What was your last concert?

[Zucchini]

I've been keen to find Leeds winner, Eric Lu and will see him on Sat with the Academy Orchestra, led by Ruth R & her old man Thomas Hull.

He was well worth his billing. He played Chopin PC 1, the magnificent (Chipping Campden Festival's own) piano was set brightly to showcase the music. His playing was elegant, muscular when required and felt quite improvisatory. Technically he was immaculate.

I'd certainly go to hear him again. In the last 12 months I've heard Jan Lisieki and Rafal Blechacz play Chopin concertos and can say that I found 21 year old Eric Lu the most satisfying.

Earlier in the week Paul Lewis played the Diabelli Variations. I didn't go (I heard Imogen Cooper play them last year) so missed a rather distinguished audience member - Bernard Haitink, who has recently bought a house a couple of miles away! He wrote:

"After a long lifetime as a performer, having the chance to be part of the audience and to hear concerts of outstanding quality in such a setting is the purest joy.”
Bernard Haitink

[Bryn]

Not strictly a concert, as such, but I did attend the first 5 hours of Long Player Day 2019 (i.e. from Goldsmiths to Art in Perpetuity Trust, rather than on to Trinity Buoy Wharf). https://www.longplayerday.org/longplayer-day-2019

The main attraction for me the opportunity to hear the only EMS VCS4 (an uncompleted prototype combining 2 VCS3s on a keyboard unit intended to include a sub-bass synthesiser that was never successfully completed). John Lely had spent several hours tuning its linked VC3s to produce a chord including tonic, fifth and seventh tuned to the resonant frequencies of the performance space. Thus, as one moved around the space, or even just turned one's head, different harmonics changed in prominence. The uncompleted instrument had been in private hands until Goldsmiths bought it, and this was its first public outing. I note that the French company xlis lab launched a software emulation based on the VCS4 a few years ago. A snip at only 179 €.

I wish I had been able to stay for the rest of the event but lack of sleep over the past couple of weeks necessitated heading home after the VCS4 session. I was also too tired to return for the final day of the Goldsmiths (Cornelius Cardew) Treatise performances. I do, however, aim to get there for next Monday's performance of Terry Riley's In C.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

"Augmented Instruments"; Clothworkers' Centenary Concert Hall, Leeds; 20/6/19.

A superb concert given by Explore Ensemble - a group of young performers (late 20s/early 30s-ish) whose concerts at Huddersfield I've always found very impressive. Performing new works for instruments and electronics and all by composers born since 1970. Beautiful sonorities, captivating and witty by turns - and played with consummate professionalism and evident enjoyment and infectious enthusiasm.

A wonderfully optimistic event, promising great things both from composers and from their performers.

Patricia Alessandrini (b1970): Tracer la lune d'un doight [A lovely piece, reminiscent of Sciarrino, but with a "rougher" feel to the texture - this was premiered at a Huddersfield festival event I attended 18 months ago; the reacquaintance was very welcome]
Oliver Leith (b1990): 664 Love Songs Guaranteed to Cure Heartache [A witty concept - taking fragments of lyrics from No1 Pop Songs and rearranging them into uncanny new texts. I found the literary results more engaging than the attractive, but rather literal Music equivalents.
Scott McLaughlin (b1975): Contingent Harmonies [Lovely piece; I would like. to hear this again]
Joanna Bailie (b1973): Artificial Environments 1 - 5 [One of the most effective works by this composer that I've heard - rather like the Leith, the text - created & recorded by the composer - seemed on first hearing wittier than the Music, but, unlike the Leith, I feel I'd want to hear this again to focus more on the Instrumental material. I realize that, in a work of this sort, the words are as much "Instrumental material" as they are literary, but the "pull" of the linguistic meaning I found a bit distracting.
Lisa Illean (b1983): Weather a Rare Blue [Tremendous piece - more "conventional" than the other works on the programme, with echoes of Grisey, or Saariaho; but the composer's "command" and adoption of techniques and methods of working was very impressive, and resulted in a powerfully lyrical work; one I'd be delighted to hear again.]

[Joseph K]

I've just got back from an Evening of Mozart by Redditch Choral Society and an orchestra. The programme was -

Ave Verum Corpus K. 618

Eine Kleine Nachtmusik K. 525

Laudate Dominum from Vesperae solennes de confessore K. 339

- INTERVAL -

Requiem Mass K. 626 (completed by F. Suessmayr)

I very much enjoyed it. (This is my old choir). The orchestra for the Requiem comprised four violins, two violas, one cello, one double bass, two clarinets, two bassoons, two trumpets, alto, tenor and bass trombones and timpani. I don't know what size of orchestra is usually used for this work, but in any case, while I found it pleasingly intimate, the choir is big enough to produce a decent level of volume when the work calls for it. The soloists were excellent. Some of the choir's entrances could have been a bit more confident, but all in all it's been a very enjoyable evening. My favourite parts of the Requiem were the several fugal movements/sections.

[Cockney Sparrow]

There are very few works I could think I might be able to sing without the (Novello) score, and tthe Mozart/Sussmayer Requiem is one of them. The second concert I sang in, well concert with full orchestra, was in my teens. It's always a joy to sing it.

[cloughie]

There are very few works I could think I might be able to sing without the (Novello) score, and tthe Mozart/Sussmayer Requiem is one of them. The second concert with orchestra I sang in, in my teens. It's always a joy to sing it.

A singing orchestra? A cappella?

[Cockney Sparrow]

I really shouildn't post from my mobile, now corrected.

