In Brief: December Edition

Here is your regular Sunday selection of links to good things in Blogville and Beyond.

• It's time to start sorting out the Top 10 lists for 2007. The New York crew has decided what classical recordings are fit to print. [New York Times]


• A copy of Andrew Miller's Birth of Christ, narrated by Liam Neeson, has arrived on my desk but not yet made it into my CD player and maybe now it never will. "This is a very accessible piece of contemporary classical music," [director Raymond] Arroyo explained. "Those who love the 'Phantom of the Opera' and Andrea Bocelli will adore this piece." All of Ionarts runs screaming! [Zenit]


• One sound that is guaranteed to soothe my nerves is a cat purring on my lap. Now, via Boing Boing, you can put that sound on your MP3 player! [Purrcast]


• The flutist of eighth blackbird cuts his head open during a concert and immediately thinks of how he will blog about it. [Thirteen Ways]


• The Washington Post has held to its response to the dust-up between classical music critic Tim Page and the staff of former mayor Marion Barry. Page's by-line has not appeared in the paper since November 10. The only exception was this weekend, a nice piece on pianist Leon Fleisher, being celebrated at the Kennedy Center Honors. [Washington Post]