Captive crowd … the opera singer Douglas McRae performs in the Capricorn Caves in Rockhampton for the Underground Opera Company.

Music performed in caves is reaching new audiences, writes Candida Baker.

If one had to pick two careers the least like each other, mining and opera would surely be close to the top of the list. the Queensland miner and director of the Underground Opera Company, Bruce Edwards, is the first to agree that opera and mining are not an obvious fit, and yet somehow he has managed to create a marriage between his career and his passion for music.

It wasn’t, says Edwards, a single light-bulb moment that set him on the path of performing opera in underground caves and mines. it was a decision that evolved from an already diverse career.

“I was surrounded by musicals when I was young,” he says. “The [Bill Collins] Golden Years of Hollywood was a constant presence at home, although there was no way I thought of making a career from music at that time. In fact I started a maths/science degree at university, decided it wasn’t for me, dropped out, started a drum shop, then decided to repeat year 12 with the aspiration of being a chiropractor, and halfway through that joined a band.”

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Not unnaturally, Edwards did worse with his exams than the first time around. “I was so busy with the drum shop I used to write my own late notes: ‘Please excuse Bruce for his absence. he had an appointment with U2.’ My teacher would say things like, ‘Oh please!’ but it was the truth. I met Paul Simon, got drunk with Hall and Oates, hung out with Billy Joel and spent the most amazing two hours of my life with Billy Joel’s drummer, Liberty DeVitto.”

Then, out of the blue, Edwards was offered a mining job in North Goonyella in central Queensland. the idea of a regular income appealed to him and so began his long career in mining. Music went on the back-burner until one day, when he was working in Sydney, his singer girlfriend suggested he try out for some amateur musical theatre. he was hooked.

Edwards auditioned for the next show, Carousel, and was offered the lead role of Billy Bigelow. When he split from his girlfriend he moved back to Brisbane, drilling for 10 hours straight five days a week, and performing at night. he also joined a small musical theatre company, and it wasn’t long before he took over the reins.

Working with the company was the beginning of his decision to start Underground Opera. “It wasn’t a ‘let’s combine opera with mining idea’, it was more wondering if it was possible to combine opera with interesting places,” he says.

“I had heard that the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra had done a concert at a mine, and that intrigued me. then a while later I was explaining to a mine boss that I was only available for short contracts, and he wanted to know why, so I nervously told him what I was doing, and he surprised me by knowing about the Tasmanian concert – and that’s when the idea of opera and underground began to come together.”

In the past four years the Underground Opera Company has performed in mines and caves around Australia, such as the naturally formed “Cathedral” in the Capricorn Caves in Rockhampton, where the company performed, last year.

They are about to come back to one of their favourite places to perform two concerts – at the Jenolan Caves, west of the Blue Mountains.

Imagine sitting in one of the world’s oldest open caves, surrounded by the extraordinary calcite formations that make up two of the most famous caves at Jenolan Caves – the Cathedral and the Grand Arch – listening in a near-perfect acoustic environment to songs from Carmen, Figaro, Cosi Fan Tutte,and Les Miserables.

For Edwards and his troupe, mezzo soprano Kathryn Bradbury, soprano Milica Ilic, tenor Glenn Lorimer, bass David Hibbard, and pianist Brendan Murtagh, the chance to combine their love of performance in a venue that appeals to people who might not ordinarily go to opera was a beguiling package.

“I had one big burly farmer say to me ‘I don’t normally go for all this stuff, but mate, you just converted me’. It’s that kind of thing that really inspires me,” says Edwards, who is doing the final negotiations on a permanent home somewhere underground in Brisbane.

The Underground Opera Company will perform the Cathedral Concert February 17 and the Grand Arch Valentine’s Concert on February 18 at the Jenolan Caves.

(PRWEB UK) 1 February 2012

Healthy Aspirations is the brainchild of London’s Tracey Randell, who is well respected within her sector as a qualified nutritionist and IBS consultant operating in London.