[Joseph K]

My last concert was the Mike Stern/Dave Wekl band at Ronnie Scott's which finished about 45 minutes ago. It was good, but not as good as Dave Holland whose band I saw at the same venue last November. While Dave Holland erred on the arty side of jazz, with sophisticated pieces with innovative harmonies and arrangements, Mike Stern was more about the rock and pop side, and I wasn't expecting him to sing on a few tunes. Moreover, I'm not sure if people knew this, but a terrible accident a few years ago has left his picking hand quite contorted, and I'm not sure if his technique is 100%. Plus we got more of Dave Holland. But I guess Mike Stern was good in other ways. I am seeing Herbie Hancock in November and I would really like to see Kurt Rosenwinkle, though he seldom seems to come to this country. I'd also like to see Chick Corea.

[LeMartinPecheur]

Last night, the end of this year's Dante Festival in E Cornwall/ W Devon http://www.dantefestival.org/ made particularly poignant by the fact that this was the last concert ever by the current Dante Quartet under its founder-leader Krysia Osostowicz

The Dante Quartet name seems set to continue with a Midlands base under its current cellist Richard Jenkinson with three new recruits, but the end of an wonderful era here in the SW (and elsewhere), even though Krysia will continue the local Festival in some form still to be fully worked out.

[Rolmill]

Just got home after seeing Vox Luminis perform six Bach motets at the Wigmore Hall this evening. Fabulous singing, as usual: intense, dramatic, very well-balanced performances - I've never heard the individual strands so clearly. If I was nit-picking, I would say that the final item ('Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied') was perhaps a shade too fast - highly virtuosic singing, but we lost some of the clarity that marked the other motets. However, the many wonderful moments far outweighed this - 'Komm, Jesu, komm' in particular was ravishing.

And is there a more beautiful moment in Bach than the 'Gute Nacht' verse of 'Jesu meine Freude'?

[Zucchini]

Nicky Benedetti / AAM / Eggar @ the Cheltenham Festival *****

This sold out programme was perfect for a beautiful summer evening. Nicky's laser-like projection and shining silver sound were a surpise to me. Technically she was absolutely astonishing. She never stopped smiling, neither did Richard Eggar or the AMM. And neither did we, the audience.

The programme (not in this order) overran by some 30 mins and consisted of:

A Handel Concerto Grosso
Five Vivaldi Concertos played by Nicky (a massive and astounding cadenza concluding one called Il Grosso Mogul)
Two Handel Sonatas played by Nicky & Richard E
A Vivaldi Harpsichord Concerto played by Richard E

After the warmest and most enthusiastic ovations I've heard at Chelternham for years, Richard E , with Nicky offstage, said "Let's get her back and make her play some more" - so we got a substantial superbly played encore.

CDs or Radio can't replicate that collective enjoyment and satisfaction!

[gurnemanz]

We were in London for the day on Saturday with an evening to fill. The choice was Prom or Wigmore. Both looked interesting. Bohemian night with the Bambergers or Ronald Brautigam playing Beethoven on a fortepiano. My wife favoured Promming but I made the case for Wigmore. I love his his complete set of Sonatas and we had no regrets. A beautiful evening of Brautigam's skill and communicative powers and Beethoven's imaginative genius finishing with Waldstein.

[pastoralguy]

Tasmin Little, violin & Piers Lane, piano.

Paxton House. Berwick upon Tweed.

A marvellous recital that found me and my best friend driving from Edinburgh to hear one of Ms. Little's last performances before her imminent retiral.

Totally committed music making that included Brahms' movement from the F.A.E sonata, Schubert's Sonatina in D, Op.384, John Ireland's Second Violin Sonata, V.W's 'Lark...' and the Franck A major sonata.

Much as I was thrilled by Ms. Little's playing, I was slightly put off by my fellow audience members (*)who all seemed to have plumby public school accents and the air of being the most educated individuals. Not really the place for a f***ing peasant like me. There was a Q&A after the Concert and I had a question lined up but I was put off by the general ambience of wealth and culture.

Mind you, I did have a lovely conversation with the wonderful Tasmin!

Ah well.

(*) Do you think these people knew we had had a fish supper before the concert?!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

They might have the accents, pasto - and perhaps the jewellery - but which of them could play the Bach Double Concerto with Ms Little?

[teamsaint]

Tasmin Little, violin & Piers Lane, piano.

Paxton House. Berwick upon Tweed.

A marvellous recital that found me and my best friend driving from Edinburgh to hear one of Ms. Little's last performances before her imminent retiral.

Totally committed music making that included Brahms' movement from the F.A.E sonata, Schubert's Sonatina in D, Op.384, John Ireland's Second Violin Sonata, V.W's 'Lark...' and the Franck A major sonata.

Much as I was thrilled by Ms. Little's playing, I was slightly put off by my fellow audience members (*)who all seemed to have plumby public school accents and the air of being the most educated individuals. Not really the place for a f***ing peasant like me. There was a Q&A after the Concert and I had a question lined up but I was put off by the general ambience of wealth and culture.

Mind you, I did have a lovely conversation with the wonderful Tasmin!

Ah well.

(*) Do you think these people knew we had had a fish supper before the concert?!

With your musical experience, I’m surprised that you were surprised at this, PG.

At any rate, the important thing (IMO obviously) is to remember that they don’t own the music.

I’m sorry that you ended up feeling as you did.

( I keep getting emails from Grange Opera asking why I don’t sign up for tickets. I did mention the sky high ticket prices and black tie dress code might have something to do with it......)