tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21999404200516472582024-02-07T11:39:34.771+01:00special people, places & thingsmarcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.comBlogger67125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-5788103925033511042014-08-04T16:50:00.002+02:002014-08-04T16:50:23.772+02:00top 100 i have seen - part i<div style="text-align: justify;">
in the 41 matches i have been lucky enough to see so far, there are 196 i consider to be stars. some are national or future international stars, others are international stars, and others even bigger.</div>
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i am starting a quick series of the 100 best footballers i have seen play myself, based on their careers (and not on the matches i have seen them play). there will be six posts, 5 of them dedicated to the top 100.</div>
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this first post will simpy mention the names that didn't quite make the cut. the ones with a * next to them have not reached their peak yet, in my opinion. </div>
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in alphabetic order (first name), with the year(s) i have seen them, teams and number of matches (if more than one). in brackets, their current team and national team, if current.</div>
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<b>aaron hunt</b> (vfl wolfsburg): 2010-14 werder bremen (15 times), 2014 vfl wolfsburg </div>
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<b>adrian ramos</b> (borussia dortmund & colombia): 2011 werder bremen </div>
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<b>alou diarra</b> (without club): 2012 france</div>
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<b>anatoliy tymoschuchuk</b> (zenit st. petersburg & ukraine): 2010, 2011 bayern münchen (twice)</div>
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<b>andres d'allessandro</b> (internacional rs): 2011 internacional </div>
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<b>antonio cassano</b> (fc parma & italy): 2010 sampdoria, 2011 milan</div>
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<b>antonio valencia</b> (manchester united & colombia): 2006 ecuador</div>
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<b>benedikt höwedes</b> (schalke 04 & germany): 2012 & 2014 germany</div>
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<b>bryan ruiz</b> (fulham & costa rica): 2010 twente enschede</div>
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<b>cacau</b> (vfb stuttgart): 2012 germany, 2012 vfb stuttgart</div>
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<b>carlos gamarra </b>(retired): 2005 palmeiras</div>
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<b>cesar azpilicueta* </b>(chelsea fc & spain): 2014 chelsea</div>
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<b>christian abbiati </b>(ac milan): 2011 milan </div>
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<b>christoph kramer* </b>(borussia mönchengladbach & germany): 2014 germany</div>
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<b>claudio pizarro </b>(bayern münchen): 2010-12 werder (7 times), 2014 bayern</div>
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<b>dario srna </b>(shakhtar donetsk & croatia): 2006 croatia</div>
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<b>diego benaglio</b> (vfl wolfsburg & switzerland): 2014 vfl wolfsburg</div>
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<b>diego lugano </b>(without club & uruguay): 2005 são paulo fc</div>
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<b>elano </b>(flamengo): 2008 brazil</div>
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<b>eljero elia</b> (werder bremen): 2012-14 werder bremen (9 times)</div>
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<b>eric abidal </b>(olympiacos piraeus): 2006, 2012 france</div>
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<b>florent malouda </b>(trabzonspor): 2012 france</div>
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<b>gary cahill </b>(chelsea fc & england): 2014 chelsea</div>
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<b>gilberto silva </b>(retired): 2008 brazil</div>
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<b>giovanni van bronckhorst </b>(retired): 2006 netherlands</div>
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<b>goran pandev </b>(ssc napoli & macedonia): 2010 internazionale</div>
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<b>grafite </b>(al-ahli): 2004 são paulo fc</div>
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<b>hakan calhanoglu* </b>(bayer leverkusen & turkey): 2014 hamburger sv</div>
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<b>hernanes </b>(internazionale & brazil): 2005, 2009 são paulo fc</div>
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<b>hugo lloris </b>(tottenham hotspur & france): 2012 france</div>
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<b>isco</b>* (real madrid & spain): 2013 cf malaga</div>
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<b>ivan cordoba </b>(retired): 2010 internazionale</div>
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<b>ivan perisic* </b>(vfl wolfsburg & croatia): 2014 wolfsburg (twice)</div>
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<b>ivica olic </b>(vfl wolfsburg & croatia): 2006 croatia, 2010 & 2011 bayern, 2014 wolfsburg</div>
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<b>jakub "kuba" blaszczykowski </b>(borussia dortmund & poland): 2013 dortmund (twice)</div>
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<b>javi martinez* </b>(bayern münchen & spain): 2014 bayern (twice)</div>
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<b>jeremy toulalan </b>(as monaco): 2013 malaga cf</div>
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<b>joaquin </b>(fiorentina): 2013 malaga cf</div>
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<b>juan arango </b>(tijuana & venezuela): 2012 borussia mönchengladbach (twice)</div>
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<b>jean bernat* </b>(bayern): 2014 bayern</div>
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<b>julian draxler* </b>(schalke 04 & germany): 2014 germany</div>
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<b>julio baptista </b>(cruzeiro): 2013 malaga cf</div>
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<b>juninho paulista </b>(retired): 2005 palmeiras</div>
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<b>kevin de bruyne* </b>(vfl wolfsburg & belgium): 2012-13 werder (4 times)</div>
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<b>kevin grosskreutz </b>(borussia dortmund & germany): 2013 dortmund</div>
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<b>landon donovan </b>(la galaxy): 2009 bayern</div>
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<b>lars bender* </b>(bayer leverkusen & germany): 2012 germany</div>
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<b>leandro damiao </b>(santos): 2011 internacional</div>
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<b>louis saha </b>(retired): 2012 france</div>
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<b>maniche </b>(retired): 2008 portugal</div>
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<b>marc-andre ter stegen* </b>(fc barcelona & germany): 2012 mönchengladbach (twice), 2014 germany</div>
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<b>marcelinho carioca </b>(retired): 2009 santo andré</div>
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<b>marcell jansen </b>(hamburger sv): 2013 & 2014 hamburger sv</div>
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<b>marcelo </b>(real madrid & brazil): 2008 brazil</div>
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<b>marcio amoroso</b> (retired): 2005 são paulo fc</div>
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<b>mario yepes </b>(atalanta bergamo & colombia): 2011 milan</div>
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<b>marko marin </b>(chelsea fc): 2010-12 werder bremen (6 times)</div>
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<b>matthias ginter* </b>(borussia dortmund & germany): 2014 germany</div>
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<b>matthieu valbuena </b>(dinamo moscow & france): 2012 france </div>
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<b>maximilian arnold* </b>(vfl wolfsburg): 2014 wolfsburg (twice)</div>
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<b>mikael silvestre </b>(retired): 2010 & 2011 werder bremen (3 times)</div>
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<b>naldo </b>(vfl wolfsburg): 2011 & 2012 werder, 2014 wolfsburg (twice)</div>
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<b>nani </b>(manchester united & portugal): 2008 portugal</div>
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<b>nemanja matic </b>(chelsea fc & serbia): 2014 chelsea fc</div>
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<b>nicolai müller </b>(fsv mainz 05): 2013 mainz</div>
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<b>niko kovac </b>(retired): 2006 croatia</div>
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<b>nuri sahin </b>(borussia dortmund & turkey): 2013 dortmund (twice)</div>
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<b>olivier giroud </b>(arsenal fc & france): 2012 france</div>
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<b>owen hargreaves </b>(retired): 2006 england</div>
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<b>pepe</b> (real madrid): 2008 portugal</div>
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<b>philippe mexes </b>(as monaco): 2012 france</div>
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<b>rene adler</b> (hamburger sv): 2011 leverkusen, 2013 & 2014 hamburger sv</div>
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<b>ricardo rodriguez </b>(vfl wolfsburg & switzerland): 2014 wolfsburg (twice)</div>
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<b>rogerio ceni </b>(são paulo fc): 2003, 2004, 2005 & 2009 são paulo fc</div>
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<b>roman weidenfeller </b>(borussia dortmund & germany): 2013 dortmund (twice)</div>
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<b>ron-robert zieler </b>(hannover 96 & germany): 2011 & 2013 hannover, 2014 germany</div>
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<b>roque santa cruz </b>(cf malaga & paraguay): 2013 malaga</div>
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<b>samir nasri </b>(manchester city): 2012 france</div>
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<b>sebastian kehl </b>(borussia dortmund): 2013 bvb</div>
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<b>sebastian rode* </b>(bayern münchen): 2013 eintracht frankfurt, 2014 bayern</div>
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<b>shinji okazaki </b>(fsv mainz 05 & japan): 2011 vfb stuttgart, 2013 mainz</div>
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<b>shkodran mustafi* </b>(sampdoria genova & germany): 2014 germany</div>
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<b>sidney sam </b>(schalke 04): 2009 1.fc kaiserslautern, 2011 leverkusen</div>
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<b>simon rolfes </b>(bayer leverkusen): 2011 leverkusen</div>
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<b>sokratis </b>(borussia dortmund & greece): 2012 & 2013 werder bremen (5 times)</div>
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<b>son heung-min* </b>(bayer leverkusen & korea republic): 2013 hamburger sv</div>
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<b>stefan kiessling </b>(bayer leverkusen): 2011 leverkusen</div>
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<b>sulley muntari </b>(ac milan & ghana): 2010 inter milan</div>
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<b>sven bender* </b>(borussia dortmund & germany): 2013 dortmund (twice)</div>
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<b>thiago alcântara** </b>(bayern münchen & spain): 2011 barcelona, 2014 bayern</div>
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<b>tim cahill </b>(new york red bulls & australia): 2006 australia</div>
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<b>torsten frings </b>(retired): 2010 & 2011 werder bremen (4 times)</div>
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<b>ulf kirsten </b>(retired): 1999 bayer leverkusen</div>
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<b>victor valdes </b>(searching for club): 2011 fc barcelona</div>
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<b>willy sagnol </b>(retired): 2006 france</div>
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<b>xherdan shaqiri* </b>(bayern münchen & switzerland): 2010 fc basel, 2014 bayern</div>
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marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-16950774001795564582014-08-04T14:07:00.002+02:002014-08-04T18:29:09.288+02:00football journey - "my" matches<div style="text-align: justify;">
july 19, 1987. i was not even ten years old when i went to the stadium for the first time in my life. and it wasn't a bad way to start the experience: a derby in the hot maracana stadium, when flamengo played vasco da gama. over 80,000 spectators came to see a special match - zico still played for flamengo (alongside big names like junior), while vasco had a 21-year old romario helping out veteran legend roberto dinamite in the attack. dunga, by the way, played for sebastião lazaroni's vasco side at the time. both would become brazilian world cup managers.</div>
