Ho Hum

[liadnan]

Thursday's prom was supposed to be by the Orchestra of St Lukes, an American outfit. Unfortunately as it has turned out, in the current airline turmoil they are unable to bring their instruments over and are to be replaced by the City of London Sinfonia. Ah well, wasn't too struck by the concert anyway, one for hardcore Ian Bostridge fans.

I find myself wondering how Anne-Sophie Mütter, who is said to travel with her two strads handcuffed to her, would react on being told she could take no hand luggage. Oddly enough major soloists do not take kindly to the idea of putting their priceless instruments in the hold. Nor do their underwriters. If one has sat on a plane having some problem with the doors and watched the hold being unloaded, as I did not too long ago, one begins to see their point. The winces from the guys behind me as they saw their expensive bikes being chucked around brought tears to the eyes.

Just back from one of the best performances I have ever heard of the Beethoven violin concerto, which I consider a work apart from every other piece of music ever written, so I'm happy anyway...

Comments

[sierra-le-oli.livejournal.com]

I believe I read a story yesterday (which I can't find now) about members of a Russian orchestra having to travel back home by train from America because of their instruments. They were actually contractually bound not to part from them, not that I imagine they'd want to be anyway.

[liadnan]

Russian orchestras often have their instruments on loan from the Russian state I believe, a hangover from the old days, and that could well have something to do with it. But the specialist underwriters who deal with this have strict requirements anyway, though that is more likely to apply to a soloist's instrument.

Alaska and then the trans-Siberian railway then?

I remember youth orchestra tours being a nightmare for this on flights, even in Europe but particularly to the US. They always wanted to do things to the instruments we didn't want them to do (the percussion was particularly difficult). And that was more than ten years before 2001.

[huskyteer.livejournal.com]

One of my favourite songs, 'The Troubles' by the Roches, about an American band travelling to Ireland, has the line: "I dreamed I saw my guitar topple off onto the runway/Please be careful with my guitar/Whoever you are". Always makes me laugh, though not as much as "I hope they have health food in Dublin/And strawberry-apricot pie".

[liadnan]

Hah. Yes, sounds about right.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_hypatia_/]

What did you think of Christian Tetzlaff playing the Beethoven? (I don't know about *every* other piece of music but 'a work apart' definitely).

[liadnan]

Pretty fab actually: prob one of the three best performances I have ever heard: absolutely put his soul into it. Although the man does dance while playing, which is mildly distracting.

I have a near-religious Thing about the Beethoven: the only competitor in my personal rankings is Mahler 2.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_hypatia_/]

Dancing is something I associate more with wind players on the whole - it doesn't actually bother me but I can see people finding it a bit distracting.

Your starter for ten - what are your definitive recordings of the Beethoven and the Mahler?

[liadnan]

Lor' I dunno. Prob not the right person to ask, but this Mahler 2 by Bawdy Claud http://www.deutschegrammophon.com/special/?ID=abbado-mahler2 is supposed to be special. Have to think further.

[susumu.livejournal.com]

I'm feeling a sudden resonance with the set up of Canal Dreams.

[rhythmaning.livejournal.com]

Thanks to your post, I am now listening to last night's Prom on the BBC's "listen again" player. It hasn't got to the Beethoven yet...