There are many different Kanji, the exact number is not known but it is around 50,000. However, not all 50,000 are taught in schools. The government of Japan has set up a 1,945 basic kanji list (Jōyō Kanji) that those learning the language ought to know. They are the ones most commonly used in newspapers and magazines, along with street signs and store signs. Kanji takes many years to learn. By the end of his school years a pupil should know about 1,850 kanji. A university graduate would need to know about 3000. If someone does not know the kanji for a word, they can write it in kana and it will be understood, but it is usually not the proper way to write it.
Chris Moyles
Chris Moyles (born 22 February 1974 in Leeds) is a British radio and television presenter. He presents a breakfast radio show on BBC Radio 1. His career in radio started at age 14, when he worked on a hospital radio. He worked at lots of different stations until he got a job at BBC Radio 1 in 1997. When he took over the Breakfast show from fellow DJ Sara Cox he quickly brought more listeners to the show. He won awards for his show.
Moyles wrote an autobiography called "The Gospel According to Chris Moyles: The Story of One Man and his Mouth".
Libretto
A libretto is the text (the words) which are set to music to make an opera. A libretto can also be the words for an oratorio, cantata, mass or a musical. The person who writes the libretto is called a librettist. The word “libretto” (plural: “libretti” or “librettos”) is an Italian word which means “little book”.
Sometimes a composer writes his own libretti, but usually a composer likes to have a librettist who can write the words for him so that he can set them to music.
Some libretti are original stories by the librettist, but very often they are based on a book by another writer.
In the 18th century Metastasio was a very famous librettist. Many of his libretti were set several times by different composers. Another 18th century librettist was Lorenzo da Ponte, who wrote the libretti for three of Mozart's greatest operas, as well as for many other composers. In the 19th century Eugène Scribe wrote a very large number of libretti that were set to music by composers such as Meyerbeer, Auber, Bellini, Donizetti, Rossini and Verdi. Two French writers called Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy wrote many opera and operetta libretti for the composers Jacques Offenbach, Jules Massenet and Georges Bizet. Arrigo Boito, who wrote libretti for, among others, Giuseppe Verdi and Amilcare Ponchielli, composed two operas of his own. Hugo von Hoffmansthal wrote libretti for Richard Strauss.
Wagner and Tippett are two composers who wrote their own libretti.
Usually a libretto is written before the music, but sometimes composers wrote some of the music first and then looked for words to go with it. Composers, such as Mikhail Glinka, Alexander Serov, Rimsky-Korsakov, Puccini, and Mascagni all did this sometimes.
Musicals usually have lyrics (the words for the songs), and a separate "book" ( the spoken dialogue and the stage directions). Sometimes these two are by different authors, e.g. the musical Fiddler on the Roof has a composer (Jerry Bock), a lyricist (Sheldon Harnick), and the writer of the "book" (Joseph Stein).
Hmong people
The words Hmong and Mong refer to an Asian ethnic group. Their homeland is in China, especially along the Yangtze and Yellow river. In the 18th century, Hmong people started moving to other Southeast Asian countries. Today, they live in all of China, northern Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar. In 1975, communists took over Laos. After they took over, many Hmong people moved to the United States, Australia, France, French Guiana, and Canada. Hmong people divide themselves into the White Hmong, the Green Hmong, and other smaller groups.
Hmong people have been living in southern China for at least 2,000 years.
From 1919 to 1921, the Hmong people were involved a war. The French called this war the War of the Insane.
From 1962 to 1975, the Hmong people were involved in the Laotian Civil War, also known as the Secret War.
China has the largest population of Hmong people with 3 million Hmong people. Vietnam has 787,600 Hmong people, Laos has 320,000 Hmong people, and Thailand has 150,000 Hmong people. Some Hmong people live in Myanmar.
Outside of Asia, the United States has the most Hmong people; it has 186,310 Hmong people. France has 15,000 Hmong people, Australia has 2,000 Hmong people, and French Guiana has 1,500 Hmong people. Canada and Argentina have a total of 600 Hmong people.
Toplessness
Toplessness (or being topless) is a state of not wearing any clothing above the waist, meaning the breasts are visible.
Because the female breast is often associated with sexuality, some countries consider it alright for men to be topless in public, but not women. However many countries consider it usual for women to be topless, even due to the natural heat.
Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral in London, England, is a Roman Catholic cathedral. It is the mother church of the Roman Catholic community in England and Wales and the Metropolitan Church and Cathedral for the Archbishop of Westminster.
The cathedral is near Victoria in the City of Westminster. It is the largest Roman Catholic church in England and Wales. It should not be confused with Westminster Abbey.
The cathedral was opened in 1903. It was designed by John Francis Bentley and is in the style of Byzantine church architecture. The nave is the widest of any church in England. The sanctuary is higher than the nave, so that the altar can be seen from any part of the nave. A very large crucifix hangs from the chancel arch. The Archiepiscopal Throne or cathedra, of marble and mosaic, is modelled on the Papal Throne at the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome. There are beautiful marble pillars which are all carved differently. In the crypt there are monuments to famous people.
Westminster Cathedral has a famous choir. The first Master of Music (choirmaster) was Sir Richard Runciman Terry. Since 2000, the Master of Music has been Martin Baker. Mass is sung every day.
The choir are famous for singing Gregorian chant and polyphony of the Renaissance. Composers such as Benjamin Britten and Ralph Vaughan Williams have written music for the choir.
All the boys of the Choir are boarders at the nearby Westminster Cathedral Choir School.
The organ is very large. It is in the west gallery (above the entrance). It was built by the organ builder Henry Willis III from 1922 to 1932. One of Louis Vierne's best-known organ pieces, "Carillon de Westminster," was composed for it and dedicated to the builder.
On 28 May 1982, the first day of his six-day visit to the United Kingdom, Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass in the Cathedral.
In 1995, Cardinal Basil Hume invited HM The Queen. This was the first visit of a reigning monarch of the United Kingdom to a Catholic liturgy since 1688 when James II & VII was king.
Cachoeira do Sul
Cachoeira do Sul is a Brazilian city of the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population is 89,669 and has an area of 3.765 km².
Median
In probability theory and statistics, the median of a data set "formula_1", sometimes written as formula_2, is a number describing the data set. This number has the property that it divides a set of observed values in two equal halves, so that half of the values are below it and half are above.