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it would be almost 10 years until i saw my second match, thanks to the enthusiasm of "katita", a palmeiras fanatic; which was nice, because i got to see djalminha and cafu in action for the greens from sao paulo; and even the home team from the small city of americana, rio branco, had two future stars: mineiro, who went on to play bundesliga football for many years, and marcos senna, who became european champion for spain in 2008, a full eleven years later.</div>
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before the world cup in germany 2006, i had only seen six live matches, half of them in the morumbi stadium to see brazil's best organized team, sao paulo fc. but even in these six matches, i had seen coaches like lazaroni, antonio lopes, christoph daum, tite, paulo autuori and emerson leao work at the sidelines, while players like emerson, zé roberto, ulf kirsten, rogerio ceni, luis fabiano, diego lugano, hernanes, carlos gamarra, marcos and juninho paulista showed off their various skills. then i went to germany to volunteer at the world cup, almost at the age of 30.</div>
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first up was france x switzerland. and what a french team it was! world champions fabien barthez, lilian thuram and zinedine zidane. willy sagnol and eric abidal helping out in the full back positions, claude makélélé and the great patrick vieira holding the strings in midfield, and young franck ribéry exciting his nation with his wing play towards striker thierry henry. i remember watching them train in the stuttgart stadium a day before the match, and i had never seen so many stars at one spot. until today, zidane remains the "biggest" player i have ever seen, maybe tied with zico.</div>
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those five matches really ignited in me the fever. to watch games live was now becoming a bigger deal for me than ever before, since i had always been a television football fanatic. in the second one, i saw one of my all-time heroes on the dutch bench, as marco van basten was coaching van nistelrooy, robben, van persie, van der vaart, sneijder, van bommel, cocu and van bronckhorst on one side. on the other, legendary coach henri michel was leading the exciting ivory coast team, at the time already led by didier drogba, with the help of up and coming midfielder yaya toure. a few days later, it was iker casillas in goal, sergio ramos as full back, carles puyol as center back, xabi alonso and xavi (genius!) in the middle, david villa on the wing and fernando torres up front. it took raul in the second half for spain to beat tunisia, and cesc fàbregas, whom i just saw yesterday for the second time (over 8 years later) also joined the action.</div>
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another three days later, it was time to see croatia - that meant mostly niko kovac to me, as a bayern fan; but also ivica olic and a very young luka modric where on the pitch in stuttgart. tim cahill was already australia's leading player, alongside mark viduka and harry kewell. </div>
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and just another three days later, i saw david beckham convert a free kick to put england in the quarterfinal. what a midfield the english had: hargreaves in his best form ever, steven gerrard, frank lampard, with the back line also being strong: rio ferdinando and john terry in the middle, and ashley cole on the side. and yes, wayne rooney was the star striker back then already.</div>
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only at the age of 31, i saw my team play for the very first time. bayern münchen played a winter friendly at kaiserslautern, so that was a great opportunity to also visit that legendary stadium called "betzenberg". it was packed despite being a friendly, and bayern won 2-0 with goals by luca toni and landon donavan. jürgen klinsmann was bayern's coach at the time, and the team had lucio, demichelis, lahm, van bommel, zé roberto, franck ribéry, bastian schweinsteiger and miroslav klose in action.</div>
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two other bayern-firsts for me are worth mentioning: my one and only visit to the allianz arena occured in 2011, at the audi-cup (pre-season friendly) in the final between bayern and fc barcelona, coached by pep guardiola. it was on that day that pep went to speak to the management and expressed his interest of one day working in munich; i did not get to see messi play (he would have been the greatest ever!), but thiago alcantara, now a bayern player, scored both barcelona goals. before that, brazilian club inter had tied 2-2 with ac milan, giving me the opportunity to see the likes of ibrahimovic, seedorf, ambrosini, gattuso, zambrotta, robinho, pato and kevin prince boateng live.</div>
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finally, only this year, i saw bayern play in a competitive match for the first time. the german cup quarterfinal was in hamburg, where i saw my team beat the home club 5-0, with three goals by mario mandzukic and a goal by arjen robben; dante also scored.</div>
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i have seen the brazilian national team once, in 2008; there, brazil managed by dunga (back at his job now) beat portugal (with cristiano ronaldo and pepe) 6-2, with three goals by luis "fabuloso" fabiano. germany i've seen twice; in 2012 in bremen against france (1-2) and this year against poland in hamburg (0-0) - so i haven't actually seen the current world champions win yet.</div>
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in total, yesterday's werder x chelsea match marked my 41st game. here are some figures and stats:</div>
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30 matches in the last six years</div>
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32 matches in europe, 31 of them in germany.</div>
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18 in the weserstadion, bremen</div>
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5 in morumbi, sao paulo</div>
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5 in the gottlieb-daimler stadion, stuttgart (world cup 2006)</div>
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4 in the imtech arena, hamburg</div>
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14 bundesliga</div>
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10 friendlies (3 international, 7 club) </div>
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5 world cup</div>
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4 uefa champions league </div>
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4 brazilian serie a </div>
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<i>derbies (3)</i></div>
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1987: flamengo x vasco</div>
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2004: sao paulo x corinthians</div>
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2005: sao paulo x palmeiras</div>
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137 goals, 3.2 per match</div>
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4 goals in 3 matches by robert lewandowski</div>
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4 goals in 8 matches by claudio pizarro</div>
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4 goals in 16 matches by aaron hunt</div>
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<i>three hat-tricks:</i></div>
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robson ponte for guarani (in campinas) in 1999 against bayer leverkusen, friendly</div>
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luis fabiano for brazil (in brasilia) in 2008 against portugal, friendly</div>
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mario mandzukic for bayern (in hamburg) in 2014 against hamburger sv, german cup quarterfinal</div>
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<i>most goals:</i></div>
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guarani 6x4 bayer leverkusen - friendly in 1999</div>
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brazil 6x2 portugal - friendly in 2008</div>
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sao paulo 3x3 palmeiras - brazilian serie a in 2005</div>
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werder bremen 0x5 borussia dortmund - bundesliga 2012/13</div>
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borussia dortmund 3x2 cf malaga - champions league 2012/13</div>
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werder bremen 3x2 hannover 96 - bundesliga 2013/14</div>
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werder bremen 2x3 mainz 05 - bundesliga 2013/14</div>
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hamburger sv 0x5 bayern münchen - dfb pokal quarterfinals 2013/14</div>
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<i>important players seen:</i> 196 (in my book), 141 of them at "international star" level</div>
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most seen:</div>
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16 aaron hunt</div>
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9 eljero elia</div>
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8 claudio pizarro</div>
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6 marko marin</div>
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(none of those at international star level)</div>
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5 per mertesacker (international star)</div>
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5 sokratis</div>
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all
for werder bremen, of course; besides merte, with one game for germany,
and hunt, one game for wolfsburg, and pizarro, one for bayern. </div>
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<i>players seen in three different jerseys:</i></div>
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marco reus (germany, mönchengladbach, dortmund)</div>
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ivica olic (croatia, bayern, wolfsburg)</div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>two different clubs (besides the above mentioned):</i></div>
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naldo (werder, wolfsburg)</div>
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aaron hunt (werder, wolfsburg)</div>
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sebastian rode (frankfurt, bayern)</div>
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rene adler (leverkusen, hamburg)</div>
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shinji okazaki (stuttgart, mainz)</div>
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claudio pizarro (werder, bayern)</div>
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antonio cassano (sampdoria, milan)</div>
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xherdan shaqiri (basel, bayern)</div>
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thiago alcantara (barcelona, bayern)</div>
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luiz gustavo (bayern, wolfsburg)</div>
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dante (mönchengladbach, bayern)</div>
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martin demichelis (bayern, malaga)</div>
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mario götze (dortmund, bayern)</div>
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zé roberto (leverkusen, bayern)</div>
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robert lewandowski (dortmund, bayern)</div>
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<i>my 7 favorite matches:</i></div>
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may 30, 2004<i> - </i>brazilian serie a<i><br /></i></div>
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<b>sao paulo 1-1 corinthians</b></div>
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full stadium, derby atmosphere, and when corinthians scored, it sounded like something form out of space!</div>
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june 16, 2006 - fifa world cup</div>
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<b>netherlands 2-1 ivory coast</b></div>
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a great match with lots of attacking football and many stars in a world cup!<b> </b></div>
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november 19, 2008 - international friendly</div>
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<b>brasil 6-2 portugal</b></div>
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it is not always that you get to see so many stars, including cristiano ronaldo mabye just 2 meters away, and see such a spectacular match with many beautiful goals.<br />
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<b> </b></div>
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august 18, 2010 - uefa champions league playoff</div>
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<b>werder bremen 3-1 sampdoria genova</b></div>
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to be in a stadium and listen to the champions league hymn for the first time is an awesome experience. great match, too, with a fantastic goal by now captain clemens fritz to make it 3x0.<b> </b></div>
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october 20, 2012 - bundesliga</div>
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<b>werder bremen 4-0 borussia mönchengladbach</b></div>
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fantastic atmosphere all game long, great action against a good team. werder at their best.<br />
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<b> </b></div>
