and MLC's Roman Catholic theologian/musician AnnaMarie
is a obvious apologist for that agenda.
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churchmousec (http://churchmousec.wordpress.com/) has left a new comment on your post "Worse - MLC Roman Catholic Theologian A Muslim Apo...":
I should have added that YOUR content is essential here. Many people are unaware of what this occupation REALLY meant (and why Jan Sobieski's siege was so important in Vienna in 1683, if I recall correctly -- perhaps worth a post?).
Your friend in Christ
Churchmouse
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A Delicate Dissonance
by AnnaMaria Cardinalli-Padilla, PhD. • SantaFe.com
Dec 15, 2009
Local History • Hispanic Influences
For a moment, let your imagination slip away into a tavern in Santa Fe, late on a Friday night. Take a sip of deep red wine, and hear the driving rhythms of flamenco guitar being played. Focus on its sound. It is compelling. It is familiar, yet speaks of something distant and foreign. You may begin to hear echoes of a sound that isn't quite European. You note hints of an exotic scale, and you notice dissonances that seem to tug at your attention to tell their story.This is the sound of a number of Spanish peoples--Mozarabes, Merranos, and Moriscos--each as Spanish as the next, but some forced into struggle and stealth simply to maintain their identities in a world that had once embraced their diversity. It is also the sound of the Gitanos, the gypsies whose art still speaks to that lost beauty.
For 700 years, ending in 1492, Spain existed under Moslem rule, long flourishing intellectually, artistically and culturally in an unparalleled environment where the three monotheistic religions were tolerated and, at times, mutually appreciated. A tenant of Islam states that religion can not be compulsory. Therefore, those living under Moslem rule had the freedom to practice their individual faiths as well as enjoy the lifestyle that only Moslem communities knew.
While Europe endured its dark ages, the Mediterranean Moslem world flourished in all regards--from its legendary achievements in philosophy, science, astronomy, medicine, and art to very practical advancements unknown to most of Europe in cleanliness, fashion, perfumes and cosmetics. This world knew the use of fine dining utensils, cuisines, and spices and refined the enjoyment of poetry and music. Perhaps the greatest achievement among all of these was the freedom of time that such improvements allowed for citizens to study, learn from, and appreciate the surrounding world.
Imagine this advanced society and fine lifestyle as it must have existed in the near Eden of Andalusian Spain--an endlessly sun-baked climate, abundant in citrus, olives, and grain, surrounded by sea and mountains that insulated its inhabitants from the concerns and cruelty of the world beyond. To the land of Andalusia, the Moslem world brought the sound of its music. Its expressive scales and intricate beauty was embraced by Andalusians--Jewish and Christian alike.
Jewish communities had existed in the edenic land they called "Sepharad" since time immemorial--in fact, the history of their arrival in Southern Spain is so ancient to be only the material of legend and myth. When Moslem conquerors first arrived in the land, Jewish citizens quickly allied with them to cast out the Visigoths--a northern people who, while practicing an uncertain form of Christianity, had been barbaric in their rule. In the freedom and beauty of the courtyards of Sepharad, influenced by the intricate Arabic art and music surrounding them, Jewish poets and musicians created gentle love songs.
Catholics, too, practiced and flourished in Andalusia. Called Mozarabes, they learned from the most exquisite and sophisticated expressions around them and created an Arabic-language liturgy that surely reflected the Jewish and Moslem artistic sensibility of the land while giving voice to their Catholic faith. Unfortunately, the harmony that existed in Andalusia was too delicate in its beauty to last for long. The true Mozarabic liturgy was one of the first things destroyed early on as Spain began to change and thoughts of the "Reconquista"--the return of Spain to Christian rule--took hold.
In 1492, the last Moslem Prince was expelled from his palace, called the Alhambra, on a hillside outside of Granada. The Alhambra still stands as a testament to the beauty, sophistication, understanding, and gentle artistry that was Andalusia. Legend tells us that as that last prince crossed the hillside that would forever take the Alhambra from his view, he cried a single, heartbroken tear.
Like a pendulum, it seems, a society that was once unparalleled in its tolerance would at some point become legendary in its intolerance. The Reconquista complete, all Jewish and Moslem citizens were required to convert or to leave the land. This resulted in the mass exodus of Sephardic Jews and Spanish Muslims into North Africa and the Middle East. It also resulted in vast numbers of Jews and Muslims choosing to stay in their Spanish home by acceding to conversion, whether this was heartfelt or not. Little did those conversos who chose to remain know the trials and violence that would await them.
Their journey would eventually play a part in the 400-year history of Santa Fe being celebrated through 2010. This series of articles will continue to explore their stories.