Tracey set up her firm to provide IBS and Candida sufferers with in-depth analyses of their body’s dietary needs and to provide clients with ways to tackle uncomfortable gut disorders. Patients can opt to undertake a series of tests to determine the severity of their symptoms and will be offered tailored advice, IBS treatment and solutions.

Keen to increase the exposure of her company, Tracey approached SEO Positive earlier this month to find out more about the various internet marketing approaches on offer from the company. Healthy Aspirations was set up as a means of generating leads and raising awareness of Tracey’s services, so she was eager to achieve better search engine ranking positions to boost her visibility alongside her major online competitors.

Dave Damhar, a Senior Account Manager at the company and the SEO specialist responsible for Tracey’s campaign, has chosen to target a diverse selection of search terms and is certain that his strategy will catapult Healthy Aspirations to top page rankings within just a few months.

“We’ve got big ideas for the site and can’t wait to see how our applied work affects its conversion rates by the spring,” says Dave.

SEO Positive was established in 2007 in Chelmsford, Essex with the aim of bringing effective yet affordable online marketing services to companies from all industries and backgrounds. The company offers a huge range of services including search engine optimisation, Pay Per Click account management, social media marketing and online reputation control.

When it rains, it pours from the ceiling inside her seventh-floor Marion Towers apartment in Hoboken, according to 69-year-old Candida Negron.

Negron, a resident at the First Street seniors complex for just over a year, says the building superintendent is aware of her leaky-ceiling problem. in fact he brings her buckets and plastic covers to protect her television, bed and other possessions when there’s a heavy downpour, she said.

“a lot of times I have to sleep on the sofa,” Negron said. “I’m scared.”

After the rains, building managers mop up the watery mess before replastering and repainting the ceiling, she said.

According to Negron and her son, David, the problem started a month after she moved in.

The building manager said, “ ‘OK, we’ve gotten the same complaint from other people.’ They came, took a picture of the ceiling and then nothing happened,” according to Negron.

The tenant who lives in the eighth-floor apartment above Negron, 82-year-old Piedad Marcos, says she has the same problem. when it rains, water seeps into her walls and then onto her floor, Marcos says.

Shah Alam, senior vice president for Edgewood Management, the corporation that manages Marion Towers, acknowledges problems with leaks in units located in the southeast corner of the 12-story building.

“The building has cracks in areas where it has started to deteriorate, especially the siding, the ceilings and around window areas,” said Alam, noting the building was completed in 1976.

“We’ve re-caulked all the windows … and we’ve hired a contractor,” he said. “We’re currently in the process to obtain permits from the city to do repairs on units that are leaking. We expect work to begin within two months.”

Director of Health and Human Services Leo Pellegrini said the city has received a “number of complaints” about the building. The matter might be referred to the local municipal court for resolution, he said, but as of Friday that had not happened.

In the meantime, management has offered Negron another apartment which also has signs of water damage and a card to use at a public laundry.

“I don’t need money,” Negron said she told them. “I need you to fix the problem.”

Incredibly quick and Easy Caesar Salad Dressing (adapted from here).

Suitable for ACD Stage 2 and beyond

1/4 cup (40 g) lightly toasted cashews

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 Tbsp (15 ml) apple cider vinegar

1 Tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice

1 tsp (5 ml) Dijon mustard (or use mustard powder for earlier stages of the diet)

1/4 cup (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil, preferably organic

1/2 medium zucchini, peeled and cut in chunks

1/4 tsp (1 ml) fine sea salt, or to your taste

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until perfectly smooth.  If dressing is too thick, add a teaspoon of water at a time and blend again (but you want it to remain fairly thick).  Toss with desired greens for salad, or turn into a bowl to use as a dip with raw veggies.  Makes about 3/4 cup (180 ml).  Will keep, covered, in the refrigerator up to 3 days.