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april 9, 2013 - uefa champions league quarterfinal</div>
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<b>borussia dortmund 3-2 cf malaga</b></div>
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hands down the best match i have ever witnessed in a stadium - the incredible atomsphere at the signal iduna park, the dramatic 2 goals after regular time to make it through to the semifinals - it was all too much!</div>
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<b> </b></div>
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february 12, 2014 - dfb-pokal quarterfinal<br />
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<b>hamburger sv 0-5 bayern münchen</b></div>
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first time right next to the bayern fans, five goals, great pep guardiola playing style, and bastian schweinsteiger's long awaited comeback!<b> </b></div>
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marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-49452897024006846702011-11-23T15:38:00.004+01:002011-11-25T10:51:34.366+01:00musical journey<div style="text-align: justify;">i fancy myself to be quite a good listener. at least in the world of music. i have a brother who composes and arranges, and is can listen technically at an absurd level. i have another brother who produces and sings. i guess i'm the one who listens to what they and others do or produce.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">when i say i can listen, i really mean that i appreciate music more than most. it really goes deep into my soul and is part of my private inner world, if you will. listening for me is more than a hobby; when possible, it has to be done with complete focus, with the goal to feel and understand. i do admit to being pretty restrictive in chosing what i devote time to in this arena. most of the focused listening time has been going to sting, peter gabriel and pat metheny tradicionally, with quite a lot of leonardo goncalves and herbert grönemeyer in the mix. i have my guilty pleasures (aha and simply red mostly in the past, and even the likes of katy perry more recently), and more recently i've been listening a lot to daniela araujo and sigur rós, which she introduced me to.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">but to listen and see live, with the visual and the natural surround audio, this had been a rare pleasure in my life. if i had to make a highlight list of concerts i've seen in brazil, even michael w smith (twice!) would have to be included, although i was able to see the russian pianist evgeny kissin play a recital in rio de janeiro, in the 90s.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">this has changed since my arrival in bremen july 14, 2010. i've been back in germany for 497 days now (round number coming up!), and life has been a blessing. the by far biggest one shall be a future topic on this blog, but this minor one is surely worth mentioning.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">on average, i've been to a high class musical concert every 31 days - basically once a month. this, of course, is without counting other cultural events (1 f1 race, soon 7 werder matches, 1 bayern match, bird parks & other tourisms). here my list and a few thoughts on each one of them.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">august 28, 2010</div><div style="text-align: justify;">by then i'd seen two jazz concerts in bars in town, but this was the first highlight: <b>vladimir ashkenazy</b> brought his <b>sydney symphony orchestra</b> (by some viewed as a top ten orchestra in the world) to "die glocke", <u>bremen</u>'s main concert hall. with hime came young bulgarian top piano talent <b>behzod abduraimov</b>, who played one of tchaikovsky's concerts brilliantly. incredible concert, memorable day.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">october 12, 2010</div><div style="text-align: justify;">this would be my first live encounter with <b>sting</b>, who i'd known and listened to for over 17 years at that point. still, i wasn't expecting too much since i hadn't really got into liking the album "symphonycities", but it was a huge surprise: fantastic atmosphere in <u>hamburg</u>'s 02 arena, and really high quality music with sting singing with authority and the <b>london symphony orchestra</b> causing the emotions to flow. "i hung my head", "this cowboy song", "the end of the game" and "why should i cry for you" stood out - and it was just fitting that the show opened with my traditional all-time favorite song "if i ever lose my faith in you". i left the show with the impression that this had been the best concert i'd ever been to in my life.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">december 4, 2010</div><div style="text-align: justify;">first high class concert event not alone - my cousin raphael accompanied me to <u>munich</u> to see a recital by <b>evgeny kissin</b>, the above mentioned russian wunderkind (now 40 years old), who played a <b>liszt recital</b> like a true master. it was simply astonishing, exciting and worth every minute. second time kissin in my life... and not the last!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">march 17, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i hadn't heard of the <b>trondheim jazz orchestra</b> until a couple of weeks earlier. this very peculiar orchestra (saxophone, 2 violins, 1 cello, a brass section, guitar, percussion and drums) is based in the famous music university in that norwegian town. they constantly play with some of jazz greatest, including pat metheny, and this day they were playing music from a collaboration with <b>joshua redman</b>, considered by me to be the best saxophone player alive. the sendesaal in <u>bremen</u> is a perfect location, thanks to its incredible (and legendary) acoustics and its somewhat informal setting. joshua is really incredible, and it was very exciting to see him perform live... and the music sticks with me until today.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">may 7, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i'd seen him around half a year earlier, but in a different setting. <b>dominic miller</b> has been sting's guitarist since the late 80s and has composed a couple of sting's most beautiful songs, such as "shape of my heart". his band held an event in my neighbouring village <u>worpswede</u>, famous for they're culture and events (last month the red hot chillie peppers gave a concert at their famed music hall). the band consisted of a piano, a base and, most memorably, the percussionist sting used for his winter project. i really enjoyed it, sitting in the first row!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">may 15, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i drove to <u>braunschweig</u>, which is a 90 minute drive from home, to see this man do a completely solo performance. sitting in the second row and even participating at a certain point (in a kind of choir he set up at the spot), <b>bobby mcferrin</b> was exactly as expected: a musical genius with a huge heart. i couldn't believe that i was seeing all these people live - mcferrin happens to be one of the artists that i have listened to in that focused way. anytime he's back in germany i'd love to go - if it's not too expensive (like his gig with chick corea next year in berlin).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">june 2, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">the day i saw <b>herbert grönemeyer</b> live. you have to do it once! the stadium in <u>hamburg</u> was packed (normally hsv plays there), and i was sitting at the furthest seat possible (because it was cheaper...), but it was still a memorable experience. even with that kind of crowd, herbert manages to be personal - he stayed there way after official concert time and played and sang for the crowd, no matter what size, even after his band had left. it started at 20h and only ended close to midnight! some really great performances, people singing along a fantastic sound in this mild pre-summer night. another good one!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">july 7, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">my cousin laura was with me on this one, and the next two. a 2 hour drive to the nice city of <u>strasbourg</u>, france. a quick look into the "altstadt". then concert time - like with grönemeyer in the back for monetary reasons, but it was vital to be there: <b>keith jarrett, gary peacock and jack dejohnette</b> are one of the most prolific trios in jazz history, and you feel like seeing history happening in front of your eyes. i, of course, really enjoyed keith's musicality, his understanding, his musical language - totally worth it! one of their many albums ("the cure") is part of those that i'd listened to many times in that focused mode...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">july 12, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">cousin lmmc introduced me to this girl: <b>yulianna avdeeva</b> won the chopin competition, one of the most important piano contests in the world, and was playing at a little castle near <u>montpellier</u>, france. so there we were to see the talented jewish russian female player. let's put it like this (sorry dear cuz'), it wasn't her best day. but sitting in the front row, open air, french castle, evening and listening to a high quality recital wasn't the worst moment of the year... ;)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">july 13, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">this is the reason we went to <u>montpellier</u>: to see the other russian, male and in no need of winning competitions. <b>evgeny kissin</b> plays liszt, i had seen it in december, but not fully understood every aspect of it. this time i was prepared, and it was an even more enriching experience than the first time. during the sonata, i even got emotional.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">july 17, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">there are a few reasons why this <b>evgeny kissin</b> experience was by far the most emotional one. you see, i've been listening to the 12-year-old kissin playing the chopin concertos for almost two decades now. they are the single pieces that move me most in classical music. and there i was in <u>bad kissingen</u> (northern bavaria, germany) listening to the russian master playing <b>concerto no.1 by chopin</b>, with the woman of my life, recently arrived from brazil, sitting by my side. that brought more than just one tear to the eye, mainly in the second movement. yes, there was a chinse tenor (<b>keija xiong</b>) singing <b>mozart </b>(great stuff by the way) and the invited orchestra (from montpellier, conducted by <b>lawrence foster</b>) played<b> tchaikovsky's nutcracker</b> (complete version, quite breathtaking!). the end of the kissinger sommer in bad kissingen with kissin - what a night!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">july 18, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">the following day, sizinha (the woman of my life from above) accompanied me to see <b>sting </b>in his symphonicity tour again, this time with the <b>czech national orchestra</b>, and in the city of <u>mannheim</u>. we were sitting in the last row, so it wasn't as personal or imediate as in october, but it was still a hell of a show with some tunes not played in hamburg. special times.<br />
<br />
october 25, 2011<br />
in a bar in <u>bremen</u>, my brother leo, his wife dani, our friends mudo & ju and luquinhaz went to see <b>marketa irglova</b> - the girl from the movie "once". she brought her band, with an impressive vocalist/percussionist (great voice & rythm), a guitarist (from glen hansard's "the frames") and a base player. marketa and glen had been in bremen two years ago, not to long after their cult hit movie "once", but this time she headed her own band. the music was sometimes of very high level, but mostly too melancholic and minor to listen to for 2 hours. still, some really great moments in this one, too. and just to see the main actress from one of my favorite movies live was worth it. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">october 30, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">front row. <u>hamburg</u> kupfernagel. my love sitting next to me, maybe even more excited for me than i was able to express? and then, lights, <b>pat metheny</b> comes out. so very strange to be there, see him and that typical smile of his, and his shirt, always striped. and his toys, his guitar, his craft. soloing much better than i'd ever seen him before, pat was accompanied by <b>larry grenadier</b> (upright base) and<b> bill stewart</b> (drums). i though this would be a good intro do seeing pat live, since i usually don't like the <b>trio </b>setting. but i knew basically all the tunes (most from the pmg set list) and it was just breathtaking. always & forever, question & answer, bright sized life - he even played with his orchestrion, which was really something else, and he varied his guitars, including the picasso. gotta see it and him again. and again. hope to see lyle some day...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">november 8, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">back to <u>bremen</u>, back to the sendesaal. this time, a solo artist. a lesser bobby mcferrin, let's say. <b>vinx </b>was in town, i caught it in the newspaper just a couple of days earlier. it was cold, he is warm. vinx worked with sting and peter gabriel, with the us government, with stevie wonder - as percussionist and vocalist. his show was something else, a real shame that it was in the middle of the week and sizinha couldn't be there with me. fantastic stuff, a real highlight. and i got to sit in the front row and chat with him afterwards ("sting is a star, peter gabriel is much more human and friendly", he said). great work with voice, and he is a solo act in his own right, having given workshops everywhere, including berklee.