‘Laura Knight: A Panoramic View’

25 February 2022

Dame Laura Knight (1877 - 1970) was one of the most popular English artists of the twentieth century. On Saturday I was at Milton Keynes Gallery to see ‘Laura Knight: A Panoramic View’ - an exhibition curated by Anthony Spira and Fay Blanchard bringing together over 160 works from public and private collections to provide a fascinating overview of Knight’s career. A painter in the figurative, realist tradition, Laura Knight embraced English Impressionism. She was the perfect candidate for a biographical exhibition because her work falls neatly into a series of distinct periods, styles, locations and subjects. After her early works, painted while she was living in Staithes, North Yorkshire, she spent the First World War in Cornwall where she produced a range of rural pictures. After moving to London, Knight’s attention turned to ballet, painting some of the most famous dancers of the day from Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. Later she went on a tour with the combined Bertram Mills and Great Carmo's Circus in order to paint circus scenes. During the Second World War, Knight was an official war artist, producing portraits and posters in the socialist realist style to bolster female recruitment to the war effort. In 1946 she painted scenes from the Nuremberg war crimes trials, spending three months observing the main trial from inside the courtroom. The MK Gallery exhibition focussed on each of these periods in her life in chronological order. It was a fascinating collection of the work of this prolific and varied artist. You can see a selection of Laura Knight paintings at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-_pqbr6EjM
 

‘Jazz, Jazz, Jazz’ by The Scorpions and Saif Abu Bakr

18 February 2022

I’ve written here before about the flowering of Ethiopian popular music in the 1960s - incorporating Western instruments and influences but retaining the distinctive pentatonic scale and asymmetrical rhythms of the country's traditional music. French record producer Francis Falceto famously rediscovered vintage recordings on reel-to-reel and vinyl and reissued them on CD as the 'Éthiopiques' series (see 'the very best of éthiopiques', reviewed here in November 2007). This week I’ve discovered another strand of brilliant vintage African popular music, from a recommendation in the fascinating Substack newsletter ‘The Signal From David Katznelson’ (subscribe for free at: https://oakiedog.substack.com/). ‘Jazz, Jazz, Jazz’ is an instrumental album by Sudanese band The Scorpions and Saif Abu Bakr. Originally released in 1980, in 2018 it became the ninth instalment of Habibi Funk’s series of Arabic music reissues. The album is a cool collection of jazz, funk, rock and psychedelia with a very laid-back groove. The guitar and saxophone sound reminded me of Senegal’s Orchestra Baobab (reviewed here in June 2017). You can get a flavour of ‘Jazz, Jazz, Jazz’ at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2o6mHk3QJY

'The Lincoln Highway' by Amor Towles

11 February 2022

The Lincoln Highway was the first transcontinental road across America, running from Times Square in New York City to Lincoln Park in San Francisco. In Amor Towles’ new novel, ‘The Lincoln Highway’, 18-year-old Emmett Watson, who has just been released from prison in 1954, plans a road trip with his 10-year-old brother Billy to start a new life in California - but things don’t go as planned. Like many epic heroic tales, ‘The Lincoln Highway’ starts its narrative ‘in media res’ - in the middle of the plot, but also in the middle of the Highway in rural Nebraska halfway between New York and San Francisco, because Amor Towles is not just telling us a story but telling us about story-telling. His previous novel ‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ (reviewed here in September 2021) was my Pick of the Year: it is a remarkable book - charming, moving, clever and witty. ‘The Lincoln Highway’, which I have just finished reading as an unabridged audio book, narrated by Eduardo Ballerini, Marin Ireland and Dion Graham, is a very different story but has a similar feel. The characters are wise but not always clever, naive but unexpectedly articulate, and sympathetic despite the mistakes they make and the crimes they commit. There is a folksiness to the writing that brings a flavour of Mark Twain to mid-century middle America while also nodding to the novels of John Steinbeck. But there is also an underlying parallel with the Greek heroic epics that reminded me of the Coen Brothers film ‘O Brother Where Art Thou?’ (which is based on ‘The Odyssey’ by Homer). ‘The Lincoln Highway’ alternates the narrative point of view between each of the main characters, often overlapping different views of the same scene. This allows Towles constantly to undercut our expectations and keep us guessing with small plot twists in almost every chapter. And there is a satisfyingly meticulous attention to detail, with every action having some consequence, even if it comes much later in the story. ‘The Lincoln Highway’ is a delicious novel, incredibly likeable, surprising and loveable - I was torn between racing through the book to find out what happened, and not wanting it to end. I absotively loved it.