Recently I came across the painting “The Doctor”. It was beautifully done by Sir Luke Fildes in 1887 when he was requested by Tate to produce something of social importance. I personally thought, upon seeing it on an article for the first time, that the choice of topic to paint on was quite interesting. Then upon my investigation of this portrait I learnt that behind those colours, brush strokes and lines was a heart touching history.Jane Moore describing the painting says – the Doctor, depicts a Victorian GP on a home visit. he is watching over an impoverished labourer’s sick child; the bed is makeshift, two unmatching chairs pushed together; the cottage interior humble, befitting the labourer’s status. the central figure is the imposing male doctor, gazing intently at his patient, while in the background the father looks on helplessly his hand on the shoulders of his tearful wife. the doctor is observing the ‘crisis’ of the child’s illness, the critical stage in these pre-antibiotic days when the patient is no longer overwhelmed by the infection.

The breaking light of dawn on the child’s face suggests the crisis is over and that recovery is possible. Fildes’ skilful use of light and perspective focuses makes the onlooker focus on the doctor, the patient, and the relationship between them. the child’s parents are peripheral, almost irrelevant, the father is watchful but disempowered by the presence of the expert, and the mother, in a stereotypically female role, is collapsed but accepting succour from the hand of the more powerful male.

This made me rethink. Rethink modern doctors and medication. Long hours of travelling, longer hours of waiting only to be given two minutes of their time, when we are in a helpless physical and mental state, having absolute faith in the hands of an individual who, upon meeting does not seem to pay any attention to anything uttered after the first few words. It may not be necessary. Maybe they can make an accurate diagnosis upon mere observation. perhaps, that is what matters after all. But really, is that all that it to a patient-doctor relationship?

Placebo effect depends largely on the perception and expectation of the patient. if viewed as helpful, it can heal and if viewed otherwise, it can lead to negative effects. Aren’t the perceptions and expectations of a patient based fundamentally on their doctors? a mere touch of the hand, a consoling smile, an observant attentive tap on the thoracic region – the human touch can do wonders.

The era is more complex. Where machines have replaced a good doctor’s touch, where time sprints and people move faster to catch up and earn and move on. out of the many relationships whose margins seem to fade, the physician-patient is indeed top-ranked. Maybe the ratio of just one doctor to fulfil the needs of 1800 patients on average sufficiently justifies situation, maybe not.

However, both the doctor and patient have roles. only if the importance, value, and responsibility attached to those roles are identified, children will be less hesitant for check-ups, ladies will be less petrified, men will be more hopeful and doctors would be indescribably satisfied. Abraham Verghese voices this beautifully in a public discussion;

“I recall one patient who was at that point no more than a skeleton encased in shrinking skin, unable to speak, his mouth crusted with candida that was resistant to the usual medications. when he saw me on what turned out to be his last hours on this earth, his hands moved as if in slow motion. and as I wondered what he was up to, his stick fingers made their way up to his pajama shirt, fumbling with his buttons. I realised that he was wanting to expose his wicker-basket chest to me. It was an offering, an invitation. I did not decline.

I percussed. I palpated. I listened to the chest. I think he surely must have known by then that it was vital for me just as it was necessary for him. Neither of us could skip this ritual, which had nothing to do with detecting rales in the lung, or finding the gallop rhythm of heart failure. No, this ritual was about the one message that physicians have needed to convey to their patients. Although, God knows, of late, in our hubris, we seem to have drifted away. We seem to have forgotten – as though, with the explosion of knowledge, the whole human genome mapped out at our feet, we are lulled into inattention, forgetting that the ritual is cathartic to the physician, necessary for the patient – forgetting that the ritual has meaning and a singular message to convey to the patient.

And the message, which I didn’t fully understand then, even as I delivered it, and which I understand better now is this: “I will always, always, always be there. I will see you through this. I will never abandon you. I will be with you through the end.”

The similarities between the symptoms of Candida and gluten intolerance, also known as Coeliac Disease, are very similar.