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">november 22, 2011</div><div style="text-align: justify;">he remembered.<b> joshua redman</b> was back to <u>bremen</u>, but this time in "die glocke". of course i had to be there too, sitting in the back and curious to see his duets with renowned pianist <b>brad mehldau</b>. i own mehldau's collaboration with metheny, and he has his very own specific style, that has to do a lot with the way he attacks the keys, loves to explore rythm and texture, filling up the big concert hall. mehldau is special, redman is special, and i had another really special evening yesterday. both of their musicalities are simply over the roof, and people felt it, didn't want them to leave. they knew it was special. what a collaboration - just piano and saxophone (mostly tenor, a little soprano), no rythm section besides their own incredible rythmic pulse and feel. they can both play beautifully, agressively, fast and deep, and they do it moving between these adjectives with competence.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i'm so thankful. and i hope 2012 will be similar, there is always more to come. berlin philharmonic orchestra, for example...</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-3456034246084931722011-06-04T16:31:00.000+02:002011-06-04T16:31:55.531+02:00class of 2011<div style="text-align: justify;">this is becoming a habit. over the years, i've had many students, and today seems a good time to write down what i will remember of each one of those which i had in my maths or physics class the last months. this is the first of hopefully many graduating classes here in bremen, and i want to register the three things i will most remember of each one of them.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>marlene</b> will be remembered for always greeting me, for her seemingly infinite search for knowledge and for her transparent character. what you see is what you get with her, and it's a good sight.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>lea </b>will be remembered for her honest interest for content and people, her lighting-up-a-room smile and her will to help.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>jule</b> will be remembered for her incredibly fast thinking (not only in math), her hair colors and her shy smile - ok, one more, her chocolate sessions with the table.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>thai</b> will be remembered for her dedication, her maturity and her profound kindness. and, yes, chocolate art.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>sadaf</b> will be remembered for her high standards and values, her high goals and dreams and for her love-themed art work.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i'll remember <b>caroline</b> for her positive, almost palpable energy, her good smelling tea and her smile when she got something right.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>stephanie</b> will be remembered for her courage, her incredible artistic talent and expression, and her originality.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>chantal</b> represents her hometown bremen to me perfectly: quiet, always with a smile on her face, and with a great sense of humor - the kind that makes others laugh while she just continues to smile.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> <b>denise </b>will be remembered for the werder schal gesture (chanti and denise, that was really special and will always be cherished), her patience and perseverance, and her latin american flair (always a good thing!).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>max</b> will be remembered for caring, for his integrational skills and for always being a good sport. and, of course, for having to deal with me twice as much.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> <b>bilal</b> will be remembered for his coolness, his rare and great relationship to his brother and his laid back attitude towards everything, including studying.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>aidin</b> will be unforgotten because he reminds me of my best friend from high school: very smart, not very dedicated, and sometimes suprisingly interested in issues. i wish you well!</div><div style="text-align: justify;">finally, <b>promita </b>will stay in my memory because of her unique voice, her positive outlook on life and her healthy self confidence.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">they all made my days happy, they will be missed. i liked and loved them all, hope they felt it a little.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-31846014071642149792011-05-08T13:51:00.002+02:002011-05-08T13:52:59.000+02:00looking up to someone<div style="text-align: justify;">when you are young, there a quite a few people you look up to. singers, sportsmen, sometimes even teachers. few think of close family or even parents when they are preteens or teens.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">as you grow older and get a better grasp of what life is all about, of what love is all about, and about all the simple and complex things this world has to offer us. and some point, you sometimes stop to look up to anyone human. i mean there is always a lot to admire in people, but to look up to?</div><div style="text-align: justify;">and then, later on, maybe after your twenties, you step down a little from the pedestal you had put yourself on, whilst never really admitting it. and you start looking up to people again; not many, but one or the other.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">one of those people in my life is having a special day today. although a good 700 km away, my mother is someone who i've always admired deeply and loved inconditionally, but only in the recent years has assumed this position in my life. a person i look up to.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">happy mother's day.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-35007891253077007092011-01-16T17:21:00.001+01:002011-01-17T08:23:51.035+01:00this is it<div style="text-align: justify;">this post is not about michael jackson. he's been dead for over a year and a half now; coincidentally, at that time the desire to move back to germany was starting to become a concrete plan. although many people who know me are aware of my nostalgic feelings towards this country, some might think: why germany? what is it about that place you grew up?</div><div style="text-align: justify;">this is it. today was it, once again, maybe stronger than ever. i left home at around 4 pm for a bike ride in the neighborhood. november and december have been freezing, in all senses, and the mild temperatures of january have caused quite a lot of flooding throughout the country, due to the large amounts of snow freezing and making rivers overflow.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">there is a small little river a few hundred meters from where i live, called "wümme". that's where i went on this sunny sunday, and in this time a year, 4 pm is pretty close to sunset time.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i'll post some pictures as soon as i can (can't seem to find the cable), but this is why i love north germany; and this is why i have fallen in love with bremen.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i moved to borgfeld, a little village still belonging to the 10th biggest german city, not even two weeks ago. and already it has the potential to become what i imagine to be a place i could live for a long, long time. it just feels like home, it feels right. within 2 minutes, i was in the middle of the fields, overflown with the water that used to be snow and ice. and what i saw there made me be profoundly grateful to God, and it left me feeling as if i've returned home.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i also remembered my younger brother and think this could be a quite inspiring place for him, maybe for a future project.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">the national park here in the wümme area, that's what makes borgfeld, bremen and north germany so great. i can still o visit many places from here, but i'd love this to become my permanent home, sometime.<br />
here are just a few pics:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Hi2FbQdKFf9iuq60OtKQS8oZkN27SA1CtjchqJX3dm0L1E8_iLaItSkmc9F4ZS3lbB4Qsi5mEdDvMSYj0mmPQxPJZQMuiag-_3wU2-Pc03RL_GqzeyljmLXXDOY8jjSXzrgHoE8IXmMc/s1600/w%25C3%25BCmme+and+before+015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Hi2FbQdKFf9iuq60OtKQS8oZkN27SA1CtjchqJX3dm0L1E8_iLaItSkmc9F4ZS3lbB4Qsi5mEdDvMSYj0mmPQxPJZQMuiag-_3wU2-Pc03RL_GqzeyljmLXXDOY8jjSXzrgHoE8IXmMc/s320/w%25C3%25BCmme+and+before+015.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv9x3Odzeh-GszIxNlfT_lhqaopjb2zj87XwpxmTBUEY1XscuU4iH7OuIPgQVkZqwKDN5q4NqqZ2YNS435fPWqVUD5UWSZsTKlvzL7kvvBMy4f1SDG1uDWkNnYYltmRvxVgcJlMR4wt_jl/s1600/w%25C3%25BCmme+and+before+039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv9x3Odzeh-GszIxNlfT_lhqaopjb2zj87XwpxmTBUEY1XscuU4iH7OuIPgQVkZqwKDN5q4NqqZ2YNS435fPWqVUD5UWSZsTKlvzL7kvvBMy4f1SDG1uDWkNnYYltmRvxVgcJlMR4wt_jl/s320/w%25C3%25BCmme+and+before+039.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-75124299305089668522011-01-15T11:23:00.000+01:002011-01-15T11:23:10.503+01:00album 43: saviour (various artists)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYB7BnSA-prL6WBBoEOcimjxgBGiIKbinxs2F70dnMh7icdoOev_5p-WLLAUnVrYNPIRNey2_gG6savXXCUvgZlZE9RMp4Ah3C2PbgxqAUrb1F11S8gM-uS6f93I_BMQFIiBqMd9IoWsz_/s1600/26+-+saviour.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYB7BnSA-prL6WBBoEOcimjxgBGiIKbinxs2F70dnMh7icdoOev_5p-WLLAUnVrYNPIRNey2_gG6savXXCUvgZlZE9RMp4Ah3C2PbgxqAUrb1F11S8gM-uS6f93I_BMQFIiBqMd9IoWsz_/s320/26+-+saviour.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">those were good times - when major projects were made, and all major christian contemporary music artists would be invited to lend their talents and voices. the beginning of the 90s had a few of those projects, and i'd like to mention "the new young messiah" and "my utmost for his highest" as very good examples of making this format work.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">it was a special project led by greg nelson and phil mchugh, who had made a name for themselves producing the big ccm christian singers of the 80s, sandi patti, steve green and larnelle harris. greg and phil are producers, arranjers and composers, and that's what they did on this special project, which was supposed to be their musical masterpiece. and, to me, it still is. "saviour" attempts to be a musical, and instead of everyone singing a solo or participating in a duet, this time the idea was to ask five singers to solo, duet, trio in various songs, accompanied and sometimes lead by a choir. the high quality of this album is certainly also due to the talent of larnelle harris, steve green and wintley phipps in top form, and a fantastic choir, far from being only backups to the "stars". twila paris did very well, and even wayne watson was okay.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">but the songs and arrangements are at the heart of this endeavor; the choir does a great job in the opening (creation) and in the exodos (slavery and freedom), singing very profound and witty lyrics in great orchestreal, but still modern and timeless music. "the kings of the earth", featuring harris, green and phipps, and the creation of man duet pulled off grandiously by phipps as God and harris as adam ("my heart belongs to you") are the high points of the repertoire, with the song "the rose of sharom" being also beautiful.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">all in all, a true masterpiece in christian music, with some really thrilling moments in between. i've sung it twice in portuguese, and it was still really great - which gives the songwriters and arrangers even more credit.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-38923224601468139432010-12-05T17:45:00.000+01:002010-12-05T17:45:42.888+01:00album 44: pat metheny group (pat metheny group)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPrP77KgvL1wijKvMiwZ5GS-EwhJcoXw01BtqMIZdNvszOPTORcD5diJZlDvqpZTO_jKKZuRx-hqyPeIWoFqPjPmXU6z-fsyTFD-gf-lSZeo-th-ytUPW-DFsr0LBt8y4-Dob4j6e85seZ/s1600/14+-+pat+metheny+group.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPrP77KgvL1wijKvMiwZ5GS-EwhJcoXw01BtqMIZdNvszOPTORcD5diJZlDvqpZTO_jKKZuRx-hqyPeIWoFqPjPmXU6z-fsyTFD-gf-lSZeo-th-ytUPW-DFsr0LBt8y4-Dob4j6e85seZ/s320/14+-+pat+metheny+group.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">this album was the very first recording by the then recently founded pat metheny group, recorded and released in 1978. young jazz guitar player pat metheny and piano master lyle mays co-founded the group and included mark egan on bass guitar and dan gottblieb on drums to form the first of not too many lineups of the group's history. and it was quite a remarkable start.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">the album opens with an over 10-minute tune featuring pat on a 12-string guitar with peculiar tuning and a long solo by lyle mays. what a way to start a debut album: no solo for the lead musician, over 10 minutes and a never-heard before guitar sound. needless to say that "san lorenzo" is a classic, and with merit. "phase dance" is the second track and most likely the most popular one on the album, with pat now playing the guitar who most uses, and the group presenting one of their key features: an apparently simple musical idea develops into a sometimes apotheotic, but almost always harmonically complex track. the album has six tracks and was produced by manfred eichner, the german jazz visionary and founder of the ecm label.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">two additional interesting notes: the track "april joy" already cites "phase dance", quite funny to see in an album, and even in a debut album. and at that time, the group toured extensively with new material and only then went to the studio to record the music, and not the other way around.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-19401331954783238902010-11-28T15:20:00.002+01:002010-11-28T18:31:15.091+01:00happy birthday lyle<div style="text-align: justify;">i've written about him already. my one musical hero, someone who speaks musically. and who i really feel i understand, i empathize with. let's have a quick look at his life, from my point of view:</div><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>at age 20, lyle mays met pat metheny. living in new york and co-founding the pat metheny group, the idealist was living for music - and almost starving, literally.</li>
