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One of the most astonishing stories in pianist history came from World War I veteran Paul Wittgenstein. A man with utter determination to make his dreams come true was surfacing in the pianist world.

The Piano Concerto for the Left Hand in D Major, by French composer Maurice Ravel, is a testament not only to Ravel’s brilliance, but also to the indomitable will of the man who commissioned it.

Before the turn of World War I, a concert pianist named Paul Wittgenstein had showed promise. Unfortunately, by the time the war was over, he had lost his right arm during the fighting. While most people would give up their dreams, he still believed he could be an exceptional pianist.

Due to his inabilities, he began practicing his left-handed technique. The goal was to arrange two-handed works in such a way, that they would accommodate his one-handed state. By the late’20s, Wittgenstein decided it was time to approach others about his innovation.

Many felt this would not be feasible, but he eventually came across Sergei Prokofiev, Richard Wagner, Benjamin Britten, and Maurice Ravel who believed it was possible.

One of the biggest issues Ravel had in the beginning was that he never wrote a concerto, even though he had written several piano solos. When Wittgenstein approached him, he had already started working on Concerto in G, but it was intended for a two-handed player. During this time he was at a stalemate, and so he decided to take Wittgenstein up on his challenge. During Ravel’s research of left-handed Etudes of Camille Saint-Saens, he began to believe his left-handed Concerto would be a noteworthy addition to piano repertoire.

And so it proved to be. Such is Ravel’s craftsmanship that it is not at all obvious to a listener, that the piano part is written for just one hand. It is a dense, emotionally deep work which portrays the struggle of the one-armed pianist to overcome his tragic injury, and reinvent himself.

Though the piece has sometime been described as being in two movements, most experts agree that it is a piece written in one movement, but with three sections. Unlike most concerti, The Piano Concerto for the Left Hand is structured as Slow-Fast-Slow, rather than Fast-Slow-Fast.

Truth be told, Wittgenstein was famously known for being hard to please. Richard Wagner offered work as well, but Wittgenstein complained about the orchestration being too powerful for a single-handed pianist. Then of course when Prokofiev offered his work, Wittgenstein wouldn’t even play it.

For Ravel’s Piano Concerto for the Left Hand, Wittgenstein’s complaint had to do with the long solo cadenza just after the opening. “If I had wanted a solo piece,” he is said to have declared, “I wouldn’t have commissioned a concerto.” However, as Ravel refused to change it, Wittgenstein performed the work as written, and later came to like it.

In the end, the Concerto for the Left Hand was a true testament to the human spirit of, and more than just the overcoming nature of one man.

Tags: Music by Michelle Edward
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The decade is almost over, and it’s time to reflect on it a bit. Being the big sports fan that I am, not to mention the fact that I’m watching football right now, I thought that it’d be nice to take a look at the top 5 quarterbacks of this past decade.

My rankings factor in the overall performance over the last 10 years, rather than who may be better than who at present. Based on this, we’re going to remember what’s transpired in seasons past in determining who finished where on this list.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this, and I’d love to hear any feedback if you happen to disagree with me. Here we go.

Coming in at number five on my list is Kurt Warner, the veteran quarterback who is still going strong to this day. As the current leader of the Arizona Cardinals, he added a second Super Bowl appearance to his resume last season. Warner shows no signs of slowing down at this point.

At number four, we have Brett Favre. While he may be a better career quarterback than another man or two on this list, this is simply about what he’s done during the decade. Favre lacks the Super Bowl appearance that others do here, though that could change by season’s end.

Donovan McNabb may not be better for his career than Favre, but the decade has been a better one for McNabb without a doubt. He’s come one game away from the Super Bowl five times and it’s clear that he’s been the most consistent NFC quarterback during this span.

Next up is Tom Brady, who easily could have captured the number one spot on this list if not for his season ending injury and Peyton Manning’s recent dominance. Still, many might argue for at number one but I believe that Manning’s simply been a bit better.

Peyton Manning has been consistently amazing throughout the course of his career. This decade was no exception, as the Colts have been a constantly competitive team and always a threat to win the AFC. Manning is one of those quarterbacks who only surfaces once or twice per generation.

Tags: Games by Mark Hall
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All the way through the world, the number one source of entertainment is perhaps observing motion pictures. Movies are beloved by everybody and they have the power to influence our lives for the better and even for the worse. Movies based upon true tales are always interesting and they assist us to make sense of life by observing the trials and tribulations of another person and their life. Fictional stories affect us the same way because they are frequently based upon real life experiences.