Candida is a yeast that lives in the body naturally in the stomach, intestines and other places in the body. while most doctors don’t recognize Candida as a legitimate health problem, it is believed by many that the overgrowth of Candida is caused by the overuse of antibiotics. These antibiotics kill off too much of the bodies beneficial bacteria that exists in all of us and Candida grows in its place. Too much Candida is believed to cause a whole host of health problems such as:

o Problems in the digestive tract like constipation, diarrhea, bloating, cramps, and other symptoms that may seem similar to irritable bowel syndrome.

o Chronic fatigue, which seems to worsen immediately after eating.

o Allergies and sensitivities to food where there was none before.

o An increase in skin problems, such as rashes, itching and a worsening case of athlete’s foot.

o for women, problems with the vagina, including itching or an increase in infections.

o A cold or flu that won’t go away or frequent bouts of sickness, also an increase in headaches, dizziness or an inability to concentrate.

Gluten Intolerance, on the other hand, comes from the bodies aversion to gluten. Gluten is a protein found in most grain, including wheat, rye, barley and oats. When gluten is eaten by someone who has intolerance, an enzyme in the body reacts in an abnormal way and causes the walls of the intestine to thicken so that they don’t absorb nutrients in food in the proper way. the symptoms of Gluten intolerance are:

Chronic and voluminous diarrhoea, weight loss, stunted growth in children and constant fatigue, abdominal pain, cramping, bloatedness and distension. An increase in canker sores, also known as mouth ulcers, are common, as well. In extreme cases, lactose intolerance and constipation have been known to appear.

Both gluten intolerance and Candida are difficult to diagnose, since they both have such a wide range of symptoms. for Gluten intolerance, blood tests are the first step in a successful diagnosis. they have proven to be 98% effective in detecting antibodies in the blood, therefore letting doctors know that an intolerance to gluten may be present.

A second procedure, called a biopsy is also used to check on the health of the intestine. A doctor will remove a few cells from the intestine and test them to see if they have been damaged. These two procedures together are an almost failsafe way to test for gluten intolerance.

As for Candida, there doesn’t appear to be a consensus on how to test properly for it. A stool sample sent to the proper lab is a common recommendation, but the accuracy isn’t 100%.

Many people simply stumble upon their Candida diagnosis by, over time, ruling out every other possible illness. since most mainstream doctors won’t test for Candida because it’s thought that unless you have a seriously compromised immune system due to AIDS or chemotherapy, you can’t have it, it may be up to the sufferer to do a self-diagnosis.

Candida albicans (or C. albicans) is the bacteria most often associated with vaginal yeast infections, but symptoms can vary greatly and even mimic other maladies, so how do you know for sure that C. albicans is the problem?

First of all, are you at risk?

The term infection is somewhat misleading when applied to C. albicans. the bacteria is not an invading pathogen, rather it occurs naturally in almost all humans. Symptoms arise only when populations of the bacteria have become abnormally large. This blooming of the bacteria is usually the result of a change in your bodies natural balance.

If you’ve recently been exposed to unusual physical or mental stress, had a change in diet or sexual activity, suffered from an illness or undergone steroid or antibiotic treatments, then an imbalance can exist in your body that allows C. albicans populations to bloom. (e.g., Most antibiotics will decimate L. Acidophilus populations which not only aid in digestion, but help to naturally control the growth of C. albicans.)

Difficulties in Diagnosis

Because the bacteria is present in most humans, and because the symptoms of a bloom can vary greatly, diagnosis can be a challenge. a clinical test may include the removal of C. albicans-friendly foods from the diet for several days to see if symptoms abate. These C. albicans-friendly foods include sugars and other simple carbohydrates, yeast products, and fermented foods.

Types of C. albicans Blooms

A vaginal yeast infection is one of the most common forms of C. albicans bloom, but blooms can also occur in other places. Thrush, for example, is a C. albicans bloom in the mouth. a bloom can even occur on the surface of the skin, especially at folds or joints that trap heat and moisture. the most dangerous bloom is a system-wide or systemic infection, often caused by a compromised immune system or a failure to properly treat one of the more local blooms.

On the skin

On the skin, a C. albicans bloom will appear as an intensely red rash, usually in the folds of the skin and extending just beyond. there will often be a softening of the skin. Itching will occur, most intensely at the edges of the rash which will appear somewhat scallop-shaped with some small patches just beyond the edge.