<li>at age 23, lyle and pat joined up with eberhard weber and nana vasconcelos (by request of the great manfred eichner) to record "watercolors" in ludwigsburg, my father's home town. trully great music, beyond jazz for sure.</li>
<li>at age 24, lyle and pat recorded the first pat metheny group album, self-intitled and known today as "the white album". another landmark. with lyle mays having the first solo in the groups history, a 5-minute solo even, in the tune "san lorenzo".</li>
<li>at age 26, he records his (for me historic) solo in "the search", from the american garage album.</li>
<li>at age 27, he puts out a duo album with pat, supported by nana: as falls wichita, so falls wichita falls is one of the best albums ever, and lyle's work on "ozark" and "september fifteenth" is legendary.</li>
<li>at age 28, he collaborates with the german bassist eberhard weber and plays the piano on "maurizius". </li>
<li>at age 29, he wins his first of eleven grammy awards for the group's live album "travels".</li>
<li>at age 30, he presents us with his participation in the classic "first circle".</li>
<li>at age 32, he records my all-time favorite album, and his first solo effort "lyle mays", with eight simple incredible tracks. that's music. no categories, just music.</li>
<li>at age 33, my current age, he was recording such tunes as "last train home" and "minuano" for the album still life: talking, pmg.</li>
<li>at age 34, his second album comes out, with some really great moments in street dreams. </li>
<li>at age 35, he records "letter from home". </li>
<li>at age 36, he collaborates with bobby mcferrin on the album "medicine music", with the song "common threads".</li>
<li>at age 41, he playes his solo on "to the end of the world" and his incredible composition "episode d'azur", both on the pmg album "we live here".</li>
<li>at age 42, his musical sensitivity plays a great role in pmg's improvisational album "quartet", a great conceptual success.</li>
<li>at age 43, what a fantastic job with "imaginar day" and some legendary piano work on "the heat of the day" and, most of all, "the awakening".</li>
<li>at age 46, his fourth solo effort "solo" comes out - and it is precious!</li>
<li>at age 48, some really great work and improvising on "speaking of now", pmg's 2002 output.</li>
<li>at age 51, lyle was the mastermind behind the 68 minute long track "the way up", pmg's masterpiece.</li>
</ul>yesterday was lyle may's 57th birthday. we miss your music, man!marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-10236496937203757702010-11-25T06:59:00.000+01:002010-11-25T06:59:18.309+01:00smells like snowi'd missed that feeling.<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">yesterday, walking through the beautifiul city center of bremen. lights everywhere, christmas in the air, the smell of mandeln and sweets, warm mixed with cold. and, most of all, the crisp air, cold. someone next to me said what i was thinking: it smells like snow.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">the first snow of bremen's winter seemed to be felt in the air. and it was no surprise, but still a delight, to see the signs of that first snow when i left for school this morning.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i'd missed that feeling.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-7772232353254251922010-11-24T19:51:00.001+01:002010-11-24T19:52:55.144+01:00album 45: brand new day (sting)<div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg15I-GOJUcqTn_nsUIE3yboTN2vFpU6pPtkjZ7rf2TjowQtYA-56eTMkxJYg9sTph13YaSFvZkmpQzTvkFEAzfkWBjLWJegnejEMA-i6yDE0s-tmoc87GiX12lI7_fcdEXZfYPzj7ApEnQ/s1600/42+-+brand+new+day.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg15I-GOJUcqTn_nsUIE3yboTN2vFpU6pPtkjZ7rf2TjowQtYA-56eTMkxJYg9sTph13YaSFvZkmpQzTvkFEAzfkWBjLWJegnejEMA-i6yDE0s-tmoc87GiX12lI7_fcdEXZfYPzj7ApEnQ/s320/42+-+brand+new+day.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>last month i had the unique experience of attending a sting concert live. it was trully beyond words, much more than i had expected - his greatest songs in the setting of a great orchestra, some great arrangements and musical moments, and just a great performance by everyone, from his backing vocal lady (who i've been a fan of since his last winter album) over dominic miller to sting himself, in top form. and he did play one or the other tune from one of his great studio albums, the last one i cared to by (besides the winter album). "brand new day" had the idea of a brand new millenium, since it was recorded in 1999. the title song (with stevie wonder playing his harmonica) is okay, but the outstanding tracks are the opener (which is a sting tradition, always opening strong) called "a thousand years", the fantastic story and vibe in "after the rain has fallen" and the best tune on the album, "ghost story". once again, sting imerges into the worlds of the most different characters, so this album has a ten summoner's tale feel to it. "big lie, small world", "fill her up" and "tomorrow we'll see" help make the album an overall great piece of musical work.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">you might want to try some of these songs out if you're not all to familiar with sting's later, post-the police, work. as always, the lyrics really give sense to the music.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-91265724345967262712010-11-21T19:52:00.001+01:002010-11-21T19:53:27.991+01:00album 46: mensch (herbert grönemeyer)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTb6bfSe-6R00Do8EEqmAChyHCqt-uBl2umaHsDCXTEzXOXV68DzjEBFE38zLUSrzxHzf1k50N3_a93kGR8y8KZGheHwwCzefnEc-dfuG2DgzhC9d3d6TIEh7JL7oHAmjEpNDrvVJDZkGA/s1600/mensch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTb6bfSe-6R00Do8EEqmAChyHCqt-uBl2umaHsDCXTEzXOXV68DzjEBFE38zLUSrzxHzf1k50N3_a93kGR8y8KZGheHwwCzefnEc-dfuG2DgzhC9d3d6TIEh7JL7oHAmjEpNDrvVJDZkGA/s320/mensch.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">this album is trully remarkable. it was grönemeyer's first release of new music after his wife's and brothers death in the same week. grönemeyer had already been germany's most successful artist, but this album gave him his first number one single, the great title track "mensch". in midst of a summer crisis in germany (natural causes, floods) and his personal suffering, the song brought hope to a whole country. with this, the album was released and became the most successful to date, in 2002. in sales, but also in critical acclaim. it is a really good overall album, with two highlights: his homage to his deceased wife is the most beautiful peace of music i've ever heard, for that particular situation. his lyrics are once again beyond words, and the song is exactly what it should be. and the final track, "zum meer", uses the sea once again as an emotional platform and produces a very strong closing track, a mix of melancholy and hope. this album is rightly in my top 50 of all time.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-86607618227535098942010-11-15T09:09:00.002+01:002010-11-15T15:16:47.392+01:00character translated into music<div style="text-align: justify;">he wasn't only one of the finest musicains i've ever known. a master of sensibility and creativity, with unbelievable talent and taste on the piano. he was also one of the best people i've ever met.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">wendel mattos passed away a few hours ago. he's been battleing diverse diseases since seemingly always, and he'd overcome all of them, until the most recent one. there is no doubt that he left us much too soon, but his legacy will on in music and, most of all, example.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">wendel's rarity consisted in him being a very authentic person. a true believer, who didn't talk about it, but rather chose to live it in every aspect of his life. his compositions and musical contributions were the best way of giving his God-given talent back to the Creator, but it seemed always in perfect harmony with his character. wendel would trully let himself be used as an instrument, and he gained his meaning and purpose of life from that fact, translated into experiences and musical notes. he didn't just talk about the Truth, he felt it and lived it. he never did it in such a way that everybody could see, but everyone who wanted to, could.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">his testimony will remain. it will still inspire many lives, as it has up to now. and when that day comes, wendel will have the pleasure to meet people living long after him, but who got to know the Lord through his life works and example.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">may God continue to use his now resting instrument. touching lives with that genius stroke on he piano, those beautiful and simple melodies, those profound lyrics and that shining example. he has touched my life many times, and his life will continue to be vital for mine.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">can't wait to see him again.</div><object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZrQXx7iaFqs?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZrQXx7iaFqs?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-26670147463131016792010-09-18T15:05:00.000+02:002010-09-18T15:05:06.470+02:00my grandmothershe was very special lady.<br />
incredibely loving and patient.<br />
truthful, simple, grand.<br />
her cooking was characteristic, the taste felt like a home i never knew.<br />
she sat there, she smiled, she loved.<br />
she cried everytime i left.<br />
i shed a tear when she left.<br />
we will meet again, vovó iolanda.marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-1209815272433204842010-07-18T09:30:00.002+02:002010-07-18T09:56:26.192+02:00classicsokay, this post will be kind of old. and maybe a little corny. but it has to be.<div style="text-align: justify;">i find myself really appreciating the music of the 1976-85 era. some of my favorite music bands and acts have their origin there, but in this little post i am not referring the the police's success (culminating to "every breath you take" in 1984), the beginning of the pat metheny group in 1978, simply red's initial steps with the classic "holding back the years" in 1985, or even michael jackson's albums "off the wall" and "thriller", all within that time period.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i want to write about those great radio songs there used to be (sounds old, but it's true, we just don't have them anymore). i'm sure you can think of quite a few of them, but i want to remember only three.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i first heard john miles' "music" in the late eighties - and it is one of those timeless classics that will always pop up on radios anywhere, at the most unexpected times. i really like this song, until today, although it is one of the famous cases of "one-hit-wonders", originally released in 1976 by the pianist and studio musician (abby road) john miles. here's a recent live version:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RSsWWA2_SDQ&hl=de_DE&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RSsWWA2_SDQ&hl=de_DE&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">the next artist had more than one hit: christopher cross might not be a household name to most, but at least three of his songs are extremely recognizable, even after three decades: his debut single "riding like the wind", released in 1980 and, even more so, "arthur's theme", which is more known as "best what you can do" and is famous for the phrase "when you get caught between the moon and new york city". but who doesn't know this eternal radio megahit? i must say, it is a personal favorite, corny as that may be. but that's just some good music! here a live version:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/j9NkBxxHxAc&hl=de_DE&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/j9NkBxxHxAc&hl=de_DE&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">and finally, the classic chicago. a phenomena in terms of popularity of albums and songs, the band based in the illinois capital had top 15 hits in all of their first 10 albums, but it took them until their 10th album in 1976 to get their first number one. and it is quite a beautiful one at that, a classic from 1976. enjoy. by the way, the brass was always an essential part of the band.