In Brief: Well, That's Over Edition

America, thank you for your visit to Washington, D.C. The next time you come to see us, perhaps you could do a better job of cleaning up your trash. Here is your regular Sunday selection of links to good things in Blogville and Beyond.

• My regret at missing American Opera Theater's production of Philip Glass's Hydrogen Jukebox was mitigated by standing on Miami Beach in the sunny 75° weather. The Post did not review the production either, but fellow blogger Karren Alenier liked it, as did, more surprisingly perhaps, T. L. Ponick. [Washington Times]


• Congratulations to Bruce Hodges, who celebrates his third blog birthday! [Monotonous Forest]


• Musically speaking, what I loved most about the Presidential Inauguration was the jazz, even Herbie Hancock trying to make something happen with that terrible keyboard. (That, and the music that, to my ears, is the most authentically American spiritual sound, Gospel. On your next visit to Washington, go to the 11 am Sunday Mass at my local parish, Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian, to understand what I mean.) Leave it to the always perceptive Nat Hentoff to remind us of the reasons why jazz is so important. All American students should have to learn about it. I know that mine do. [Wall Street Journal]


• As noted by Alex Ross, the composer George Perle -- student of Ernst Krenek, MacArthur Fellow, and Pulitzer Prize winner -- has died. [New York Times]


• Something else was inaugurated this week, the new Danish Radio Concert Hall in Copenhagen, designed by architect Jean Nouvel and acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota. George Loomis was there to give ear to the opening gala performance by the Danish National Symphony Orchestra under conductor Thomas Dausgaard. [Financial Times]

Image courtesy of Obamicon.Me