Spring has come in a countryside

After a long chilly winter, it seems we finally have spring come here. Japanese apricots are fully out now.

Opening the windows of the house parents used to live, I have ventilated it. I found simple papers which the caregivers had reported how mother was doing. Since both of us were working in full time, we asked them to care for her in morning/evening. I was full of thanks to them knowing how they had cared for mother with dementia. After bathing, she looked tired and took a nap. Having her old friend visiting there, she was talking to her with tears. And so forth. It was 6 years ago, a couple of months before he left for Sendai. She was in a nursing facility and has undergone the big earthquake a year later. Possibly, due to the stress from that disaster, she passed away there a month later. Whatr she repeatedly told us whenever we went to see her there was that she would like to go back here. We could not make it true even once.
   

I have plowed the ground at a corner of the garden and have planted potatoes today. Soon, many more kinds will follow it.

Some plants of daffodil are coming out of the soil. Of course, it is thanks to the bulbs underground. It still makes me amazed at how things go on in time. 

Christoph Wolff;Mozart at the Gateway to the Fortune:Serving the Emperor 1788 ~ 1791

I have read this book translated by Prof. Tadashi Isoyama. A very interesting work on the last 4 years of Mozart's life.


It has been widely believed that Mozart spent hard time in his last years of life. The movie "Amadeus" typically expresses such a view on his life. He had suffered from debts, poverty and an illness led him to death. However, the author of this work tells us it is wrong.

In the last 4 years of his life, Mozart has gained a position at the court of Austrian Empire, which he had yearned for. Since this epoch making event for him, he has opened up the new horizon for new style and perspective of music in his composing activity. He takes the example of such music in the Magic Flute, the piano sonata KV533, Requiem or the ｆｒａｇｍｅｎｔａｒｙ musics as listed in the 6th chapter of this book. You may listen those fragments in the site linked here. They are revolutionary works which lead us to the new horizon Mozart had headed to. The title of this book "Mozart at the Gateway to the Fortune" tells us what the author thought of.

There are a lot of fragments of composition by him left in the history. Mozart used to answer to his father asking him to compose quicker that he had finished composing music but only had to write it down on paper. When it became necessary for him to do so, all he should do was to recall all the music in his memory and write it down. The author tells that the existence of those fragmentary musics means there the music opening the gate to new horizon has been playing in his mind. It is the enthusiasm for new style of music more profound and rich with polyphony and chord. It has just a start for revolutionary music.

I was taught that my view on his last years of life was totally wrong. We should listen to his latest music as the gate to the new fortune in his music. However, in other words, his death has deprived us of the rich new world of his music all of sudden. it has been lost in the eternal nihility. It seems another aspect of a reality shown in this history.

The world and our lives are incomplete. The more we feel lost due to that incompleteness in our lives, the more valuable Mozart's music in the latest years of his life sound to us.

The art of CW

Tom, K3TW, has posted an article in the FOC reflector, which told how less hams were involved in CW as he knew at the ham convention in New Orleans lately.

Dave, W7AQK, has told in the discussion that it was important to realize we had carried the art of CW. He says we should be proud of that. On the other hand, Dave, K6XG has analogized the art of CW with the music training for that in the medieval era. 

This is the post I submitted there. Even though I have not verbalized my idea in this short article well enough yet, I wanted to tell we should be aware what art we are taking over to the next generation.

quote;

Hi everyone,

I agree with Dave, W7AQK,who told CW is an art. We should be proud of that. But I suspect that it is not evident that such a pride may attract the new comers, especially young ones, to this mode.

Art is a skill you should make much effort to obtain and to maintain. This will give us a feeling of achievement. The other characteristic of art is that it is related with something of our life, that is, something which gives us long lasting pleasure. This is related with its content.

Learning CW is comparable to practicing musical instrument as Dick, K6XG, has mentioned. It requires much effort to be good at it. Once we achieve it, we feel rewarded with that effort.

The problem is what CW gives us as we communicate with it. Usefulness to communicate with small set up? Competition with it like DXing or contests? I believe these things are not lasting long but only temporary or not related with our life, even though these aspects of CW are often much fun for us. What else? As I used to quote in the posts here in the past, CW reception, and most likelily, transmission as well, are handled in the brain center of reading and/or writing. This simple symbol system relates certain grammar and lexicology in reception. When this correspondence goes well in our brain, it might give us another feeling of achievement. Of course, it is closely related with what message we are reading as well. The tempo of communication is always parallel to how fast we think of. CW is never a symbol system relating only meaningless numbers or letters.    