The many diverse genres of movies appeal to dissimilar people. There are always those who love a good horror movie and abhor a good chick flick but most often there are some motion pictures that we like and others that we dislike no matter the genre. The good thing about the movie entertainment business is that they always offer up something that appeals to everybody.

Films have been around for decades but it has only been in the past 30 years that we have been able to observe motion pictures at home. There are millions and millions of videos/DVD’s etc. purchased and rented in America every month but now it can be even more simple because it is now doable to download movies at once to your computer right from your home.

Movies can actually be a tremendous benefit for our lives. When we sit down and loosen up to enjoy a good motion picture it permits us to get away from our daily concerns, problems and fears. We tend to get caught up in the lives that are happening in the film and it allows us to forget about our own problems for a while.

Films can also teach us. True stories such as the interesting storyline of Erin Brockovich, who was superbly portrayed by Julia Roberts in the film of the same name or documentaries such as Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth”, teach us about significant political and social truths about the world we live in.

History is also a fun subject to learn about through movies. An exceedingly popular memorable historical motion picture is “Gone With The Wind” and while it may seem that the film was just about the perils of Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler, the fact is that you also learn quite a bit about the Civil War, which of course, is an extremely crucial aspect of American history, as you watch the motion picture.

So the next time you want to sit down and watch a movie realize that you are doing yourself a favor. You can enjoy yourself in some peaceful downtime while permitting yourself a much-needed escape. Take some time away from your life and troubles and immerse yourself in someone else’s story while you are learning about the world. It is really no shock that movies are almost everybody’s desired source of entertainment.

Now you can make it straightforward for yourself. Find a good lawful movie download site and start downloading the motion pictures you want to see right at home. It will do you good!

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Kristine Butler
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This week (13-Nov-09) the creators of the EuroMillions will be launching its Millionaire Raffle that’s going to promise that every entry will have an opportunity to acquire 1 Million GBP each week.

Along with the tremendous rewards of playing in an e-lottery syndicate, they are now also guaranteeing its players 36 chances of winning a share of the Millionaire Raffle also.

How much does it cost?

With the launch of the Millionaire Raffle, the tickets will be increased by EuroMillions from 1.50 – 2.00, that’s an increase of over thirty per cent. Nevertheless -The Essential News for all members is their e-lottery costs will remain the same!

For only 5 they will not only receive their familiar share of 36 entries into the EuroMillions with the guaranteed lucky stars, but they will likewise have thirty-six opportunities of having an equal share of the Millionaire Raffle.

The new e-lottery EuroMillions syndicates.

In readiness for the Millionaire Raffle, all its EuroMillions players have been placed into one of the new ‘EuroMillions Syndicates’ which includes the Millionaire Raffle. Each and every one of these new lottery syndicates has a 59 strong team who all added up will share thirty-six line entries in the EuroMillions draw every Friday plus thirty-six entries into the Millionaire Raffle, also drawn each and every Friday.

Assuming my syndicate has won the Millionaire Raffle, how will I find out?

Due to the way the Millionaires Raffle numbers are allocated for this draw it is not possible to display the lottery syndicate raffle ticket numbers on their website prior to the draw being completed. They can only be able to exhibit the lucky number on the results page as soon as it is officially announced – If you have the lucky number you will be contacted once the draw has taken place via email and in the results back office of the internet site.

If you are not already taking part in a EuroMillions syndicate and would like to find out more about this new addition to the e-lottery product range please login to your back office members area and select the ‘My Details’ tab then ‘Syndicate Subscription’ to sign-up to the EuroMillions Syndicate.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Thomas Fraderyck
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A long standing controversy in major league baseball has been that surrounding Shoeless Joe Jackson and his alleged throwing of the World Series for the Chicago White Sox of’19. Jackson has long been gone from baseball and long deceased, but many have still pushed to carve out his place in Cooperstown. Does he belong?

Jackson had a career that spanned thirteen years, and played with four teams in all. Most notable was his tenure in Chicago, but he also played for the Indians, Athletics, and Naps. His numbers as a professional ballplayer were very impressive.

Some of Jackson’s career numbers include 1,772 hits, 54 home runs, 785 RBI, and a career batting average of .356. Jackson lacked in the power department, but his averages were clearly impressive.

