A Lark Ascending

"With American orchestras reluctant to celebrate the music of its great symphonists, fellow composer and Aspen festival’s CEO Alan Fletcher is determined to put them back in the spotlight." https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2016/jun/28/american-composers-neglected-aspen-music-festival-classical

Beethoven vc. Currently: Disc 3 And a bit later: (heard a recording of his recent Trumpet Concerto on the radio by chance earlier in the week - made me dig this out again)

The Fairy Queen - Purcell (Yorkshire Baroque Soloists, Sir Jack Lyons Hall, University of York) An absolute delight from start to finish. Another success for limited staging and modest forces - 14 musicians (though with TWO theorbos - who needs the Allman Brothers Band!), 13 singers (one also narrating). A piece I know fairly well from CD and DVD but once again, having the musicians in front of you the sheer variety of Purcell's orchestration becomes apparent. Especially taken by Bethany Seymour's singing. Rather than including the extended dialogue that appears on the William Christie DVD, brief pieces of narration were included to give a sense of the (rather wandering) tale (based on A Midsummer Night's Dream). Some genuinely funny comic moments. And a wonderful prologue, adapted from the original to include references to the pantomime that is British politics currently. Marvellous fun. More from the festival tonight.

Looking forward to that group in Sheffield later in the year. I've seen Clowes a couple of times recently and really like her three records. Not just a good player but an interesting writer who draws from beyond jazz. Just missed Abate by a day in St. Ives. Did get to see: Kevin Figes Quartet (St Ives Jazz Club) KEVIN FIGES (alto), JIM BLOMFIELD (pn), A sub whose name I missed (electric bass), MARK WHITLAM (dm) Good evening of modal/fusiony jazz with Figes playing alto throughout (last time I saw him in the same venue he used baritone as well). Very nice keyboards from Blomfield - mainly a Nord that seemed to be able to usher a range of sounds from the 60s/70s but also some proper piano. Impressive drummer too. Read in the blurb that Figes was taught by Elton Dean.

Tristan and Isolde at London Coliseum (English National Opera) Glad to have finally seen this - the first full opera I ever had on LP. Orchestra was fine but the production highly eccentric. Vivienne Westwood supporting characters and then a scene out of Shogun in Act I. I spent most of the love scene in Act II worrying that the rather well built Isolde would fall over the rocks as the two lovers moved around a treacherous stage set: Acting was wooden (hardly surprising given that one false step would have turned everything to pantomime). And then when King Mark discovers them they were seized by an army of medical types in surgical scrubs who strapped them to hospital beds from where they sang for the rest of the act. The opening of Act III has some of my favourite Wagner but again the production was distracting - Kurwenal was dressed like Eddie Izzard and kept running off stage for a step ladder to climb in order to look out for Isolde's ship, then fussily put it back. Not a patch on the Opera North Ring - the wisdom of stripping away most of the acting/scenery hazards in that production was brought home even more. I'm no connoisseur of singing but I enjoyed Tristan, did not find Isolde easy on the ear. Still, enjoyed the music.

No 2 of latter.

More like his assistant.

Hot off the press - it normally takes at least three listens for a new record to start to make a real impact with me (often wonder why...moving from a stage where everything is unexpected to where you start to anticipate what is coming next?). The Violin Concerto here made an immediate impact. Reviews I've seen/heard so far make (fair) comparisons with the Berg concerto; but I heard Walton in there too. I'm more familiar with brother David's music but have really enjoyed getting to know Colin's music over the last couple of weeks. Both assisted Deryck Cooke in the performing edition of Mahler 10 when very young men; they also worked with Britten at Aldeburgh in his last years. Colin is also the founder of NMC records, a label that focuses on new British music. Real treasure trove of the unfamiliar. Old favourite.

Saw this about ten years ago but could remember very little apart from the basic premise. Like watching a new film. Very good; harrowing in places.

Lovely contemporary record of chamber and piano music. ********************** The following day:

Thanks for the encouragement to continue - definitely intend to. I remember not being too excited by the first episode of 'The Good Wife'. These things need time to develop. 'The Americans' has had some very enthusiastic reviews from places like 'The Guardian' - I don't think it's taken off here in the way TGW, House of Cards and Mad Men did.

Series 1 1 (watched off the TV). Very good survey from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age. I used to be really into this period but haven't paid much attention for many years - this series brought it all back. Neil Oliver does like to strike 'Holding Out For A Hero' postures on windswept cliffs but he's an engaging presenter (still prefer Dr Alice Roberts). Spectacular photography of some beautiful places. Just watched the first episode (the pilot, I think) of this. Not completely convinced...the woman had a rather 'KGB-indoctrinated robot as viewed from the USA' about her. But it probably needs time to settle into something more nuanced.

No 7 again off first; No. 8 off second.

Rokia Traore (Howard Assembly Rooms, Leeds) Non-stop two hours of wonderfully rhythmic music. Accompanied by guitar/bass/drums/ngoni/violin/extra singer. Songs of unity and cooperation. Highly ironic!

Disc 5 of latter - Lebenstanz, North Country Sketches, Sea Drift, Cynara

Just as catastrophic on the radio. I've been awake all night listening. Gave up even trying to sleep two hours ago.

Festival Overture; Christmas Eve; 4 Orchestral Sketches: No. 4. Dance of the Wild Irravel; Nympholept; Paean; Overture to a Picaresque Comedy; Cortege No 5

Finished this morning after a few months. Recommended if you want a substantial bio of Mahler. Mainly useful for the life story - Fischer does have chapters on the symphonies but they are pretty standard. Not a man I would have taken to in real life (though his egotism makes it pretty unlikely that he would have tolerated anyone not on his exalted level). The condescending way he writes to his wife right from the courtship phase makes you squirm. Especially enjoyed reading the reactions to him as a conductor and composer - good lord, if you think some critics today can be imperious. Amazing that music we take in our stride today caused so much incomprehension and outright hostility (not just for anti-Semitic reasons). Gets a bit old-farty at the end - in reviewing how Mahler's music fared after his death he gives due attention to the explosion in popularity from around 1960 but then suggests the enthusiasm has probably peaked because of poor educational standards and the fact that fewer people read music any more and so won't really understand it beyond the emotion. I don't see any slowing down of recordings and the recent concerts I've been to have been packed and received ecstatically without a score in sight (apart from on stage!).

I gave alcohol up last November. More to cut back on sugar than anything. Missed it for a month but not since. I don't notice any lesser enjoyment of music.

I'm much too well-behaved to have ever indulged. Though in my younger days had plenty of listening while under the influence of alcohol...gave me that same sort of feeling of bonhomie to the music that I'd also feel to all around. I'm not convinced I was taking much in...the whole world just looked and sounded nicer.

Disc 6 of the first. I blow hot and cold with Bax but really enjoyed this today. Especially like the middle 3 movements of Mahler 7.

I'd be a little cautious about sleep listening. I tend to leave the radio on overnight and back in the days when the BBC World Service had some good music programmes I'd frequently emerge into a semi-conscious state and hear this amazing music. I few times I checked on the website the following morning, bought the record and....found it rather ordinary! But I can see that it gives another way of listening - catching music at an unexpected angle, all the rational parts of the brain relaxed so you are not listening with your usual preconceptions (I think something similar can happen in my a) peripheral).