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/32GdEFADy6s&hl=de_DE&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/32GdEFADy6s&hl=de_DE&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-18946321414473996272010-07-15T07:18:00.003+02:002010-07-15T07:43:55.880+02:00seven years<div style="text-align: justify;">today is july 15. i woke up to the song of birds, familiar to me in the past. a cool breeze met me when i left the little bed & breakfast room to head for a 7 am breakfast - a delicious one, at that. yesterday, it was 35º even at 5 pm, but today should be a cooler day after the rain over night.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i'm at my new reality. bremen. i got to know my future flat yesterday, and both it and the surroundings are much better than i dreamed.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i feel a great amount of gratitude. to God, first and foremost. but i've been thinking of someone else lately, someone who's always been there for me.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i've known him for almost 31 years now. we grew up together. but it wasn't until the summer of 1992, when my older brother left for boarding school, that we got to live as a duo instead of a trio, for the first time. that 92/93 year was the first year leo and me would get to know and admire each other a little more than before. then it was my turn to leave, and we were only reunited as a duo in 1995, this time at the brazilian boarding school. once again, our crowds were not the same, but it brought us together another bit. just like 1999, when andre once again had left, this time to work. leo and me spent quite a bit of time together, some of it with edson and didio, two good friends from university.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">these three years in particular had brought us together quite a bit; musical influences were now going both ways, talk about girlfriends and similar life situations became deeper, and the incredible connection we three brothers always had was revealing itself more and more in those years.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">then it was my turn to leave, to take a job in south brazil. at the end of 2003, it had been 4 years later, and quite a lot had changed. now in são paulo, leo had become a professional singer, besides concluding his studies in literature. we moved in together, in what was to be our longest period as a duo - two and a half years. although he travelled a lot, i have inumerous great memories from that time, mostly involving music, movies and talks. i'd always been a great fan of his creativity, which was first revealed through his writing when he was still a young teenager. i'd always admired his firmness and natural leadership, which he has had since his first years at school. and i was becoming more and more impressed by his great generosity, so authentic and meaningful.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">in 2008, we moved back in together, for our seemingly last year as a duo. you must understand, i had only lived with andre and without leo for 3 years, and they've never lived only them two, without me; and leo and i were completing 6 1/2 years without andre. i remember feeling empty the day he left, but it was for a good cause: he was getting married!</div><div style="text-align: justify;">january 2010. once again, leo's generosity showed its face in my life, and because of his iniciative, shared by his wife dani, we had a wonderful trip to snowy north germany. and he took me to the interview in bremen. which is were i am now, with a big smile on my face.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">but that was not enough - after i accepted the job offer, i moved in with him and his wife, who took me in for this last half year, helping me to save up some money for this new, fresh start, this comeback to germany.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">we completed the seven years.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">and i am so thankful for this last semester, and for all of these years.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i'm not someone who misses places or peoples after i move on to other things. i love nostalgia, but i don't miss.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i miss leo.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">it's so good to know that he doesn't only root for me and my happiness, but participates so actively in it. thanks.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">boatdrinks.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-68555130843111921562010-06-25T14:51:00.002+02:002010-06-25T15:00:59.811+02:00album 47: chaos (herbert grönemeyer)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnUXMaWhVmEODlwS8YO5BbxsJLdCygfn2Zc1CzHHqYaT2ng6i_RlEKyiIVUrwfxv7J69LIN8Q7alS6q1t8N3tlRcX7-bQnrddqW3HM2jlW86LRjlnbs6FiKQ4pV7TMttrLK4d4rQ7RcUDu/s1600/chaos.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 230px; height: 230px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnUXMaWhVmEODlwS8YO5BbxsJLdCygfn2Zc1CzHHqYaT2ng6i_RlEKyiIVUrwfxv7J69LIN8Q7alS6q1t8N3tlRcX7-bQnrddqW3HM2jlW86LRjlnbs6FiKQ4pV7TMttrLK4d4rQ7RcUDu/s320/chaos.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486695532437393746" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">herbert grönemeyer has been in my musical life since 1990. he entered it via the album "luxus", which didn't make it into the top 50. "chaos" was the first new album released after listening to grönemeyer, and it was a big hit with me. the german pop/rock artist and his band use music to underline fantastic lyrics, and he is never afraid to try something new. his ballads are just great, and two of them are my favorite songs on this album: "land unter" and "kein verlust". but i also have grown to really love listening to "morgenrot", and since i bought the album, "chaos" and "grönland" have been personal hits.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">the themes of the album are diverse. "land unter" is romantic, and might have something to do with his recent marriage to the mother of his two children. "kein verlust" talks about loss of trust in a friendship, "chaos" is a critique of society, while "grönland" has a very interesting lyric, comparing the two unified germanys to a married couple with severe problems of relationship. "morgenrot" has a somewhat typical "i'd do anything for you" grönemeyer-lyric, but he is unique in writing great poetry that can be sung; of course non-germans will find the language very strange und maybe even non-musical, but it sounds quite natural to german speakers.</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-19892392418999525762010-06-20T16:26:00.002+02:002010-06-20T16:40:38.953+02:00album 48: so (peter gabriel)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZSFBqmu_dyorqPlBkKi6VOosHRz4hKOweACeAnt6W8mXZZxbkSRUFHLOjpZ1q0oVua_UBVEN5pxhR8zgASTbowVBAQ3zwTGE7F903ZGFV0aN7cj-rliaDhV7RvfWibEHLw4UHFVKbZf4T/s1600/pg+so.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZSFBqmu_dyorqPlBkKi6VOosHRz4hKOweACeAnt6W8mXZZxbkSRUFHLOjpZ1q0oVua_UBVEN5pxhR8zgASTbowVBAQ3zwTGE7F903ZGFV0aN7cj-rliaDhV7RvfWibEHLw4UHFVKbZf4T/s320/pg+so.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484865777165477394" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">the first time peter gabriel really caught my attention was in 1993. "so" was my second pg album, and it instantly became a favorite, initially even surpassing my passion for "us", my first pg album. this was mainly due to really strong tracks, like the opener "red rain", a typical peter gabriel song with lots of passion, rythm and sound. but my two favorite tracks on the album are also two of my all-time favorites from peter gabriel and in general: "in your eyes", with a great special participation of sengalese yossou 'n dour, who was discovered by pg; and, most of all, the fantastic "mercy street", just a great overall track. </div><div style="text-align: justify;">"don't give up" and "sledgehammer" were the big hits when the album was initially released in 1986. it was produced by daniel lanois, who has also worked with u2. "so" was a big success everywhere, mostly in the uk (reached number one spot) and the us (reached number 2 on billboard). "sledgehammer" was number one on billboard, and number 4 in the uk; the second biggest hit out of the album was "big time", largely due to its innovative video (a mark in pg's career and a reasons for sledgehammer's success). i like all songs on the album, but only see three really strong ones. </div><div style="text-align: justify;">peter gabriel has never been as successful as in times of the "so" album (nominated for four grammy awards, including album of the year), but he is constantly a great musician, with love for art and production values. </div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-67681211097371705602010-06-19T15:17:00.002+02:002010-06-19T15:31:51.834+02:00album 49: so much 2 say (take 6)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh-_j6d_d5q70Zm8kPYgtezps_AfKgbXErUryRJnx7rGjZrkOir4lzXR6BGYLHxPaiuyoIrWzm-RLwxl8ZvUNjtCiSWOhei5NfVSpwSS0_rMmG_g8milbBMZGDHYsbgnljd2IyjggGoTW3/s1600/22+-+so+much+2+say.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh-_j6d_d5q70Zm8kPYgtezps_AfKgbXErUryRJnx7rGjZrkOir4lzXR6BGYLHxPaiuyoIrWzm-RLwxl8ZvUNjtCiSWOhei5NfVSpwSS0_rMmG_g8milbBMZGDHYsbgnljd2IyjggGoTW3/s320/22+-+so+much+2+say.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484476947917555746" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">take 6's second album was released in 1990, so we gonçalves kids got to knowing and loving it at the same time or even a tad earlier than the debut release. it is a true classic, with a much higher production value than its precessor (and mervyn warren the main producer), but a little less quality, all in all. still, i like this album a little better, mostly because of the song "come unto me", which is probably me all-time take 6 favorite. they've had some really good songs after that, but never any really great albums: this was the last great collection, and it even had a hit: "I L-O-V-E U" reached #19 in the hot r&b/hip-hop charts, and the album peaked at #2 in the contemporary jazz albums, and a respectable #72 in the billboard charts; another grammy came their way, and it was deserved: some great "traditional" a capella with "something within me", the mind-blowing opening title track, incredible arrangements as in "time after time", great production in "sunday's on the way". i do not like the last track, the first instrumental one for take 6. but it is an overall great album, confirming the incredible vocal versatility and quality of the sextet, and the high musical and spiritual value from the debut album, which was, indeed, a tough act to follow.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">as mentioned above, take 6 has, since then, released another nine studio albums, each one a little worse than the one before. some memorable tracks have come out of those, though, and i would like to mention them: "o come all ye faithful" from "he is christmas"; "biggest part of me" from "join the band" (which is a pretty damn good album); "Jesus makes me happy" from "brothers"; and "a few more miles" from "so cool". </div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-64021911352226563622010-06-19T14:56:00.003+02:002010-06-19T15:14:39.102+02:00album 50: take 6 (take 6)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaRPrpvtlqhk4zAAYfCp5TeUE27A0GxNxpKIXpjVoTGCrG4PQ5y8wp5qlTxZI8nrjK73P5CfBv_5KF7adfREBA0dnOXMFqGIldinnCoiuHqj0Y303xn1hGw7b6QSX4mDiWLodA5Ezj2OMT/s1600/32+-+take+6.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaRPrpvtlqhk4zAAYfCp5TeUE27A0GxNxpKIXpjVoTGCrG4PQ5y8wp5qlTxZI8nrjK73P5CfBv_5KF7adfREBA0dnOXMFqGIldinnCoiuHqj0Y303xn1hGw7b6QSX4mDiWLodA5Ezj2OMT/s320/32+-+take+6.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484471537700801618" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">it happened in a classroom in gymnasium oedeme, my highschool in lüneburg, germany. 8th grade, fall of 1990. my music teacher detlef schult, who was also the leader of the high school big band, was introducing that year's curriculum for his classes: a full year of jazz!</div><div style="text-align: justify;">he chose an a capella group to talk about pentatonics, and played a negro-spiritual called "mary", a typical call-response song, where the soloist would "call" mostly using the pentatonic notes. i was impressed, really impressed. little did i know that the chosen group was take 6, a sextet coming out of the adventist church, which is my religious denomination.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">their debut album, containing the song "mary", has been a huge hit with me and my brothers since those times, a solid 20 years now. it is an exceptional album with not one "weaker" track on it. the crowd favorites are normally "get away, jordan" and "david and goliath", but my personal favorites are "milky white way" and "He never sleeps". at the time, the album already was revolutionary, and it won alvin chea, cedrick dent, david thomas, mervyn warren, mark kibble and claude mcnight iii (brian's brother) three grammy award nominations (with two wins), including being nominated for "best new artist", a platinum disc (best-selling take 6 album to date), and a whole lot of respect in the music industry.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">most of all, it is musically of the highest quality, 100% a capella, and spiritually strong. great album, to say the least!</div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-67097320723844137872010-06-17T15:51:00.001+02:002010-06-17T15:52:57.393+02:00class of 2010 - the "original" speechyes, it was my first time. yes, i was very nervous, and emotional. and yes, everyone noticed it, i'm glad my students are forgiving and warm.