This may not scream out obvious hall of fame, however, the .356 batting average would easily clear those standards in today’s game. Here are some more impressive stats we can deduce by taking a closer look at his numbers.

9.4 walks percentage, 4.2 strikeout percentage, .423 on base percentage. 517 slugging percentage, and a .940 OPS. These are great numbers and H.O.F. numbers in fact.

So the stats look good, but how about the scandal? Did Jackson blatantly lower his level of play, throwing the series for Chicago? A look at the stats would say no. Jackson batted .375 that World Series, with a record breaking 12 hits. Unlike many of his teammates, Jackson’s fielding percentage was a perfect 1.000.

Many have accused Jackson of allowing multiple Reds triples in left field, where he played for the White Sox. However, further research of mine has shown that no triples were hit to Jackson’s part of the field in the’19 series. Jackson, however, did receive a $5,000 payment according to records.

So he made a mistake. His actions indicate little (if any) foul play in the way of performance. Should he make it in?

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Michael Bell
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With a shop near every neighborhood, video stores have been the most convenient way to get movies for years. High speed internet access has now made it possible to download movies right off a movie download site. Let’s look at what you might find to watch using a movie download site.

La Provinciale: Exceptional venture fantasy in reference to an orphan gal who is chased by sky pirates and a malevolent government representative who wants to get their hands on the supernatural quartz that permits her to float and also keeps the secret to finding a treasure, a full island in the clouds. Stunning visuals, exhilarating set pieces and gripping characters make this a masterpiece of action film making; energized or otherwise, empowering a real sense of amazement. Cast includes Anna Paquin, Cloris Leachman, Mark Hamill, Mandy Patinkin, and Andy Dick. (124 minutes,’86)

Disturbia: Kale has had his life turned upside down. His father’s death, which he feel responsible for has traumatized him badly. Snapping on an insensitive teacher, he punches the guy out. Instead of jail time he must serve a period of house confinement. Going stir crazy stuck at home, Kale, and his girlfriend Ashley, start spying on the neighbors. This voyeurism gets serious when they start to suspect that one of the neighbors is a serial killer.

Stalker: Stark, eerie, cerebral tale of a strong personality, who guides eggheads Grinko and Solonitsin through the “Area,” a bizarre, prohibited swamp. Extremely slow, although well performed and gratifying. Cast includes Alexander Kaidanovsky, Nikolai Grinko, and Anatoli Solonitsin. (160 minutes,’79)

Number One with a Bullet: Carradine and Williams do well in this somewhat normal action movie where we have aggressive investigators out to dethrone a drug kingpin. Cast includes Robert Carradine, Billy Dee Williams, Valerie Bertinelli, Peter Graves, Doris Roberts, and Bobby DiCicco. (101 minutes,’87)

They Won’t Believe Me: This is about a philanderer who becomes engaged with 3 females, leading to calamity and a tremendous twist ending. Young succeeds in his unsympathetic role; Johnson does marvels with her scenes as his spouse. Cast includes Susan Hayward, Robert Young, Jane Greer, Rita Johnson, Tom Powers, Don Beddoe, and Blunt Ferguson. (95 minutes,’47)

Urban Legend: Urban legends are coming into reality on the campus of Pendlelton College. One by one the students are dying, each to a different legend. Are these urban legends real, or is someone playing a nasty joke on us?

Dodgeball, A True Underdog Story: Peter is the proud owner of Average Joe’s gym. His luck is running low and White Goodman, owner of gym franchise Globo Gym, wants to get the gym from Peter. Things culminate in a dodge ball competition in which Average Joe’s team must win for Peter to keep his beloved gym.

South Park: Bigger, Longer And Uncut: Our dynamic four are in top form in the first feature length film of the TV series. There is a new movie at the theater, a Terrence and Phillips film, and the boys are off to see it. When they arrive at the theater they can’t get in because of the R rating. They overcome this obstacle by paying off a street drunk to get the tickets for them. This is the boy’s first real intense introduction to foul language. They leave the movie fully trained in the new words, and use them whenever they can. This leads to outrage from the parents. Since Terrence and Phillip are Canadian, this ends with the US and Canada going to war.

