WOMAD 2009

30 July 2009

2009 was one of the best WOMAD Festivals I can remember. The weather was (mostly) kind - sunny but not too hot until the rain finally arrived on Sunday afternoon - and there were some wonderful performances. I saw 18 full sets and caught snatches of several others and there were many highlights. I liked the female vocal harmonies of the folk fusion band Acetre whose modern take on the traditional music of the Extremadura region halfway down the Spanish/Portugese border reminded me of both Värttinä from Finland and, particularly, the Warsaw Village Band (reviewed here in September 2008). It was a privilege to see both the outstanding Wassalou divas of Mali in one weekend - Rokia Traore (reviewed here in February 2008), and Oumou Sangare (reviewed here in March 2009) both producing stunning performances culminating in joyous dancing that never wanted to end. It was fascinating to see the legendary Ethopian singers Mahmoud Ahmed and Alemayehu Eshete as part of an all-star showcase of the Ethiopiques series (reviewed here in November 2007). And I was entranced by the amazing three-octave voice of the Azerbaijani singer Gochag Askerov. Great to see Berlin's 17 Hippies (reviewed here in October 2007) live at last. Peter Gabriel performed specially to promote the charity Witness.org - ending with a powerful rendition of 'Biko' in memory of the Russian human rights activist, Natalia Estemirova, who was killed in Chechnya two weeks ago. Peter Gabriel also sang a movingly slow version of Paul Simon's 'The Boy in the Bubble' accompanied by strings. But after much deliberation my pick of the weekend has to be the French group Caravan Palace who play the gypsy jazz swing of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli to pounding high-tempo electronic beats. It's infectiously uplifting - doing for the Hot Club De France what Gotan Project did for tango but much less earnestly. Caravan Palace are playful and cheeky without ever being anything less than stylish. Their stage performance is compellingly theatrical and had everyone in the massive Siam tent dancing. Best known for inspiring Christopher Walken to dance his way round a hotel lobby (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mahYSenVRPM) Caravan Palace's eponymous album (which you can listen to free on Spotify) is guaranteed to cheer you up and get you moving.

'The Duckworth Lewis Method'

22 July 2009

I've never had any interest in cricket - I think it's just too English for me! - but I'm nevertheless hooked on 'The Duckworth Lewis Method' - the new cricket-themed album by Neil Hannon (of The Divine Comedy) and Thomas Walsh. Incredibly catchy (pun intended!) tunes and brilliant lyrics. You can't help but smile at a song that includes the lines: “Always denied entry/ By the English gentry/ Now we're driving Bentleys/ Playing 20/20".

'A History of Modern Britain’ by Andrew Marr

22 July 2009

I suspect most of us have an historical blindspot covering the ten years or so either side of our birth – the period that is too recent to be taught to us as history but of which we don’t have our own clear memories and understanding. I’ve been filling in the gaps in my knowledge by reading Andrew Marr’s ‘A History of Modern Britain’ (based on his TV series which I missed). Over the course of more than 600 pages Andrew Marr tells the story of post-war Britain, divided into 5 main periods. Within each period he addresses a range of topics (including economics, fashion, culture, housing and industry) thematically in short (mostly 2 or 3 page) chapters. These chapters take us forwards and backwards over the period in question as each theme is tackled, but maintain an overall chronological momentum. The central spine of the book, however, is politics (unsurprisingly for a former BBC Political Editor). I thoroughly enjoyed piecing together events of which I had previously only a sketchy knowledge and wallowing in nostalgic remembrance of my own childhood. I think I enjoyed reading about the more recent years less – perhaps because I felt that Marr’s own opinions and prejudices seemed more dominant, which may just have been because I have clearer opinions myself about the eras I encountered as an adult. But it was fascinating to look back with the benefit of hindsight over 60 years of politics and see the great extent to which major changes to our way of life have resulted from political luck and accident!

