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George Garnett
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« Reply #180 on: 09:45:18, 29-04-2008 » |
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Anyone here going to the LSO/Boulez concert at the Barbican this Wednesday? Am hoping to be there, transport permitting.
I'll be there, opilec.  I'm usually to be found in the interval lurking outside on the ... er, thing, outside concrete bit ... getting a breath of air and communing with the ducks. I'm the unassuming chap not making phone calls or smoking an interval ciggie. |
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marbleflugel
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« Reply #181 on: 13:43:07, 29-04-2008 » |
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A, you might want to keep an eye on the LSO website-it was a co-commission with a couple of other bands so Sky Arts etc may be at it sometime. I don't think its a great score but its got great moments and very very fine orchestration that carries it.
Paperwork backlogue notwithstanding, I'm going to try and be at the Boulez gig-tweed trilby , blue/ white stripey jacket, beard (not necessarily in that order).
Hope to see you guys there.
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'...A celebrity is someone who didn't get the attention they needed as an adult'
Arnold Brown
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A
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« Reply #182 on: 14:31:29, 29-04-2008 » |
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Thanks mf... I will keep my eyes open.  A |
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Well, there you are.
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opilec
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« Reply #183 on: 14:41:42, 29-04-2008 » |
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Paperwork backlogue notwithstanding, I'm going to try and be at the Boulez gig-tweed trilby , blue/ white stripey jacket, beard (not necessarily in that order).
Hope to see you guys there.
Self: large, overweight, middle-aged redhead, possibly smoking roll-ups by the pond at half-time. Will look out for you and George tomorrow. opi |
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marbleflugel
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« Reply #184 on: 19:16:48, 29-04-2008 » |
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Pond would be a good place to meet wouldn't it.
Hope to see you two there, Cheers
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'...A celebrity is someone who didn't get the attention they needed as an adult'
Arnold Brown
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duncan
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« Reply #185 on: 19:21:04, 29-04-2008 » |
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London Sinfonietta + Nicolas Hodges: Thomas Ades / Tal Rosner - 'In Seven Days'. A new piano concerto, with moving pictures from Ades' other half.
Pleasant stuff; very John Adams in parts. The pictures were rather blown away by a Turner-esque storm and sunset over the Thames during the interval and the music was rather blown away by the second half: Steve Reich - Music for 18 Musicians, which was superb.
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strinasacchi
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« Reply #186 on: 00:23:50, 01-05-2008 » |
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In vaguely similar vein I managed to blag a freebie to the Laurie Anderson gig last night in Moscow, at Dom Muzyky (Main Hall). She played an entirely new set called "Homeland", and didn't play material from any of her previous albums. The ensemble was very thinned-down.... a violist, a keyboardist, and a bassist, together with a sound programmer, and Anderson herself on electric violin, synths and vocoder. The new material is more overtly political than anything I've previously heard her do. While some of the songs are a dystopic view of modern life, more than half are directly about the current political scene in the USA. There's an extremely bitter song about the Iraq War ("Only an expert can deal with the problem, only an expert can deal with the problem"), and another mid-way through the set "We call 'em up, we call 'em up, no-one even knows why". I'm not sure to what extent the Moscow audience understood the underlying detail in songs decrying Rush Limbaugh? A few muso journalists whom I saw afterwards were hunting for clues as to what the "NRA" is. Other songs dealt with pollution, the soullessness of modern city life, birds, and a song that parodied the schtick of a Motivational Speaker who is a secret nihilist. A truly rotten sound-system (in Moscow's premiere flagship new concert-hall, hello?) pulled the rug from much enjoyment that might have been had. Frankly it was the wrong venue entirely (trying to do NYC liberal-cool electro against the visual background of an enormous concert organ was already wrong). I fear the ultra-expensive ticket prices (£50 cheapest) had driven away a good proportion of the fans, and the 2500-seater hall was 70% empty. Sensible House Management closed the Balcony and Amphitheatre, and moved everyone into the Stalls, but we were rattling even then  I just saw this tonight at the Barbican theatre, which I'm guessing was a much better venue for it than the venue in Moscow. There were a few moments when I was wondering what time it was, and I wasn't convinced by the sound when the 5-string electric violin was playing with the pick-up-ed and miked (insert spelling debate here) viola - not similar enough to blend well, not different enough to play with contrast. And I've never seen four more static or awkward performers on a stage, caged behind their equipment. But all in all it was a thought-provoking show with many haunting moments, some darkly humourous, some outright bitter and angry, some just lyrical. Unlike Reiner's experience in Moscow, tonight was affordable (£10-35) and packed. (Funny, that - I wonder if the two things are related...) |
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George Garnett
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« Reply #187 on: 09:42:52, 01-05-2008 » |
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It was a great pleasure to meet Member Opilec at the Barbican last night (even though I spent some time looking for someone smoking what I had read as a 'roll-mop'; I should have realised it was a bit unlikely). Sadly we failed to make contact with Marbleflugel though. Apologies MF if you were there and we missed you.