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Wally's World
Program Options: Ideas for presenting Anna Maria on your campus (back to top)
1) AnnaMaria’s typical program, a Musical Journey, tracing the Cultural and Historical Development of the Roots of Flamenco and its parallel in northern New Mexico through the dramatic storyline of the life of an individual character. While this program is continually updated and adapted, elements represented musically often include the fleeing of Inquisitional Spain in order to more safely maintain a unique ethnic/religious identity (i.e. the cases of Crypto-Judaism and Crypto-Islam, the plight of the gypsies, or the suppression of Mozarab Catholic expression), the new cultural developments encountered in an emerging Mexico, and the trials and triumph of Spanish Colonial identity in the most dangerous and remote outpost of the Spanish New World. This especially explores the contributions of the Penitente cult, the great maintainer of Spanish religiosity and culture through centuries of isolation and a hidden remaining clue to the origins of Hispanic identity throughout the world today.
2) Lectures on the above material suited to a truly academic format. Program option 1 presents a great deal of the heart of my research, but without ever loosing its entertainment value as part of an engaging performance. Program option 2 would address this fascinating area in a much more traditional scholarly format. Academic areas that could be emphasized in lecture format include: Hispanic/Latino Studies, Music, History, Theology, and a number of interdisciplinary possibilities.
3) A purely Classical Concert . Eliminating the research and dramatic aspects of program option 1, I am able to offer a quite popular concert format to the university classical music audience and to a cross-over audience intrigued by the romantic allure of the Spanish guitar.
4) A Master Class. It is typical that universities securing a concert from a classical artist will request that the performer stay to offer technical help to music students on campus in a master class format. I especially love interaction with other young musicians.
5) Any combination of longer-term options, up to a length of Residency. Lectures could be adapted to classroom format, and I would be happy to speak to any number of classes. Musical instruction can expanded from the master class format to longer-term periods of immersion in classical or flamenco technique, perhaps ultimately preparing students for a group flamenco program of their own. (This type of residency has been quite popular with students and worked well for me in the past.)
6) A program designed to help students Fall in Love with Opera by making its world accessible, understandable, and relevant to the life of a young, educated person. Such a program would likely incorporate a series of scenes, and it may well be possible to bring in a small corps of talented professional opera singers to span the necessary range of roles. A more scaled-back program of the same nature might simply focus on the sultry realm of the mezzo-soprano repertoire (i.e. “Get to Know a Mezzo”) or illustrate a style of opera (i.e. Italian, French, etc.).
7) Like program option 6, could possibly incorporate a larger show of more performers or simply be limited to my own performance, Collaborations, Encounters between Nationalities , opens up a different realm of possibilities. For example, the encounter between the Native American and Spanish population presents an interesting musical palate for two performers as does.
Reviews and comments (back to top)
Our students ABSOLUTELY LOVED Anna Maria. We got excellent reviews regarding her performance and interaction with our students. Thank you so much for working with us.
Ms. Samantha Wilson, Associate VP for Student Life, Southern Wesleyan University, Central, SC
Anna Maria was AMAZING. She is a lovely person and it was a pleasure meeting her. The audience really enjoyed her. I was surprised by their response. After her last song ended, she walked off stage and they all remained seated…this has never happened. I said that she could answer questions, but if people needed to leave for class they could go. No one moved. Then there were several questions asked, and after that, many came up to meet her personally. Again, I can’t stress how unusual this is for our campus. She was a pleasure to have, and her musical ability was mesmerizing.
Carissa Kollath, Student Activities Coordinator, Northeast Community College – Norfolk, NE
The experience was marvelous for us. As I told AnnaMaria, the website information is very accurate in saying that she engages the audience with such warmth. Her musical ability, knowledge of history and sincerity with the audience is phenomenal.
Barbara Velazquez, Coord of Intercultural Education, Metropolitan Community College - Omaha, NE
I must say that it was a great program. I really enjoyed working with AnnaMaria, because she was both flexible and genial. Her talent and knowledge is definitely unmatched. Everyone there was eager to speak with her and expressed their hope she would come again in the future. Thanks for helping us out with this one. Have a good day!
Tashayla Collins, Director of Student Activities, University of Arkansas, Little Rock
Anna Maria was dynamic, very interactive with the students and she received a standing ovation.
Alex Hines, Director for Cultural Diversity, Winona State University - Winona, MN
AnnaMaria was great! I received a lot of positive feedback! A lot of people that would like her CD, to have her back, etc., thanks…it was a good show! J
Molly Murawksi, Student Life Advisor, Dunwoody College - Minneapolis, MN
AnnaMaria was wonderful and we certainly hope that she is interested in coming back. Many of my students agreed that she was the best performer we have had over the past four years. I hope that AnnaMaria enjoyed her Lakeland College visit as much as we enjoyed her music and company!
Katie Shumway, Fine Arts Coordinator, Lakeland College - Sheboygan, WI
AnnaMaria was great!!!!!!!! Despite some technical difficulties. She was very gracious. The crowd of 205 was great and according to our survey enjoyed her performance very much. The ratings for her on a scale of one being the lowest and five the highest, were all fives. We did have some problems with the lighting and sound, and this being my first "big" event I was not prepared. I will make sure it doesn't happen again. I would like to thank all of you for your service and help. AnnaMaria was very helpful with materials and advice. Thanks again and may God bless you.
