From today's featured article
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 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and The Five argued about music in Russia in the 19th century. The Five, also known as The Mighty Handful, were composers Mily Balakirev, Alexander Borodin, César Cui, Modest Mussorgsky and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, who wanted to produce a specifically Russian kind of art music, rather than one that imitated older European music or relied on European-style conservatory training. Tchaikovsky wanted to write professional compositions of a quality that would stand up to Western scrutiny and thus transcend national barriers, yet remain distinctively Russian in melody, rhythm and other compositional characteristics. The Five also believed in using the melodic, harmonic, tonal and rhythmic properties of Russian folk song, along with exotic melodic, harmonic and rhythmic elements from music originating in the middle- and far-eastern parts of the Russian Empire (a practice that would become known as musical orientalism), as compositional devices in their own works. Tchaikovsky remained friendly but never intimate with most of The Five, ambivalent about their music. He took pains to ensure his musical independence from them as well as from the conservative faction at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Paul Kagame – Albertus Soegijapranata – Battle of Taejon
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Did you know...
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From Wikipedia's newest content:
- ... that Atlas (pictured) is a humanoid robot designed to perform tasks such as navigating rough terrain, opening doors, and operating power equipment?
- ... that Ziad al-Hariri was the chief leader of the 1963 Syrian coup d'état, commanding the brigade stationed on the frontline with Israel to occupy Damascus?
- ... that the Dr. Hun Houses in Albany, New York, were demolished and delisted from the National Register of Historic Places within three months of being listed?
- ... that hexaethyl tetraphosphate was called "another of DDT's rivals for fame" in a 1948 book?
- ... that Brattata, Jet Pilot, Okay Hot-Shot, Okay!, and Bratatat! are Roy Lichtenstein works featuring pilots in cockpits during air combat, while Mr. Bellamy is an inside joke about a military officer?
- ... that before James Hinchcliffe led a track-record 226 laps in the 2013 Iowa Corn Indy 250, he had led only 33 laps on an oval?
- ... that flamenco percussionist Tino di Geraldo produced Jackson Browne's album Love Is Strange: En Vivo Con Tino, in which he was featured?
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In the news
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- Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, gives birth to a son, third in the line of succession to the throne of the Commonwealth realms.
- A series of earthquakes in Dingxi, Gansu, China, kills at least 89 people and injures more than 500 others.
- Following the abdication of his father Albert II, Philippe (pictured) becomes King of the Belgians.
- American golfer Phil Mickelson wins the Open Championship at Muirfield.
- British cyclist Chris Froome wins the Tour de France.
- The government of Detroit, with up to $20 billion in debt, files for the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history.
- Researchers announce the discovery of Pandoravirus, a genus of viruses with a genome twice as large as any previously known virus.
Recent deaths: Helen Thomas – Mel Smith – Bert Trautmann
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On this day...
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July 24: Pioneer Day in Utah (1847)
- 1411 – Forces of Donald of Islay, Lord of the Isles, and Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar, fought at the Battle of Harlaw near Inverurie, Scotland.
- 1783 – The Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti and the Russian Empire signed the Treaty of Georgievsk, establishing Georgia as a protectorate of Russia.
- 1943 – Second World War: RAF Bomber Command began Operation Gomorrah, the strategic bombing of Hamburg, Germany, eventually killing at least 50,000 and leaving over a million others homeless.
- 1963 – Bluenose II, a replica of a major Canadian symbol, was launched in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.
- 1991 – The government of P. V. Narasimha Rao and his finance minister Manmohan Singh (pictured) introduced reforms that began the ongoing economic liberalisation in India.
More anniversaries: July 23 – July 24 – July 25
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