What was your last concert?

[Dave2002]

My goodness it really was live!

That explains the long wait for Mark Elder to reappear for part 2, perhaps an interesting talk overan a little

Yes, it really was. A very good performance of the Elgar variations on r3.

Tonight a stunning performance of Brahms' Piano quintet by the Sacconi quartet plus Crawford-Phillips, followed by more from Gwylim Simcock.

[Bryn]

Friday evening, Jonathan Powell (first 'half') and Nicholas Austin (second 'half'), at the Schott Recital Room, playing Čiurlionis, Blancafort, Liszt, Szymanowski and Prokofiev. A fine conclusion to the Schott Spring Piano Series 2011, except that there will now be an additional recital on June 10th, at which Ivan Šiller will play Bach's Goldberg Variations, and maybe, if he can be prevailed upon, some Ives (a composer whose work he is particularly renowned for his playing of).

[LeMartinPecheur]

Have just heard The Dream of Gerontius with a Cornish amateur choir and (presumably) amateur soloists, plus organ accompaniment and ad lib piano to help the choir through the trickier bits

Very good Angelic Chorus provided by my daughter's school choir (though she's not old enough for it yet) and a very decent Angel, Dawn Felton.

Many imperfections, particularly from the Gerontius, but still worthwhile. Genius will out: many thanks, Sir Edward...

A few Elgar curios were on display from the conductor's collection - first editions of the full score and of Jaeger's Novello analytic notes, plus an original photograph of Elgar conducting in old age. You wouldn't get that at the RFH

[Richard Tarleton]

All Monday to Friday evening concerts on Radio 3 are now being broadcast live. The highly disingenuous Roger Wright, having got rid of most live concert broadcasts a few years ago, has now re-introduced them as if it was something new and daring.

Yes the trails are absolutely shameless. But then most of the new audience he's doubtless attracted will be too young to remember live concerts on 3

[Norfolk Born]

This afternoon: Haydn String Quartet Op. 64 No. 5 ('The Lark') / Mozart Duo K292 (arr. for 2 cellos) / Schubert Quintet D 956.
St Peter and Paul Church. Performed by 'Music in Felixstowe' regulars.

[Richard Tarleton]

Last night - Natalie Clein at http://www.rhosygilwen.co.uk/. The main event was her magisterial performance of the Kodaly sonata, in the second half. She opened with a piece of Tavener which seemed to be there mainly to get the fingers moving, and then played the 5th Bach suite which she told us was the first time she'd performed it. I imagine it may take longer than with some of the major key suites fully to inhabit the wide open spaces of this work. She opened the second part with a piece written for her by Fyfe Dangerfield of the Guillemots, and which was a sort of post-modern "Lark Ascending", and then came the Kodaly. This was superb. She's recorded it on Hyperion, highly recommended.

She did two encores - Casals' The Birds", which she dedicated to Bernard Greenhouse who'd died the day before aged 96, and the prelude to the G Major Bach suite - no problem there.

My only worry about Natalie Clein's performing - and she's a marvellous cellist (this is the second time I've seen her, as well as on TV - she was on the Howard Goodall spot on Sky Arts the other week) is - her breathing. Very laboured and noisy especially during the Bach, to the point of being distracting. Also, she adopts what Joan Sutherland's acting coach at ROH would have called the "General Pained Expression" (GPE) when playing.

Like a number of performers I wonder if she'd benefit from a spot of yoga or Alexander Technique, to master the breathing and redirect the energy.

She's doing masterclasses at Rhosygilwen on 13-14 August - I intend to go along to listen. She's also a very good communicator - since we were in the sticks she gave us an intro to each piece.

[Ferretfancy]

Gerviev and the LSO at the Barbican on Friday, which is being given again at the Barbican tonight. A rather disappointing evening, as I've said on the Gergiev thread. The performances of both the Shostakovich Piano Concertos by Yefim Bronfam seemed rushed and heavy handed at the same time, much of the wit and style was missing apart from excellent trumpet playing by Philip Cobb. After the interval we had Tchaikovsky's Polish symphony, which to me sounded not much more than routine. Barry Millington in the Evening Standard loved it all, but to me it was over hyped.

[Norfolk Born]

Last Tuesday: String Quartet no. 1 (2006) by Helen Temperley, followed by Britten's 3rd String Quartet, both performed by the Rivoli String Quartet at St. Mary-le-Tower, Ipswich. (Part of the 40th season of lunchtime recitals).

[hackneyvi]

Xenakis - Eonta, Kottos, Phlegra and La légende d'Eer at the QEH on Saturday evening ...

