I didn't know there was any culture in my town.
So when I discovered an evening of music by piano and string quintet within walking distance of my house, it was worth mentioning to my key new friend. And as she sounded keen too, we arranged to go.
That meant quite a number of new experiences for me. This was my outing, and I haven't been a host before. Nor have I cooked a meal for anybody else. And my visitors, up to now, have been ones who require chairs and answers, no food, no drink, and are determined not to make themselves at home. Having a proper visitor was just a little bit worrying.
I didn't do too well, to be honest, as I missed the time for putting the food on to cook, and we had to bolt a small amount before walking rather more briskly than intended into town. Still, the conversation was good.
The music was much better than I expected, though. Chopin for forty minutes, then an interval, then forty minutes of the tangos of Astor Piazolla. The second half was very interesting to me indeed, and I felt obliged to buy the accompanying CD for further investigation. I'm not sure whether it was the smaller venue, the smaller sense of occasion, the music itself, the fact of having seen live music before, now, or a combination of all these things, but I felt much freer to just relax and enjoy myself this time round. I expended less mental effort on the experience as a whole, and much more on the music.
And I recommend Piazzoforte (the name of the ensemble) to anyone who likes classical music without any pretensions, and isn't too restricted in their opinion of what classical music is. These musicians certainly put their heart into the performance and didn't consider the material second-rate, and I was amazed how good they were.
Being a host will take more practice, though. I hope I get more opportunity.
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4 comments:
//I was amazed how good they were.//
Sir,
It never surprises me now how many brilliant musicians there are who hold down jobs like accountants and all such seemingly mundane occupations.
Parish churches and cathedrals are often good venues for excellent music. This may be orchestral, chamber or organ music, and there will usually be a choral element. In cathedrals the choirs are mostly 'professional' and the wonderful acoustics there make a concert or recital a truly memorable experience.
Most cathedrals have a daily sung 'Evensong' service in the late afternoon, and anyone can go and sit and be quiet while the service takes place.
Which reminds me - some friends of mine who left the Brethren decades ago told me recently of their first ever visit to Durham cathedral this year. They were blown over!
I know that Brethren have an ecclesiastical architectural style of their own, but it had slipped my awareness that they might never have visited a cathedral. I was personally introduced to cathedral architecture by my Taylor Brethren French teacher in the 1950s. She would regularly take my class into the school's Lecture Theatre and project on the screen photographs of French cathedrals (and Durham because of the Norman involvement). That's how I came to see Chartres for the first time.
As an aside, this sister was also fundamental in introducing me to French art, though she would stick together the reproductions of Renoir's nudes in her wonderful albums before passing them round the class!
I realise in retrospect that I was a bit unfair with my low expectations, judging by the venue and not the performers.
They were all professionals, with the quintet being a recognised Polish specialist in this particular type of music, and the pianist was professor of piano at the London College of Music. So they should have been good, and they were. I'm not experienced enough to know where they would have fallen short of the standards of the Vienna Philharmonic, which was my last (and only other) concert.
The pianist lives locally, apparently, which maybe explains why they were prepared to play in front of a small audience here.
Ecclesiastical music still awaits my attention, but somebody is threatening to introduce me to the musical events at my local church. I think that's a bit lower-brow, though.
When I first escaped from slavish conformity with EB rules, my first taste of the good things of life was attending concerts in Glasgow University Chapel, where the choir usually performed a variety of sacred choral works, sometimes accompanied by a small orchestra. The experience was quite stunning.
Thirty-eight years later, some of the melodies still linger in my memory, as among the most beautiful sounds I have ever heard.
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