<div>for you, and for whoever would like to read it, this is what i actually wrote down and was supposed to me my speech on that June 28 evening:</div><div><br /></div><div>"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Cambria, serif; line-height: 18px; ">i hope you all are having a good evening. this is an important audience, because each and every one of you has been vital to the success of this class; as a parent, teacher, administrator, sibling, friend. this class owes a lot to you.</span></div> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">i now ask for your permission to address them.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">first of all, i would like to thank you, the class of 2010, for the honor of being able to have this last little class. a public one, which takes me three years back.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">after two years as a guidance counselor in a brazilian private school, i was looking for a job in the international school world, hoping to teach mathematics. like most of you, i’ve loved math all my life, and after completing my degree in education, i started my studies in math. i’d never heard of chapel before, it was my cousin who gave me the hint. in april of 2007, mr feitosa told me that a few months earlier, chapel school had been looking for a math teacher. i wrote the school the very next day, and was immediately invited to an interview. i still remember the seemingly endless walk from the reception to mr ciallelo’s office. a strange world that has become home to me.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">i felt the interview went ok, and a “test class” was the next step in the process. after my first contact with miss may, it became clear the audience that time would be these good-looking people, but in 9<sup>th</sup> grade. “this is generally a good class”, she told me. and finally, in the beginning of may, i had a chance to see for myself.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">so there i was, about to teach a rather public class. mr ciallelo, ms colgrove, my good friend mr murphy, and ms may where there. less public than today, but maybe even more pressure. i remember talking to anders boman before class. and i know that quite of few of you sitting here were there too. you probably don’t remember it, but i sure do! i remember silvia and jayme. and i remember that the class was about n-gons.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">the class didn’t go too well. i was more nervous than i anticipated, it was my first math class ever, and i wasn’t really used to speaking english at the time. in the interview after the class, i was told that a decision would be made by the end of may – and that if they didn’t call me, i should call in to find out.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">can you imagine my disappointment? i was quite mad at myself, because i felt i had failed under pressure.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">and sure enough, i didn’t get a call at the end of may. instead, i called – and was surprised by the information that they were still interviewing and that they would call me with a final answer a few days later. which meant that somehow i was still in the running.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">i was very surprised when mr ciallelo offered me the job. and it only made sense that the schedule i received soon thereafter featured one class heavily – the one sitting in front of me.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">and how lucky i have been! this might sound over the top, i am aware of that. but it is the honest truth: i never knew how wonderful teaching could be before i taught this class. don’t get me wrong: i’ve always enjoyed teaching and i’ve had a few memorable classes in the past, but this was something different, something else. students who hated physics studying it over night to do well in a test; of course, the grade seemed to be a big motivator, but there was certainly quite a bit more to it. at times, they actually seemed interested! and, very important for an effective classroom, they had a great sense of humor. some of their invented expressions were incorporated into my own vocabulary, and although no one seems to say “mythical”, “jebondy” or “jebonai” any more, i have a few friends outside of school who still do.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">but over the course of that first year, when some students had to put up with me in two classes (physics <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">and</b> math), i understood more about why this class was different. they accepted people. they respected. they included. and they did it because they believed it to be right.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">three years have passed. i’ve seen less of you as a whole class, although poor arthur has had me as a teacher in a record 5,5 classes. i’ve seen you fight for academic success. numbers and statistics don’t lie – this class has been a success story for our school and for us, teachers. you have mastered some tough ib classes and are headed for some pretty interesting college experiences. and all the hard work will pay off immediately. in your math-related courses, i guarantee you at least one full semester of pure review.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">but today is no time to talk about math or physics. neither is it necessarily a time to talk about the future, the world’s challenges and what you guys can do about both of these things. i guess as we live longer, we notice that more things seem to be out of our control than we might desire. you have shown what can be done with great determination, a sense of union and a nice dose of humor. but it should also be clear to you that total control of your life’s destiny is and will always be unreachable; and it might not even be worth reaching.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">there are things you <u>can</u> control. like happiness, for example. i know that this is quite a statement to make, since we generally have difficulties even defining what happiness is. i mean, is it a feeling, is it a state of mind, is it even tangible – can it be scientifically proven? are there parameters that tell us when we reach maximum or minimum local happiness? do we just derive the function of happiness and equal it to zero? and if there is a function of happiness, what would the independent variable be?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">i want to make point tonight, a quite obvious one, almost cliché. i agree that there is more than one variable to happiness, but i want to focus on the most basic – the love variable.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">i firmly believe that it is impossible to be happy if you haven’t learned to love. the curriculum of love is the most difficult around, believe me. it’s tougher than ib, and if you don’t take some time to learn it and practice it, happiness will not be easy to come by. not the exhilarant happiness of a moment, but the constant one. the one that is still there when you’re disappointed, suffer setbacks or are tired and sad.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">previous knowledge in the subject of love is diverse, because it depends so much on past individual experience. but some things generally don’t have to be learned: how to love or hate yourself, sometimes almost simultaneously. how to fall in love, and even how to fall out of it. and how to despise or hate, which are some weird, but not uncommon forms of love. you might agree that some of these might provoke the exact opposite of happiness – which is not sadness, but fear. it is fear that leads to hatred, or despair, or loneliness, or depression, or indifference. if that is the case, then there must be some kind of connection between happiness and love. f(x) and x, if you will. (i can’t help myself.) because the cubic function comes to mind – you know which one i mean? as x goes to infinite positive, the sky is the limit for f(x) – but the reverse is also true.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">how do we make the x tend to positive infinite? in other words, how can we actually learn to love? is there a right way to love? there is. and i’d like to close these considerations with three steps you can take towards the infinite:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">first: step down of your own pedestal. as you know, i am a firm believer in God. therefore, it should be quite easy for me to put myself in my place, shouldn’t it? but my ego makes it difficult to follow this first step. true humility is a noble goal, and it is definitely worth pursuing. but i know from own experience that the closer i get to being truly humble, the happier i am.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">second: know and appreciate yourself. it’s tough to sometimes look at ourselves and see the many shortcomings. this is why we sometimes avoid to look, and react allergic to those who we think or know are seeing these shortcomings. once again, this is fear showing its ugly face. don’t be afraid to look at yourself, come to terms with whom you are, and be okay with it. is that easy? not at all! but i can assure you, it is a way to happiness, because it is essential in the love curriculum.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language: EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA"><br /> </span> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%; font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">third: as the good ol’ book puts it, “love thy neighbor”. and when i say “love”, i don’t mean like. to like is more specific, it has to do with affinity; you know when you just get along with someone, and you just don’t get along with that other someone? but to love, this is more essential, broader. it’s a genuine respect for the other, for his or her story, feelings, dreams. it’s independent of weaknesses and free of judgment; it is not conditional. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">these steps are connected and support each other. it’s actually like a triangle: learning to love others in a genuine way really helps you to be okay with yourself, and puts our own ego-trip into perspective. learning to love ourselves really helps us appreciate and respect others, once again making us capable of seeing the big picture. and recognizing that i am not more important than anyone else who is trying to live a happy life on this planet really makes us move into the direction of loving others – which always finds a way of reflecting back to us. but the first step is more important, since without humility, self-love will be our natural tendency, and unhappiness will follow, sooner or later.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">this is my one advice for this special moment: please remember to constantly take time to reflect on the curriculum of love, and on the things that really matter. the studying, the career, the work, maybe the future family, the ideals – this is all extremely important. but without the love, it seems somewhat meaningless – because love is a key ingredient in all of these things, we can’t really run away from it. grow in that curriculum, one that has no limits to it. work on the x-axis, and the dependent variable happiness will react.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">the true reason this class is so special to me is that i’ve grown in all three steps of this special curriculum because of you. you have taught me lessons of love, and it is not difficult to say that you have my unconditional love. please, continue to grow in love, and radiate this truth to others the same way you have radiated it to your parents, your teachers, your colleagues and to me. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">my cycle at this beloved school started with you, and it is ending with you. this public class is over. may you, the class of 2010, be remembered and known as the class that learned to love, and the world will certainly be a happier place for it. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language: EN-US">congratulations, you all deserve love and happiness – today and tomorrow!"<o:p></o:p></span></p>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-74715456307893372302010-06-06T18:57:00.003+02:002010-06-06T19:23:26.804+02:00series - top 50 albums of all time<div style="text-align: justify;">music is a very personal thing. i've been listening to it with mind and heart since 1986, i would say. and after almost 25 years of listening to it, and making some of it my own life soundtrack, i will countdown a very personal analysis of the top 50 albums in these years. in some of them, it will only be about the music; in others, also about what memories that music brings forth, and what emotions it awakens.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">i'm looking forward to this little journey and will start it with albums that have not made the top 50, but have historical significance to me:</div><div style="text-align: justify;">herbert grönemeyer is quite a big name to me, and it all started with the album "4630 bochum", ranked only 88th. it was my intro to grönemeyer's music and great lyrics, and it remembers me of one of my all-time best summers, the summer of 1990 at the eisenberg camp. "flugzeuge im bauch" was just the favorite song, i used to really enjoy all of them. which is not the case any more...</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"first circle" was an early favorite in my pat metheny musical journey, around 1997. it is still one of my favorite all-time songs, and "if i could" is another old favorite, but it was not enough for the album "first circle" to be in the top 50, landing only in 80th.