Frankly I might well have been better off listening to La légende d'Eer at home, by spinning the Mode DVD. At least I the music would have had the chance of being accompanied by Bruno Rastoin's film material, rather than the boringly empty red-lit stage of the QEH.

This was another 'impulse' concert for me and it was a bit of a breakthrough. I can't claim to have appreciated the music in any way seriously but each piece made some impression and left me with some memory.

Eonta - of residual reverberation of the piano rising up out of a diminuendo (?) from the horn players; gradually hearing the piano sounds emerging was a surprise as the pianist was still and I hadn't noticed him strike the chord; I think Xenakis used a similar effect in at least one of other pieces.

Kottos - of the music's "planes", the horizontal, sawing of the outset and the later, vertical slides;

Phlegra - I recall enjoying the string and woodwind harmonies;

d'Eer - It was the first time I'd ever been in the Queen Elizabeth Hall and I rather liked the lighting, creating more shadows along the walls and the colour giving warmth to the wood; it came as a complete surprise that the stage was empty and we just listened to what I assume was pre-recorded (if live-mixed) sound; at one stage, I was tempted to leave the hall to find out what the music didn't sound like - that's not facetious but I wanted to hear ordinary sounds again; a part of the reason for that was, I think, finding quite alot of the sound almost natural - sometimes having something about it of water, of birds, of insects.

I can't imagine ever being able to assess the quality of performance of these pieces, the pianist in Eonta, for example, could have been making quite random key strokes for all I could tell. Nor to really grasp how architecture can be translated apparantly directly into music - though, at points, Kottos did suggest 2 dimensions to me. But finding the patience just to let the music 'happen' to me was an important step and having found the knack of not resisting music's unfamiliarity, I find myself continuously rewarded.

[BBMmk2]

Last night we were treated to a quite extrodinary concert by The Sixteen. What an ensemble this group are! Quite a varied programme, eg Tallis, Byrd, James MacMillan, Britten and Tippett.

The concert was held at Ardingly College Chapel(where I work!!).

[Norfolk Born]

Last Wednesday lunchtime: John Stafford and Christine Whiffen (husband and wife):
Schubert Fantasia D940
Satie: Trois Pièces en Forme de Poire
Fauré: Dolly Suite
at St. Andrew's Church.

[David Samuels]

Spent almost all of last week at St John's, Smith Square for the Lufthansa Festival of Baroque Music. A good mix of the known and the unknown (i.e. neglected although some of that is justifiable). Anyway, there was so much, I need the programme to remind me of most of it. That said, I do remember the opening Bm Mass!

[LeMartinPecheur]

Our last was a recital in Truro in aid of the Endelienta Appeal (for a new arts complex at St Endellion, Cornwall for festival and all-year use). It was given by Stephen Hawker, a young pianist ex-Wells Cathedral, Guildhall and Cambridge. Before we mind the quality, let us first feel the width!

Mozart Fantasia in D min K397
Beethoven Sonata in D op10/3
Rachmaninov Etudes Tableaux op 33/2+5; op 39/1-3
Scriabin Preludes op 11/5, 6, 9, 10, 12-14; op 48/2
Mussorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition
(Encore) Liszt Gnomenreigen

And the quality? At all times decent, and sometimes a good bit more, particularly in the Russian repertoire. He's the sort of pianist who very well conveys the 'work in the round' despite the odd-finger-slip.

[hackneyvi]

This
BBCSO at the Barbican on Friday

Britten Ballad of Heroes
James Clarke Untitled No 2 for Piano and Large Orchestra (BBC co-commission: UK premiere)
Beethoven Symphony No 3 in E flat major, ‘Eroica’

Good to hear the Britten as its a new one for me and loved James Clarke's piece , some wonderfully constructed tonalities and textures the Eroica whilst a bit like a warm comfortable bath still has the power to subvert though i was not 100% convinced by the playing at times

Is there a recording anyone can recommend of a really earthy Eroica? Maybe Eroica shouldn't be 'earthy' but I like a bit of inelegance in my music.

The thread on Eroica reminded me of this concert. I loved the performance of the 1st movement of the Beethoven (and the James Clarke), which riveted me by its briskness. Something very clear and alive came through in that music which is more usually anaesthetised.

[David Samuels]

I think the London Classical Players under Roger Norrington should fit the bill, even though recorded in the mid 80s; the whole set is still available from Amazon for less than £16 (just). Interesting to note that possibly 30% of the LCP in 1986 are still playing in the OAE today and that Marshall Marcus (who no longer is) now runs all the music at the South Bank.