpose of existence. There is no sense in what we do unless it has some meaning for us.“ Photo: Lucia Imparato Art installation on the wall: Luca Cuccurullo

In a RIGGED game on a RIGGED planet we still won 96% to 4% in favor of LOVE! #Question now that the people of Israel, Palestine and THE WORLD have voted 96% in favor of PEACE ~ #why is anyone still fighting? Jazz for Peace: representing 96% of Israeli's & Palestinians & 100% of the World! Let's now implement the most popular and IMPORTANT Peace Proposal EVER! How did we do it? "Its the MUSIC stupid!" https://lnkd.in/dsVtQ4UB “Not everything that is faced can be changed; but nothing can be changed until it is faced,” ~ JAMES BALDWIN See our NEWEST appearance on The Queen Mimi Podcast with performances at minute 36.30 and 51.30  https://lnkd.in/eNr2NiFe #QuestionOfTheDay: at 96% favorability AND THE RETURN OF THE HOSTAGES: WHY don't we simply IMPLEMENT the Jazz for Peace Proposal that the world ALREADY voted for? Representing 96% of Israeli's & Palestinians & 100% of the World, Let's now implement the most popular and IMPORTANT Peace Proposal EVER! BREAKING NEWS!!! NEW BOOK!!! Just Released! "Paving the Path for Peace through Music: The Amazing Story of Rick DellaRatta & Jazz for Peace™” by Debra R. Cerritelli NEW TELL ALL BOOK that blows LID off the MIDDLE EAST and reveals secrets about many other extraordinary challenges while telling the Epic Story of Jazz for Peace™ and it's iconic founder Rick DellaRatta! https://lnkd.in/enDAUQFy “ The next step in a humane and just world is to properly implement the vote of the Israeli people who have united not only with the Palestinian people but with the other 96% of our world AGAINST both ANY part of HAMAS that wants to destroy western civilization as well as the "Final Solution" minority of Zionists. In other words - the people who want to destroy western civilization and the people who want to implement a "final solution eradication" of all Palestinian people (including members of the Israeli/Palestinian/USA Jazz Band that we assembled to perform at the United Nations back in 2002 www.jazzforpeace.org/un ) are on ONE SIDE - making up 4% - (at the absolute MOST!!!), while the VAST majority of Israeli's, Palestinian, Americans, and the rest of the world, making up AT LEAST 96% (but probably MUCH, MUCH higher!!!!) - are on the other side.

The beauty of "Barbara's Rhabarberbar": this article discusses the recent success of #German tongue-twister songs.

I see a little silhouetto of a man Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango? Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very frightening me (Galileo) Galileo, (Galileo) Galileo, Galileo Figaro magnifico But I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me He's just a poor boy from a poor family Spare him his life from this monstrosity Easy come, easy go, will you let me go? Bismillah! No, we will not let you go (Let him go) Bismillah! We will not let you go (Let him go) Bismillah! We will not let you go (Let me go) Will not let you go (Let me go) Will not let you go (Never, never, never, never let me go) Ah No, no, no, no, no, no, no (Oh, mamma mia, mamma mia) Mamma mia, let me go Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me, for me, for me! Bohemian Rhapsody Song by Queen "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen is one of the most iconic rock songs of all time, known for its distinctive structure, which blends various musical styles including ballad, opera, and hard rock. Here is a brief overview and snippet of the lyrics: Overview Released: 1975 Album: A Night at the Opera Written by: Freddie Mercury Structure: The song is divided into several sections: an a cappella introduction, a ballad segment, an operatic passage, a hard rock section, and a reflective coda. The song begins with the famous lines: Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Caught in a landslide, No escape from reality. Themes and Analysis Existential Questions: The lyrics start by questioning reality and illusion. Narrative: The song tells a story of a young man confessing to a crime and facing the consequences. Musical Complexity: The operatic section features multi-tracked harmonies and theatrical elements, showcasing Queen's innovative style.

It's hard to imagine... But the right to listen to any song you please is still a privilege reserved for the citizens of a few countries worldwide. In many places, getting caught listening to a forbidden song can get you in trouble, or even lead to death, as in North Korea. But if you are in one of the few places in the world where you can listen to songs freely, check out these 5 songs that will make you think about liberty while listening to them. 1️⃣ “Winds of Change” The song by West German rock band Scorpions was written after the band visited the Soviet Union and saw firsthand the perestroika. To this day, the ballad is associated with the Fall of the Berlin Wall and the disintegration of the Soviet Union. Few songs can transport you to another time like this one. 2️⃣ The entire album “2112” Ayn Rand’s novels 'The Fountainhead' and 'Atlas Shrugged' helped shape a generation, but it was her lesser-known work, Anthem, that inspired one of the greatest rock and roll albums of all time: 2112 by Rush. 3️⃣ and 4️⃣ "Revolution” and “Taxman” The Beatles aren't known for their political songs, but these two carry messages that classical liberals’ ears would find delightful. Launched in 1996, “Taxman” criticizes the heavy tax system of the United Kingdom at the time, which placed the band in the top tax bracket, potentially taxing up to 90% of their earnings. "Revolution," released in 1968, was a response to the New Left, which pressured the band to take a more political stance. They did, but not in the way the radical leftists expected. 5️⃣ "Uprising” Muse’s Matt Bellamy isn't the kind of liberal we usually talk about at Students For Liberty... But “Uprising” is sure to get you pumped up to fight the state. It's a call to stop being oppressed and fight back.

Real Options - or the art of deferring decision-making to the last responsible moment - can be complex to explain. Luckily, thanks to Gilbert & Sullivan's Operetta "The Gondoliers", I have now found the perfect story to make sense of it. And thanks to OperaVision's decision to stream The Gondoliers for free on YouTube, you could perhaps learn about that story too! Picture this - when he was a prattling babe, the infant son of the King of Barataria was married to another prattling babe, the daughter of the Duke of Plaza-Toro. Just after this incident, a revolution causes the Prince to be sent to a safe place and entrusted to a Venitian Gondolier Baptisto Palmieri to raise along with his other son (yup, also a six-months old prattling babe). Fast forward a couple of years later, the King of Barataria and his family have been slaughtered, the Plaza-Toro family is ready to officialise their daughter's marriage with the King and learns that he's currently a gondolier in Venice. Or rather, they learn that one of Baptisto Palmieri's two sons (Marco and Guiseppe) is the king but it is uncertain which is which. The whole story revolves around the uncertainty on which of Baptisto's two sons is the King and which is the Gondolier but still, it seems like this uncertainty does not prevent the story from moving forward. For instance, due to the King being dead, both are sent to Barataria to replace him and act as one individual (a legal fiction). They can still do the work while research is done to find out who is who... Furthermore, it doesn't prevent the Plaza-Toro family to continue their preparations for the wedding ceremony, including giving some dance lessons to both Marco and Guiseppe, hoping that the right person will benefit from it. And so, in a nutshell: real options is something we also use when working on products. Uncertainties are part of many software product's realities. The key thing is to identify which ones prevent us from moving forward - and should be tackled right now - and also which decisions could be delayed. For each of these options, identifying their characteristics is crucial so that we can assess by when a decision needs to be made, or even what kind of information we need to get before moving forward with that. Many thanks to Scottish Opera and OperaVision.eu for making The Gondoliers (and other works) available to the general public.