About Adam: This is a true “chick flick”. About Adam is a light hearted romantic comedy about a Don Juan type who courts all three sisters of a quirky, and tight knit, Scottish family. Somehow this charmer has all three women falling head over heels for him. Kate Hudson, Frances O’Connor, and Stuart Townsend star. (2001 Comedy-Romance)

For file downloads use a phrase like “Rent DVD Movie Online”. If the first search proves ineffective type in something different. Switch to “Free Movie Rentals” and see if you find what you are looking for.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Earline Franco
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Gaming laptops are laptops that have been specially designed for gaming use. In the world of gaming, these are attractive to almost all gamers when they are searching for a new machine to play on. Because of a lack of ready built gaming systems, gamers often must order customized systems with their own configurations. Even specs like processing speed, graphics cards, excellent battery life and a great cooling system may come on a standard notebook but it will be overlooked in favor of building a customized system that meets all of the gamers needs.

How good your gaming experience will be and how well the game will perform are based upon the quality of the graphics card that you are using. Two names you will see often in this aspect is ATI and NVIDIA. A fast processing speed is also important. Pentium 4 Athlon processors are preferred by many gamers.

At least 80 GB or higher is needed in the system for the best performance and the hard disk speed should be in the 5400 rpm range, if not more. For 3D games you will need at least 7200 rpm, however, and these days 3D is the most popular.

Not only are the internal configurations of these systems important, but the screen size and display resolution are also very important. A good screen size to use is 15. 4 inches or bigger. In the gaming world, the larger the screen the better. This gives you the increased ability to effectively navigate the game without missing anything important. It also doesn’t place as much strain on the eyes as smaller screens usually do.

The display quality is vital for giving the gamer the best experience during game play. XGA and SXGA are best for giving you a high quality image. Newer model are now using liquid crystal displays (LCD) as well. Panasonic, Sony and Toshiba are leading the way with high quality monitor production. These are getting the attention of all gamers looking for a better gaming experience.

We now have the option to choose a gaming laptop from a large selection of awesome designs. The leaders in this market include names such as Alienware, Vodoo PC, Dell XPS, Hypersonic and even Falcon Northwest. The prices on these will range from $2400 and up depending on the configurations of the system.

Choosing the right gaming laptop for yourself can prove to be difficult sometimes. Systems that are coming out now often come complete with dual core, long battery life, wireless connectivity, PCI Express, large hard drives and a lot more RAM.

Tags: Games by Matthew Kerridge
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In the days of the Roman Empire it was standard for men in Italy to use certain body marks in the form of tattoos, as a means to distinguish slaves from gladiators and also normal citizens from captives. Though those times have disappeared, so have those practices.

In our modern age, tattoos serve many folks as a type of style statement, and also one that is mostly utilized by men. Having many tattoos placed on numerous parts of the body enhances the maleness of men, and makes them look more rough. Though with changing perceptions, even these concepts have been through a lot of change.

Universally Well-liked

In reality, women too are beginning to find tattoos to be fascinating. For some, it lets them express their sensuality. However, one form of tattoo that is very common is the wand tattoo, which is extraordinarily universally preferred. There are countless cultures that use such tattoos to designate different things. Thus, if you were to come across a wand tattoo designed in the Far East, it might designate Water, underworld, Earth, as well as the Sky. While if you saw the same wand tattoo done in a Western country, it might designate an enemy that has got to be fought and overcome.

No matter which part of the planet the wand tattoo is crafted, the wand still symbolizes a character of bad temper that’s depraved as well as neither malignant nor good. In fact, the wand is much like nature that both nurtures life as well as destroys it. That’s why there is not any one meaning attributable to the wand tattoo.

It can represent rain and lightning, as well as floods. It even comets in a night sky, and therefore lends itself well to being something that shows chaos as well as uncertainty in our Universe. And all of these meanings are for a wand tattoo!

Nevertheless, the wand tattoo will often represent a creature that breathe fire, and therefore these kinds of wand tattoos are referred to as fire wands. Though other forms are water wand tattoos, as well as those the cause springs to aerate, while some may even outline drowning folks.

However, it is also quite common to balance the wand tattoo with other tattoo designs that in turn reflect the yin and yang of life.

If you were to sport a fire wand tattoo, you would hope that folks would understand that it represents conquest of all things while if you sported the water wand tattoo, it would hopefully show people that you fear or repress your emotions and feelings.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Jayde Bryden
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Half the fun of attending any sports event is the pre-game tailgating activities. When the weather turns cold, tailgating parties can become more challenging. Some sports enthusiasts end up paying a fortune for a Sky box, battling cold and windy weather, or foregoing pre-game tailgating altogether. It is true that there few party ideas that can withstand the problems brought on with really inclement weather, but, there are a few ideas that can work well year-round!

