Tag Archives: Berlin

Comedy and Tragedy on the Bathroom Wall

Posted on September 17, 2025 by dannyashkenasi

It occurs to me that the title of this post may suggest we will be looking at particularly dramatic graffiti in public bathrooms, but no, sorry to disappoint on that account. I am sharing pictures of small tragedy and comedy … Continue reading →

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STELENFELD – Berlin Holocaust Memorial

Posted on July 16, 2024 by dannyashkenasi

In Berlin, Germany, just south of the Brandenburg Gate, across the street from the eastern edge of the Tiergarten park, lies the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, A K A the Holocaust Memorial, and also referred to colloquially … Continue reading →

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R.I.P. Aribert Reimann

Posted on March 24, 2024 by dannyashkenasi

Aribert Reimann with my mother, Catherine Gayer, at rehearsal in 1971 Two Thursdays ago my mother called me from Berlin. Normally we talk on Sundays, so I was curious what occasioned this call. “Aribert Reimann has died”, she told me, … Continue reading →

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Catherine Gayer on the Radio

Posted on October 3, 2023 by dannyashkenasi

The German radio station Deutschlandfunk has posted a 55 minute program interviewing the opera soprano Catherine Gayer, and playing excerpts from her fantastic 60+ year career, highlighting her work with contemporary music. Listen to it here. Oh, Catherine Gayer just … Continue reading →

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P&P Hometown Honors

Posted on May 27, 2023 by dannyashkenasi

It’s extra sweet when the acknowledgement comes from the city of one’s birth… UPDATE 5/31/23 – “The Pit and the Pendulum – a musicabre” was honored as semi-finalist in the Berlin New Wave Film Festival:

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Some Choice Quotes from “LESS”

Posted on October 19, 2019 by dannyashkenasi

I just finished Andrew Sean Greer’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel “Less”.  It’s a really good read, with lots of writing you just want to quote for the pleasure of it.  So I will.  Here are some choice bits from “Less”, … Continue reading →

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NAZI LEGACY ALIVE AND WELL IN AN AUSTRIAN CEMETERY

Posted on October 6, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

I came upon a plaque on the church wall in the cemetery at the edge of the Austrian ski resort town of Kitzbühel that profoundly disturbed me.  The chiseled marble commemorates a soldier who died in World War II.  There … Continue reading →

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The “Grande Dame” is Back in the Opera

Posted on May 7, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

“You are like a circus-horse.  As soon as you hear the music, you start dancing.” That’s the loving joke my father used to make about my mother, most likely in German amongst their Berlin friends, since “Zirkuspferd” (circus-horse) is a … Continue reading →

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On the Anniversary of My Father’s Death

Posted on March 27, 2017 by dannyashkenasi

My father, Abraham Ashkenasi, died on this date last year.  Above is the last picture I took of him, the last day I saw him in person. It was February 16, 2016.  Two days earlier my mother called me to say … Continue reading →

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SPRING – in Brooklyn & Berlin with Vivaldi

Posted on April 29, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

Brooklyn

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Free University Berlin Remembers Abraham Ashkenasi

Posted on April 26, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

My mother was leafing through the Sunday paper as she was met with a heartwarming surprise: the Free University Berlin had posted their own commemoration announcement for my father.   This is what is says: “On March 27, 2016 passing … Continue reading →

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HERE BE GALLOWS’ HUMOR – Retreat ye who don’t care for that sort of thing

Posted on April 13, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

Sunday April 3 my father’s memorial announcement was posted in the “Familienanzeige” section of the Tagesspiegel newspaper in Berlin.  Actually there were two announcements, the one my family arranged, and another purchased by close Berlin friends of Dad’s.  It was … Continue reading →

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STAHNSDORF – An American Red Oak for my Father

Posted on April 7, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

My plane was delayed by two and a half hours.  Needing only hand luggage for a five day stay I breezed past the baggage carousel at Berlin-Tegel, but the taxi ride added to the delay due to traffic jams on … Continue reading →

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NfaC Double Repost: BREAKING INTO SONG IN MUSICALS

Posted on March 21, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

Time for another Notes from a Composer rerun, or repost, this time a double feature from last April on the convention of breaking into song in musicals, and how cleverly the movie version of Cabaret subverted that convention.  This post … Continue reading →

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Adam Szymkowicz interviews Danny Ashkenasi

Posted on February 3, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

So there are two last names with lots of letters and lots of Eastern European heritage… Adam Szymkovicz posted his interview with me yesterday on his site.  You can go to it here or read the excerpt below. Those looking … Continue reading →

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AXS INTERVIEW

Posted on February 2, 2016 by dannyashkenasi

The on-line magazine AXS has published an interview with yours truly.  The questions delve into the evolution of Speakeasy as well as musical influences in my childhood and advice to aspiring playwrights and composers. The article is excerpted below: Interview … Continue reading →

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