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"picture book" was part of my around 2-year obsession with simply red. my favorite song by that band, "holding back the years", is still one of my all-time favorites. but the album has too many weak tracks and landed in 79th.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">right above it, "hymns" by steve green is found. this was the album i most listened to in the year 1994, and it was a really big album them. arrangements are still great now, but i've lost the love for this album.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">right above that one, "ganz behutsam fängt es an" was one of my very early musical influences. it reminds me of my neighbour kiki, mostly "frei wie der adler im wind". the song "vater, ich danke Dir dafür" is still a favorite.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">in 74th, luxus. this was my favorite herbert grönemeyer album until last year, and it is full of nostalgy, since it marked the years of 1990 and 1991. it fell out of the top 50 for being just not good enough musically, although "marie" will always be an all-time favorite.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">in 72nd, "escolhi acreditar" was always considered the best tom de vida album, mostly in terms of production. but the album is too short to take away the weight of the not-as-good tracks, and is now only third place out of the four tom de vida albums.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"le voyage" still is a classic, from sandi patty. some really outstanding singing and piano/orchestra work, still a reference, but only 71st in the ranking.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">69th place is occupied by a keith garret trio "the cure", one of the first jazz albums i ever really heard. very big influence in my taste for piano interpretation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">one of two sting solo album out of the top 50, "the dream of the blue turtle", his solo debut, landed on 65th, lacking real personal favorites.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"letter from home" was an early pat metheny group favorite, but is now one of the few out of the top 50. still a very good album, with the great title track to end it.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">in 2001, i remember thinking of this album as a revolution in brazilian christian music, mostly in terms of production, and "o melhor lugar do mundo" has some pretty good songs, too - but not enough to be in the top 50, it was only 63rd.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"the new young messiah" was a big hit in my time at boarding school iasp, and interesting enough, it was that album that introduced me to the actual händel's messiah. great trio by larnelle, steve and michael, helping the album to finish 59th.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"beyond the missouri sky" is a masterpiece by guitar giant pat metheny and base guitar player charlie haden, and the album has a high musical level throughout. it's almost a shame that i didn't really ever get too warm with most of the songs - 58th.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"...nothing like the sun" has many good songs, but not enough really great ones to be in the top 50. "they dance alone" is still a favorite in sting's repertoire, though.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">michael jackson's "bad" was an early favorite for me, "liberian girl" was my favorite song and remembered me of jana deutsch, for some strange reason. now, "man in the mirror" is not only my favorite track on the album, but also my favorite mj song. the album is 56th.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"my utmost for His highest" was long considered by me to be an almost ideal christian contemporary album, and it's songs are very strong until today. not enough to make the album top 50, it ended up in 55th.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"pictures at an exhibition" was the first album i ever bought, and i still really love it, as a grand work of art. but only few tracks really made it to the all-time favorites status.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">simply red's "stars" was the album i most listened to for at least two years. i still think it has mostly really great songs, but the problem is that none of them is still a favorite for me. 52nd place, right in front of "pictures".</div><div style="text-align: justify;">tonex is out of the top 50. 51st with o2, 75th with pronounced toe-nay. some really good stuff, some if it inspiring, but just that little bit lacking the real "star" quality.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-6200352993793456512009-11-03T01:26:00.000+01:002009-11-03T01:27:01.084+01:00jana's birthday...... is today. next post, i'll write about when i found out about it.marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-91127492950569578752009-10-25T19:49:00.001+01:002009-10-25T19:49:41.315+01:00first time (iii)<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">june 16, 1990. a day to remember.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">summertime in germany; me, my brothers, and maybe a few other people were in the backyard, a good two weeks after the harpstedt weekend. it was a saturday afternoon. on sunday, the pathfinders would meet at home. at my place. with jana.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">it had been exactly eleven weeks since i had left a little note in her jacket, saying “ich hab dich gern” (i “like you” like you), and signed by “irgendwer” (someone). i was in the best of moods. my mother calls. “telephone, raphael”. yes, the raphael from an earlier series. i went inside and picked up the phone downstairs, when i hear something quite unexpected on the other side of the line. “hello, here is jana.” silence. and even before i could think of the magnitude of the fact that jana was calling me, again, she had hung up – after a quick “ich hab dich auch gern”. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">it almost made me feel dizzy. my wildest hopes, dreams, interpretations, observations. they were confirmed by one simple and direct sentence. for the first time in my life, someone i liked had openly declared that they liked me. it was kind of understood with michaela in 1986, but confirmation only came decades later. here it seemed quite clear. it was to be understood that what i felt for her, she had started to feel for me. she used the exact same words. there was no doubt about the interpretation.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">i was so excited that i didn’t even stop to think about why she might have called me to say that, or why my mother was under the impression that raphael was on the phone. i just ceased the moment and the day. june 16 became a historical date for me.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">june 17, next post.<o:p></o:p></span></p>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2199940420051647258.post-54836026614048935652009-10-17T21:27:00.000+02:002009-10-17T21:28:08.463+02:00first time (ii)<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">i couldn’t think or react. i just said “yes”, and then she asked me: “did you put a note in my jacket yesterday?”. i didn’t deny it. she then responded: “ok, just wanted to confirm.” and hung up.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">i think this was my first time in what i perceived to be the “real world”. for years and years, i had loved my imaginary world, kept secret from anyone else. my music, my thoughts and feelings, and my personal queen. for the first time ever, it seemed that a “queen” had taken notice not only of my existence, but also of my interest. and this queen was reigning for exactly one day. what now?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">nothing. it would be a few weeks until i would see her again. i went to a different church, so we would see each other only at the “pathfinders”, equivalent to scouts.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">that day was coming, and i was very curious and a little nervous about how it would be. as always at the time, i chose the passive approach; see, how she dealt with the idea, now that i assumed she knew i liked her. and when the day came, i did had a very uneasy feeling in my stomach. there was quite a bit of unspoken tension in the air, not negative at all. it was a rainy spring day, she was using that same (and now “famous”) pink and blue jacket. our eyes locked a few times, for spilt seconds – but sometimes it seemed like a long time. i went home later with a quiet grin on my face. she didn’t seem to be uncomfortable with the idea, she didn’t seem to reject me – this was a major victory for me. there seemed a chance that, with time, we could even get to know each other. i still had no idea about what was going on in her mind, but it seemed quite clear that there were no negative feelings towards me.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">it went like that for another month. jana and me wouldn’t talk at all, but she was always the lone center of my attention whenever we were in the same space. i was becoming more and more friends with a few other people of the pathfinders. bärchen, which is how we called the very cute christiane boettge, was known to me for quite some time, and we were becoming better friends that year; on the other hand, she was jana’s best friend at the time, and i had even thought that she might have informed jana about the note i’d left in her jacket. it seemed to be that bärchen might be an ally in the whole jana story, but this is not why we became friends. i really do think that we enjoyed each other’s presence and friendship. marco and stefan zücker, two brothers who had also recently arrived from east germany, were entering my life, too.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">finally, it was time for our group to go to a long weekend in tents, in harpstedt. this was a yearly event, quite anticipated by me and most pathfinders, where more than 150 pre-teens and teens (up to 15 years) where together for some social and spiritual quality time. it was my fourth time there, so i was kind of a veteran, compared mostly to the trio marco, stefan and jana, who were going for the first time. this was the most time we were to spend in the same place, so far. and i was excited.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">the weekend was a little strange. i was feeling really good, confident. i was seeing many friends again, and it seemed to be the bst harpstedt long weekend ever. friday evening, jana and me set almost exactly opposite to each other in quite a big room. with this bigger distance than normally as kind of a protection shield, our eyes locked more often than ever before. and i felt really secure, because it seemed as if there was some kind of a secret bond between us, almost as if my secret world had begun being extended to the girl i was falling more in love with by the minute.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">on saturday, the good feeling went away. i had a little bit of a allergic reaction with my eyes and had to abandon the afternoon activity, going back to camp. sitting on some stairs, i kept my eyes closed, and for some it might have seemed that i was crying. i only noticed that when jana’s younger sister, andrea, passed by and said: “thinking of my sister?”. wow, that was a real blow, for so many reasons. first of all, it seemed that it wasn’t such a secret at all. secondly, why did she say that, even with this kind of diminishing tone? was i totally mistaken after all, was i a joke, after all? and now that she thought i was crying, what would she tell her older sister? that whole confident and peaceful feeling from less than 24 hours before, that was totally gone.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">nothing new on sunday, but i was worried, more than ever, about what was going on in jana’s mind. what was she thinking of me? what was she maybe even expecting? these questions were bothering me.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">i think it was the last day, the monday. beginning of june, another great summer day. an activity in the gym, a game of survival. jana was out quite soon and sat in a private place. i stayed in the game for quite a long time, and everytime i passed by where she was, we looked at each other. the shyness that we both seemed to have, the looking without the other noticing, it had seemingly gone away for these minutes. so much so, that i can swear i saw tears in her eyes; yes, tears, it seemed quite clear. i didn’t even have time to think about why she could have been so sad that day, but i was deeply moved by it – and forgot all about my sorrows and insecurities about her. at that time, i felt even more than being in love – a felt actual love, empathy. and the will to do something, help, i don’t know. what could i do?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">everytime i passed by her that end of morning, i felt a stronger bond than ever before. and be it my imagination or not, i really believed that she felt it, too. at one point, there was even a smile. i’d never seen a girl smile at me, with tears in her eyes. it’s truly heartbreaking.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">if i think of memorable weekends in my life, this is still one of them.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Cambria","serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:major-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">to be continued. <o:p></o:p></span></p>marcio goncalveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09204941183495036612noreply@blogger.com0