In the mouth

Thrush, a C. albicans bloom in the mouth and throat, is characterized by an initial burning sensation followed by white patches on the tongue and mouth, possibly surrounded by red, tender skin. If rubbed (e.g., with a toothbrush), the patches may bleed. a bad taste in the mouth or difficulty tasting food may also occur. Nursing infants with thrush may pass the bacteria on to their mothers causing a reddening, soreness, and possible burning sensation in the nipples.

In the vaginal tract

Most vaginal yeast infections are caused by a bloom C. albicans populations. Typical symptoms include an abnormal white discharge ranging from thin and watery to a chunky, cottage cheese-like consistency. there may also be redness and swelling of the vulva accompanied by itching or burning of the labia and vaginal tract. both intercourse and urination may become painful.

Systemic Infections

In small populations, C. albicans acts like a yeast. the population remains localized and is easily controlled, but in a systemic infection, the bacteria has reached a level of population growth that enables it to act like a mold, sending long, root-like tendrils out into the surrounding tissues and even into nearby organs. the toxins produced by the bacteria start to significantly compromise the immune system, and symptoms become much more generic and life-threatening. Untreated mortality rates for systemic C. albicans infections have been estimated to be anywhere from 75% to almost 100%.

At this stage, symptoms can range anywhere from headaches, chronic fatigue, and irritable bowel syndrome to more sever symptoms that can mimic Crohn’s Disease, Lupus, and Multiple Sclerosis. Remember, the body’s immune system and organs are under attack, so symptoms will vary based on what parts of the body are most affected.

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STAGE VIEWS: Ragtime Tony Nominee and Yank! Star Bobby Steggert

by Andrew Gans01 Dec 2011

Bobby Steggert Photo by Christian Coulson

Playbill.com launches a new series featuring brief chats with Broadway actors commenting on their recent theatre-going experiences, what productions they are looking forward to and more. here, we speak with Ragtime Tony nominee Bobby Steggert.

What show recently impressed you? I was blown away by Bart Sher's crystal-clear storytelling in Blood and Gifts at LCT. the complexities of several governments vying for control in Soviet-occupied Afghanistan became personal, visceral, and immediate, and the cast is wonderfully cohesive, a truly effortless and generous ensemble. And, having spent much time in the Mitzi Newhouse [Steggert starred there in A Minister's Wife, a new musical version of George Bernard Shaw's Candida], when our goal was to make the space feel as intimate as possible, it was very impressive to see the theatre transformed into such a surprisingly vast canvas.

What production are you most excited to see? I can't wait to see Audra [McDonald] in Porgy and Bess. no one in the musical theatre can match her seamlessness, and with a piece like this, I think she'll continue to surprise.

What are your current/upcoming projects? I just finished a very intensive four-week workshop of Yank, in which David Cromer's vision for the physical production began to take shape. We were all very excited by the result and hope to bring it to larger audiences soon. And, this month, I will be part of the first workshop of Josh Schmidt's [Adding Machine, A Minster's Wife] newest piece, Saturday Night at the Estate, commissioned by Playwrights Horizons.  

Bobby Steggert received 2010 Tony Award and Drama Desk Award nominations for his work in the revival of Ragtime; he was also Drama Desk-nominated that same year for his performance Off-Broadway in Yank! Steggert has also been seen on Broadway in 110 in the Shade (Outer Critics Circle nomination) and "MASTER HAROLD"…and the boys. His other theatrical credits include A Minister's Wife (Lincoln Center Theater), The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island (Vineyard Theatre, Drama Desk nomination), columbinus (NYTW), The Music Teacher (New Group) and Camelot (NY Philharmonic). Check out his credits on the newly launched PlaybillVault.com, the largest Broadway database on the internet.