One of the best tailgating party ideas involves making use of a limousine service. A limo party bus or a spacious H2 Hummer can provide you and your guests with an exciting and memorable experience. Party guests can relax and have the benefit of the luxury that comes with quality limousine service.

One of the surprising benefits about using a limousine service to cater your event is that it is actually cost effective. You might initially be surprised at the cost, but there are some great advantages. A tailgating limousine service allows you to eat and imbibe with total abandonment, and lack of concern about driving under the influence. Neither yourself nor your guests need to be concerned about being the “designated driver” at this party.

In Chicago, as elsewhere, a limousine service has other unknown benefits. For example, tailgating packages can include such necessities as cases of beer selected by the customer, hard liquor upon request, a variety of soft drinks, and icy cold water. Also, the service includes unlimited stops and does not charge for the time you spend inside the stadium. And here’s a benefit you may not have thought about in advance; party guests can take a “time-out” from the game in the limo, if needed or desired.

Using a limousine service for pre-game tailgating is a great option for a variety of groups, including corporate groups, alumni associations, sports clubs or even gatherings of family and friends.

The limousine service picks you up at your chosen destination several hours before the game. The vehicle is equipped with all the necessities, ample comfortable seating, space for snacks and food, and huge televisions with a superior surround sound system. The vehicle is equipped with ample lighting for after dark, and blinds if the sun is too bright. The vehicle will remain parked in an accessible area during the entire game, so guests can securely leave their possessions inside the vehicle and not have to deal with the hassle of protecting personal possessions or the risk of their personal possessions being misplaced or stolen.

Once the game is ended , guests can return to the vehicle and be delivered back to the pickup point, or even to their homes , if such an arrangement has been made in advance. After a long day of partying, eating and drinking, it’s nice to be able to get home hassle free.

Hiring a Chicago limousine service for your tailgating party is a great idea because it is surprisingly affordable, and provides guests a comfortable, exciting and safe experience, along with great unusual memories.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Stephen Daniels
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The acronym, seo, simply means a technique that improves your website traffic at least a hundred, if not a thousand times, over and over! In other words, it multiplies your internet traffic helping you to derive satisfaction from its performance. After all, what millions of people crave for is nothing but publicity. A technique called ‘search engine optimization’ has been started along with the emergence of internet. This abbreviation has shot into prominence only about 5 yrs henceforth when SEO has assisted hundreds of companies reach a higher position in order to get noticed repeatedly by online visitors.

If you are under some impression that only some degree holders and not ordinary people like graduates/ undergraduates can be able to get an entry into this wonderful profession, think again. You need not even be a buff who would reel out poems at breakneck speed in English. All that is expected of him/her is just a simple way to churn out pages of articles at a fair speed in his own language. As said earlier somewhere, it always helps to be from a similar background.

Various methods are getting followed such as including titles, hyperlinks, ALT description and META tags. There are also a few options one can look at, viz. one of them is developing SEO-quality content, which should be an original stuff. Make sure that your content is legibly written, simple to understand and quite clean without being anywhere near to the complaint of plagiarism. Purely original content is right way to go about it to avoid hassles. What you need to first know is that you should understand the simplicity of these code structures.

It is important to maintain the originality of the author. Certain companies employ ‘robots’ who do the job of a writer but that process, howsoever well done, takes away or unknowingly gulps certain niceties the original article carries, like word-grammar usage and obviously the flow that can only come with experience. A possible solution is that you can hire somebody with similar background so that he/she may not be too far from the expectation. Readers are requested to be very cautious about their target audience because it is that which ensures your dough!

The name of the game is however real (original) and relevant content that will bring fresh traffic over and over. You need to ensure this somehow but how you will do it is the biggest worry in the initial times. As you gradually progress and get to learn the nuances of SEO content writing, things will start becoming easier and easier.

Let everything be your search engine friendly; most of all the content that is regarded as the king. First of all, do you know the search engines are for free and their ‘people’ roam every corner of the website free? Moreover they do not charge for their services; it comes free of cost to millions of people. All said done, you have to get that uniqueness into the content and once that is done think your goal has been truly achieved.

Tags: Writing & Speaking by Isabel Rodrigues
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