José J. Mercado , Associate Dean , Center for Multicultural Enrichment, Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA
AnnaMaria’s performance at ENMU was superb. Her talent, personality, and disposition towards the faculty, staff, and students were astonishing. Most definitely, we will invite her to come back on campus.
Diana Cordova , Multicultural Affairs Director , Eastern New Mexico University
Things were awesome with AnnaMaria! We love her and I always have a good time talking with her. She is very uplifting and our conversations are always fulfilling! AnnaMaria is just SO wonderful with the students. Please let her know we enjoyed her presence at the college!
Krissie Harris, Coordinator of Student Activities, Oakton Community College - Des Plaines, IL
Lalo - Bill Miller - Anna Maria - - Cultural Day - Grand Valley State University, MI
The event was great. I don't know what to say other than that. Each of them had their own individual input into the success of my event and I greatly appreciated it. Some individuals were even talking about getting Bill Miller to come back to do an event for our Native American community. I thank you for helping work that out for us and we will keep you in mind for future events.
David A. Clark III, Programming Graduate Assistant, Office of Student Life, Grand Valley State University, MI
Anna Maria was wonderful!! The audience and student group that sponsored her, loved the performance.
Brittney Wood, Program Coordinator, Student Activities, Texas A&M, Corpus Christi
Anna Maria's concert went great. We enjoyed the show and got a great turnout. All of us got to know Anna Maria and hang out with her for a while. She is a class act and hopefully we'll get an opportunity to see her again in the future.
Tap Rudra, President, Islander Cultural Alliance, Student Activities, Texas A&M, Corpus Christi
Thank you so much for suggesting Anna Maria. The concert last night was a real hit and I learned a lot from her lecture yesterday morning. We greatly enjoyed having her on our campus. She is a very gifted performer, especially in the way she engages the audience in a dialogue. I will recommend her highly to other campuses.
Billy Pritchett, Campus Arts Director – Northwood University
AnnaMaria, thanks for the fantastic evening with our students last week. I promised to share the student feedback and here it is: Comments: (sic) “I LOVED IT!!” - “She is great! I could tell that she puts herself into what she plays. The passion stands out and makes it so enjoyable!” - “Talented, interesting, and pleasant.” - “Beautiful music. Reminds me of Spring Break last year. I went to Spain; you feel this music more than hear it.” - “Musician was very talented & very pretty.” - “She was incredible. She’s an amazing musician.” - “Excellent performer, excellent program.”
Jamey Campbell, Assistant Director of Student Activities, Hendrix College, AR
AnnaMaria was great! She's very personable and performed well. The feedback I got from the audience was that they enjoyed the music very much. It is always hard for performers to connect with the audience when it is an operating cafeteria, but throughout AnnaMaria's performance she had people moving up to the "stage" area, and hanging out longer than it took them to finish their meals. For us, that shows she was well liked. She was a joy to work with.
Shelley McNeely, Student Development Specialist Western Wisconsin Technical College - La Crosse, WI
AnnaMaria’s performance was wonderful. Her interactions with staff, students, and the public were great. The concert attendees were very pleased with her performances and many remained after the performances to talk with her. Her music, explanations and the background she shared with attendees made it a bit of a personal performance, which attendees enjoyed. She engaged attendees by asking for questions, again bringing the attendees into a more personal setting and experience. She delighted attendees by playing some of the music they requested. I would say it was a huge success and her performance was enjoyed by all.
Beth Raffaelli, Special Events Committee University of Wiscinson - Sheboygan at Shebyogan, WI
The event with Anna Maria went great. First of all, it was a real treat to get to spend the day with her. She is a very down-to-earth person, and very kind. Her performance was awesome, too. I really enjoyed her music. I feel privileged that I was able to spend so much time with such a wonderful person.
Jared, Diversity Chair, University of Akron
AnnaMaria was a wonderful addition to our cultural programming series. The performance she gave in the community theatre was also wonderful - the audience didn't want her to let her quit. She was a delight to work with - she is a gifted artist and performer, she was accommodating, flexible and most of all she is a wonderful person. If all campus programming involved people of her caliber and character this job would be a walk in the woods. I would recommend her without reservation to anyone interested in quality programming.
Dennis Thompson, Director of Placement - Alexandria Technical College
"Some specific things I’d like to say about AnnaMaria is she really asked a lot of questions to find out what her audiences would be so she could tailor her performances to them. She mentioned that some of the requests I made and the kind of performances she did while she was here were not her typical performances so she adapted very well. The presenting that she and her father did were very appropriate and they spoke considerably about the importance of community college and how helpful it was to allowing her to reach her dreams, so that was great. All in all, she and her family were wonderful to work with and very flexible, well organized and prepared!"
Deana Trawny, Associate Dean of Student Services - Marshalltown Community College (IA)
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churchmousec (http://churchmousec.wordpress.com/) has left a new comment on your post "Worse - MLC Roman Catholic Theologian A Muslim Apo...":
Thank you for posting this, Dr Jackson.
Its content needs to be said **again and again and again**.
In Christ
Churchmouse