As I practice unaccompanied suit of Bach with my cello, even though not proficient at all, I sometimes see in mind what Bach has had in his mind when composing it. Even if the art of CW is a bit different from this music experience, I am sure it is and should be involved with something lively and meaningful to us. I guess young people are sensitive as for the truth in art. If we are doing anything not giving us long lasting pleasure, they won't be interested in it.

Shin

Zikavirus infection

This case report seems to prove direct relationship between Zikavirus and microcephaly.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26862926

WHO has not yet announced to refrain from travelling the areas where this infection is in outbreak yet. The problem could occur in Brazil where the Olympic Games will be held this summer.

Those who could be pregnant or are in the 1st trimester of pregnancy should avoid travelling those areas if possible.

W1YL/7

Tonight, when I finished talking to an old friend of mine, Fred, in Seattle, the band was almost gone away. In a second, however, another old call has given me a call. It was Ellen W1YL operating remotely W7RN in Nevada. In dropping condition, her signal from that big station was loud and clear. At first, she could have moved to the West Coast. No way. She has moved to an apartment since we talked last time. She used to tell me she should give up operating radio as she moved to an apartment from her old QTH.

She told me she was not used to operate with K3. Such a modern radio, which I could never operate with, either. She told me she had not dreamed she could operate from her apartment like this way after having been a ham for 70 years. Remote operation has pros and cons in ham radio. But it is surely an evangel to a ham such as Ellen.

She told me she had attended Ham Convention in Orland recently. I am sure she has been inspired to operate radio through this way over there. It was the meeting where Tom K3TW found much less hams capable operating CW and he made a post on that problem in the FOC reflector. I guess it is a sad reality that there have been much less hams coming into this mode now. But like this Ellen, proficient experienced CW operators, might be encouraged to go on operating CW at such a meeting. It won't matter how young or old the operator is. It is the only important matter that someone activates this mode on some band.

This short chat has reminded me of old '80s when she as well as her OM, Bob, W1CW, were active on 40m late at night here. It was a real fun for me to talk to either of them those days. Ellen sounded as active as those days tonight. Hopefully, she may operate much from this station of K5RC. Thanks to Tom for his generosity letting her operate radio at his gorgeous station.  

Collapsing asset bubble

The asset bubble is rupturing here. The stock market is dropping drastically. In relationship to our life, it may cause deteriorating finance of the pension funds since they have increased the investment to the stock last year. It also harm the system of financial system. Some local banks may go collapsed not too long from now. Of course, the majority of industries, small in size and employment, will suffer a lot. These won't leave us without being badly influenced.

Quantitative easing has profited the global companies while the debt due to that easing as well as collapsed bubble should be paid by the people through higher taxation. The global companies are under the planned socialism while the people should be treated with the principle of neoliberalism. This bubble/rupture consequence as well as the very low interest rate may mean that the current capitalism is historically facing to fundamental difficulty.

There is a huge economic disparity going on in the world. Only minority enjoys the huge income while the majority is under severe poverty. It is a borderless phenomenon. It is making the world unstable a lot. This seems to be due to the greedy capitalism seeking for further growth and profit in the market. The market used to be a concept of geological as well as physical extension. But in the late '90s, with the development of the internet technologies, it has been extended into the virtual world of finance. They have securitized everything with high leverage. The fund running in the virtual market is increased several times more than that necessary in the substantial market. This system is all for the greedy capitalism. What have we learned from the collapse by the Lehman Brothers shock?

Ballistic Missile defence

Our government is announcing on the launched missile from North Korea today. As if they got ready for any attacks by BM with Aegis system as well as PAC3. But BM defense system could deal with only dozens of missiles at a time. In real nuclear war, there will be hundreds of nuclear bomb installed BMs or a few among hundreds of regular bomb installed BMs directed to our country.  It is impossible to defend against such BM attack.