Very enjoyable concert with Boulez, as ever, looking more like a sprightly 60 than 83. Rather bizarre experience to get a packed Barbican Hall demanding a Boulez encore and getting a zinging second helping of Notation II with the LSO jiving away looking for all the world like the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra doing a mambo encore. I was half expecting them to start twirling their cellos and trumpets and throw their jackets into the audience. But no.
Gosh! Strinasacchi was just next door with Laurie Anderson. Sorry we missed you too in that case Strina.
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« Last Edit: 09:59:09, 01-05-2008 by George Garnett »
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strinasacchi
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« Reply #188 on: 10:29:25, 01-05-2008 » |
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A future roll-mop addict:  Sorry to miss you too. I had skimmed over your plans to meet at the pond without realising it was the same day. But there was no interval in the theatre so I probably would have missed you in any case (and doesn't the Barbican usually stagger start times and intervals in the various theatres so the bars aren't too overwhelmed? Doesn't stop them from being incredibly slow anyway...) |
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George Garnett
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« Reply #189 on: 11:26:06, 01-05-2008 » |
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You found the picture I was hoping to find but failed  . (and doesn't the Barbican usually stagger start times and intervals in the various theatres so the bars aren't too overwhelmed?) I always thought it was on police advice to stop the theatre and concert audiences from fighting but you may well be right. BOOLEZ SHED ROOLZ OK |
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« Last Edit: 11:28:23, 01-05-2008 by George Garnett »
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richard barrett
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« Reply #190 on: 11:56:39, 01-05-2008 » |
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So, there are two interesting things both happening twice next week:
The ensemble "notes inégales" at the ICA, featuring a green pianist, on Thursday 8th and Friday 9th (for those who want to know more in advance, the ensemble's director Peter Wiegold and its tuba player Oren Marshall and for some reason yours truly will be talking about it between 8 and 9 this evening on Resonance FM), and
Luigi Nono's Prometeo at the RFH on Friday 9th and Saturday 10th.
I'm attending to intend the former on the 8th and the latter on the 9th. Anyone else?
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opilec
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« Reply #191 on: 19:24:47, 01-05-2008 » |
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It was a great pleasure to meet George at last and have a brief natter at half-time - and am sorry to have missed MF (and strina for that matter). Can't add much to George's account of the concert. The Notations were really wonderful (hadn't heard the set with number VII before), and the encore of number II much appreciated by all. Great to see PB in action again (and how!), and as well as Notations I particularly enjoyed the Schoenberg op.16, which are real gems. The last time I'd heard Chant du rossignol live was also with Boulez conducting: in 1992 with the VPO at the Proms. Richard, those "two interesting things" look very tempting. If I don't get to them it's because I'm (a) skint and (b) already supposed to be venturing out to the Boulez concert on 11 May (inlcuding some Pintscher and Duke Bluebeard's Castle). But thanks for the info! |
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martle
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« Reply #192 on: 19:32:02, 01-05-2008 » |
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I'm attending to intend the former on the 8th As you say, Richard, since I'm perforcing I'll be there both nights, perform. Drinks afterwards, anyone? I think George mentioned he was coming to one of them... |
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Green. Always green.
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time_is_now
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« Reply #193 on: 19:58:14, 01-05-2008 » |
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So, there are two interesting things both happening twice next week:
The ensemble "notes inégales" at the ICA, featuring a green pianist, on Thursday 8th and Friday 9th (for those who want to know more in advance, the ensemble's director Peter Wiegold and its tuba player Oren Marshall and for some reason yours truly will be talking about it between 8 and 9 this evening on Resonance FM), and
Luigi Nono's Prometeo at the RFH on Friday 9th and Saturday 10th.
I'm attending to intend the former on the 8th and the latter on the 9th. Anyone else?
Financial considerations may keep me away from the ICA (not least because while the place itself is unbearably pretentious it has a bookshop which I find it very hard to walk past resisting temptation), but I plan to be at Prometeo on the 9th. I had hoped to go on the 10th, thus hearing RVW 6, The Hymn of Jesus and General William Booth Enters into Heaven at the Barbican the night before, but I now have domestic obligations (  ) on the 10th. |
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The city is a process which always veers away from the form envisaged and desired, ... whose revenge upon its architects and planners undoes every dream of mastery. It is [also] one of the sites where Dasein is assigned the impossible task of putting right what can never be put right. - Rob Lapsley
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BobbyZ
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« Reply #194 on: 22:10:43, 01-05-2008 » |
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I'm hoping to get to the ICA on May 8th. Will give me an excuse to spin Bitches Brew over this bank holiday !
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Dreams, schemes and themes
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