Immobilised CAL B–an ace bio catalyst

Sandeep Bijamwar, Business Head, Healthcare API, Advanced Enzyme Technologies, speaks about the usefulness of Immobilised CAL B

Some of the substrates successfully synthesised using immobilised CAL B Lipase are:

Nature is a perfect synthetic chemits. Plants, for example, have access only to air, soil and energy from the sun, and they produce countless amounts of compounds with enormous complexities. from nature we may get hints for developing cost-effective and sustainable methods to prepare biologically active compounds. Moreover, enzymes are biocatalyst responsible for chemical transformation in nature according to the types of reactions they catalysed.

since enzymes posses valuable features, such as chemoselectvity, regioselectivity and stereoslectivity, integrating enzymes in to organic synthesises supposed to full fill the increasing demands for preparing compounds in selective matter.

Immobilised CAL B Lipase (Candida antartica lipase B) is a very well characterised biocatalyst and is use is highly diversified. Immobilised CAL B catalyses various different organic reactions including many that have been scaled up to commercial scale.

Some advantages of the immobilised CAL B Lipase as biocatalyst are:

• CALB exhibits a very high degree of substrate selectivity both with respect to regio-selectivity and enantioselectivity
• Broad acceptability of acyl donors where as higher degree of selectivity towards alcohol substrates
• Preference for R isomer of secondary alcohols
• Few or no by-products
• Mild reaction conditions
• Eco friendly and cost effective
• Stable and robust in extreme operational condition

Ester hydrolysis:

R1 – COO-R2 + H2O Ô R1 – OH + R2 – COOH R1 – COO – R2 + H2O2 Ô R1 – OH + (Peroxy) R2 – COOH

Ester syenthesis:

R1 – OH + R2 – COOH Ô R1 -COO-R2 + H2O

Intramolecular esterification:

HO – R –COOH Ô R – COO – R (Lactones)

Syenthesis of estolids and other polymers:

R1 – COOH + HO-R2 – COOH Ô R1 – COO-R2 -COOH

Interesterification:

R1 – COO – R2 + R3 – COO – R4 Ô R1 – COO – R4 + R3 – COO – R2

Trans esterification by acidolysis:

R1 – COO – R2 + R3 – COOH Ô R1 – COO – R3 + R2 – COOH

Transesterification by alcoholysis:

R1 – COO – R2 + R3 – OH Ô R1 – COO – R3 + R2 – OH

Transesterification by aminolysis:

R1 – COO -R2 + R3 – NH2 Ô R1 – CONH – R3 + R2 -OH

the chemical and pharmaceutical industries have been somewhat slow to embrace the area of biocatalysts due to the chemist or R&D familiarity with the current chemical synthesis processes and the cost involved in the conversion. All this is changing rapidlywith enzymes providing a cost effective, safer and environmentally-friendly alternative.

Attractive features of the Immobilised CAL B Lipase include its versality, regio-, chemo- and enatio- selectivity which are of paramount importance across the pharma and chemical industry.

One of the main reason of its success was the specificity of the Immobilised CAL B, there by minimising the purification cost. In fine chemical companies CALB reactions that generate chiral centres as they convert prochiral substrate into single enantiomer product for the synthesis of amino acids and other compounds, offering 100 per cent theoretical yield. many chemical and pharma companies are changing their attitude due to the promising results of CALB coupled with chemocatylytic reactions.

Major reactions carried out by CAL B lipase are as follows:

Immobilised CAL B Lipase meet the increasing demand by manufactures of chemicals and active pharmaceutical manufacturers for enantiomerically pure compounds, because of their greter selectivity and specificity or because of their mild reaction conditions and lower energy consumptions. Immobilisation of CAL B offers easier sepration and reuse of enzymes there by making production process more cost effective.

various API and their intermediates are manufactured using the Immobilised CAL B Lipase as Biocatalyst like:

• Anti cancer intermediates
• Anti depressants and intermediates
• Anti diabetic and intermediates
• Anti hypertensive drugs
• NSAIDS
• Analgesics
• Anti alzheimer’s drugs
• Anti viral drugs
• various structural lipids
• Vitamin E acetate and many others.

we at advanced enzymes are manufacturing and exporting the enzymes to the various applications for last 50 years. Our technical and application lab is well equipped to develop and resolve the technical queries. Supported by the enzymes experts for the Industrial applications.

The author can be contacted at