Northampton Symphony Orchestra concert

17 July 2009

The final concert of the Northampton Symphony Orchestra’s 2008-09 season was a Sunday afternoon thank-you to the Friends of the NSO. We played a light programme of Sibelius, Dvorak, Brahms, von Suppé and Johan Strauss. But I think the highlight was a lovely performance of Bruch’s ‘Romanze’ for viola and orchestra played by the NSO’s own Becky Dyson who is about to leave us to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

'Home' by David Storey

17 July 2009

Last Thursday we were at the Theatre Royal in Bath to see David Storey’s 1970 play ‘Home’. The original Royal Court production starred John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson as two elderly men sitting in a garden, passing the time of day. These parts were taken in this production by David Calder and Stephen Moore with Nichola McAuliffe and Lesley Joseph as the two women who provide a jarring contrast to their conversation. It’s a fascinating play which takes some time to reveal itself, while being very entertaining from the start. At first it feels like theatre of the absurd – the early exchanges between the two men could have come from ‘Waiting for Godot’ (reviewed here in May 2009). Then the real nature of their situation becomes clear and very poignant. But, throughout, the play is actually reflecting on a changing country as England searches for its new identity in the modern world. Very enjoyable and thought-provoking.

Wimbledon 2009

1 July 2009

On Tuesday we braved the heat on Wimbledon’s Centre Court where we saw the quarter final matches between Dinara Safina and Sabine Lisicki, and Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka. We had the best seats we’ve had in many years of going to Wimbledon – five rows up from the court, just beside the scoreboard (and just in front of a commentary box containing John McEnroe!). We had a wonderful view and saw some great tennis: the Safina/Lisicki match was the most exciting though we also enjoyed seeing the men’s doubles number one seeds, Bob and Mike Bryan, who beat Kevin Ullyet and Bruno Soares. It was incredibly hot all day without a cloud in the sky and there were times when we would have welcomed the closing of the roof!

‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ by William Shakespeare

1 July 2009

On Saturday we paid our annual visit to the gardens of Woburn Abbey for some open-air Shakespeare. This year we saw ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ performed by Chapterhouse Theatre (whose ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ we saw at Woburn two years ago, reviewed here in July 2007). Although I was fairly familiar with lots of aspects of it, I realised that I had never seen a production of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. This was the perfect setting though the opening of the play, at the end of what had been a beautiful sunny day, was heralded by an enormous clap of thunder. As the evening progressed the storm seemed to circle us, with thunder and lightning moving gradually round but thankfully the rain missed us altogether. Outdoor performances present a variety of challenges, from the need for substantial voice projection to holding the attention and focus of a large, widespread and mixed audience. The actors accomplished all this impressively and the comedy, in particular, worked very well.

‘Private Fears in Public Places’ by Alan Ayckbourn

1 July 2009

Last Friday we caught up with the second play in the Royal Theatre, Northampton, ‘Ayckbourn at 70’ season (following ‘Just Between Ourselves’, reviewed here in May 2009). ‘Private Fears in Public Places’, written in 2004, is a slightly unusual Ayckbourn play, consisting of 54 short scenes without an interval. Laurie Sansom’s production gave us a different view of the Royal Theatre, placing all the audience on the stage amongst the action. The set created seven small performance spaces with the audience forming part of the backdrop. Those sitting beside the hotel bar were at cabaret tables or on high bar stools, while other audience members sat on a hillside of sofas in Stewart’s living room. We were in a section of the audience sitting on office chairs and filing cabinets in an estate agent’s office and the remaining floor space was covered with a range of colour-coded cushions. Royal & Derngate staff and volunteers were on hand to direct us to the relevant seating: most people emerged onto the stage intrigued and confused about where to go but, as we took our seats, one lady who had clearly paid attention to the careful explanation given by the box office strode onto the stage proudly declaring “we are a cushion”! ‘Private Fears in Public Places’ is a very sad exploration of loneliness without any big comic set-pieces – thoughtful and poignant – very well acted and excellently cast.