They are now extending the system toward the space. It will destroy the communication system of a certain country if they could nullify the satellites with such as nuclear bomb in the space. The threshold to use nuclear bombs in the space is told lower than that on the ground since the former won't cause immediate contamination on the ground. It might cost astronomical amount of budget to develop BM defense system. They have already started developing the system in the space.

BM system won't work in reality. BMD is only for the military industry but not for the people. There will be only endless competition to develop the system superior to the enemies. Since it is endless, it will be a real burden to the national finance.

BMD is a thing which belongs to evil.

A news from Puerto Rico

Fifteen meters was wide open to NA this morning. As usual, however, only few signals have been heard from there. Repeating calling CQ for a few times, Luis, KP4DX, has called me. He told me he had called CQ JA without any success.

He was running only 75W into a vertical dipole. But, as the photo in his page of QRZ.com showed, he was located close to the Atlantic ocean, that might help him so much.

He told me he had returned there from Calif. last year after 30 years absence in Puerto Rico. I remembered having worked him signing as /W6 for some times in the past. Mostly on 40m. 

I asked him about the economy of Puerto Rico since I had heard it was in recession there. He told me it was still in bad condition and the government had been through a default with a big debt. For the past decade, the industries like electronics or pharmaceuticals have gone out of there. There was some tourism, which was not enough for the island. I wanted to ask what had brought that change in the economy. The band condition has not allowed me to do so.

Puerto Rico has chosen the way to become the 51st state of the US. It seems, however, it will take them some more time. In Japan, we have heard very little of what is going on in this island in the Caribbean Sea far away from here. It would be very wonderful for me to hear how the things go on there through this hobby. I will look for Luis again soon.

There are still very few enjoying such ordinary QSOs even though the condition has been coming up. I am afraid contesting and joining pile ups have taken over their interests in such old fashioned way of enjoyment. It's too sad.  

It is the 1st day of the spring according to our traditional calendar today. The spring condition has started and would last for a couple of months. Let's come on the bands and talk friends all over the world.

A small concert in Tokyo

An off line concert was held in Tokyo, which, I wrote in the last post, brought us there yesterday. It is an small private concert at a studio hall, where some 30 people attend to play piano or chamber musics and to listen to the others' performance. The attendees have known through the internet each other. I used to join it for several times over 10 years ago. When I found my vision had improved so much that I could read the music score completely, I asked my piano trio members to join it held yesterday. They kindly agreed to got there.

It used to gather many more when I used to join years back. There could even be an instant orchestra organized and played a piano concert of Mozart. As told above, the size of the concert was reduced somehow. But I still loved the atmosphere of that concert where I could listen to the performers breathing with music close to the audience. There were several people who I had know since the previous events. Their outlook and performances looked the same except for some more grey hairs on their head. Each performance was favorable to me. Some energitic, the others elegant and beautiful. A couple of guys have played Scriabin's works. They sounded emotionally beautiful, which was a new finding in piano music to me. Most have played monophonic works whoever the composers might be. I still loved polyphonic works like Goldberg variation by Bach. More profound and leading us to the world of contemplation with lexicology in music.

Our performance? Considering of the practice only once before that performance, it was so so. I have enjoyed it much. After the concert, we have had cake and coffee at a restaurant nearby. We used to drink beer a lot in such a case before. But we could not do that any longer. An interesting talks with the other two there for a couple of hours. They were proud and fond of living on with music as profession but seemed to be anxious about their career in the future. Carrying the heavy cello and a souvenir for my wife, I took the train back home.  

Tokyo, a big city based on virtual reality

I went to Tokyo yesterday. On the train, there were a lot of people, young or old, watching smartphones. They seemed absorbed in the virtual world through that tiny device. It is a strange, or rather weird scene. No verbal communication in reality or reading printed matters which deliver us something more realistic.

It is the place where I had spent young days until I graduated from the university. Everything has been changed. A lot of construction. Mostly for offices or for stores etc. I was almost lost in Shinjuku. There were less space for resting. No trees nor parks. They warn that a big earthquake will hit this mega city by the probability of 70% in 30 years. This probability means it will almost surely occur in the near future. How could the people escape from this crowded city and how could they live on afterward?

Everything looked like prosperous. However, I could not help feeling it was only virtual based on very fragile things.

Together with the massive crowds of people, it made me feel it was not the place for me to live in.