‘Leopoldstadt’ by Tom Stoppard

3 February 2022

On Saturday we were at the Curzon Cinema at Milton Keynes Gallery to watch the National Theatre Live recording of Tom Stoppard’s new play ‘Leopoldstadt’, directed by Patrick Marber at Wyndham's Theatre in London's West End. The play tells the story of an extended middle-class Jewish family living in Vienna from 1899 to 1955. Almost all the scenes take place in the family’s apartment, but are separated by gaps of many years. It was quite a challenge merely to keep track of the characters in the various strands of the family, as young children from one scene appear as adults in the next. But this creates a fascinating, and believable, family saga, against the ominous backdrop of the coming Holocaust. As always, Stoppard’s script is witty and intellectual - at times here becoming a little too much like a George Bernard Shaw play in which the rigorous debate of ideas over the dinner table feels a bit unrealistic. Nevertheless it’s a gripping and achingly sad journey, told very straight-forwardly. ‘Leopoldstadt’ reminded me of ‘The Hare With Amber Eyes’ (reviewed here in September 2011) in which Edmund de Waal recounts the experiences of the Viennese branch of his own Jewish family through the same period of history. I was also reminded of Ronald Harwood’s play ‘Mahler's Conversion’ which deals with the composer Gustav Mahler rejecting his Jewish background in 1897 to convert to Catholicism in order to be granted the prestigious position of Director of the Vienna Court Opera. The story of the rise and fall of a Jewish family business also made me think of that incredible staging of the tale of Lehman Brothers Bank - 'The Lehman Trilogy' by Stefano Massini, adapted by Ben Power (reviewed here in August 2019). ‘Leopoldstadt’ is excellently acted by a cast of about 30. It is a tragic story, beautifully presented.

‘Hag-Seed’ by Margaret Atwood

26 January 2022

I have read a few of the Hogarth Shakespeare series of books in which contemporary novelists are invited to re-imagine Shakespeare plays, including ‘The Gap of Time: The Winter's Tale Retold’ by Jeanette Winterson and 'Vinegar Girl: The Taming of the Shrew Retold' by Anne Tyler (reviewed here in July 2016). But I tend to find loosely disguised Shakespeare stories in a modern setting, with clever contemporary variations of the character names, all a bit cringe-worthy. The exception is ‘Hag-Seed: The Tempest Retold’ by Margaret Atwood, which I have just finished reading. Rather than simply transplanting the story to modern-day Canada, Margaret Atwood has the characters in her allegory version of ‘The Tempest’ (none of whom have recognisable variations of the names of Shakespeare’s characters) putting on a production of ‘The Tempest’ in a prison. The result is less a thinly-disguised retelling, more an entertaining and engaging study guide, as the prisoners discuss the characters in the play, its themes and meanings. I don’t know ‘The Tempest’ that well - I only saw the play for the first time in 2012 (reviewed here in April 2012) and, although I have seen it a couple of times since, it is not my favourite Shakespeare play. But ‘Hag-Seed’ certainly helped me to understand ‘The Tempest’ much more clearly. The device of prisoners rehearsing a play reminded me of ‘The Island’ by Athol Fugard - which I saw performed at the Edinburgh Fringe many years ago - in which two cellmates are preparing for a performance of Sophocles' ‘Antigone’. ‘Hag-Seed’ is a funny and enjoyable tale, not least because the main character - theatre director Felix Phillips - knows he is living the plot of ‘The Tempest’ because he is using it to enact a satisfying revenge on the colleagues who have usurped his position.

‘Just One Thing with Michael Mosley’

21 January 2022

I am very grateful to Gareth Coles for (repeatedly!) championing the BBC Radio 4 podcast ‘Just One Thing with Michael Mosley’. Each episode is less than 15 minutes long and, as the title suggests, focusses on just one thing you can do to improve your health and wellbeing. Michael Mosley provides very clear scientific evidence for how each of the quick simple things he looks at can benefit wellbeing. He then provides suggestions for minor changes to your daily habits that could make a major difference to your life. For example, the latest episode simply recommends standing up for a couple of minutes every hour. In each case he asks a guinea pig to test drive his hypothesis. The podcast is very persuasive precisely because it promotes very small adjustments. Some of the subjects are fairly unsurprising, for example ‘Sing’ or ‘Drink Water’, though the detailed analysis of these is still revealing. But I found the more counterintuitive topics the most interesting, such as the episodes suggesting improving your wellbeing by eating chocolate or playing video games. You can listen to ‘Just One Thing’ at https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p09by3yy or wherever you get your podcasts.

'West Side Story' directed by Steven Spielberg

14 January 2022

On Saturday we were at the Odeon in Milton Keynes to see Steven Spielberg’s new film version of ‘West Side Story’. Often feted as the greatest of all musicals, I have fond memories of seeing a stage production of ‘West Side Story’ at the Opera House in Manchester many years ago and I have twice performed Leonard Bernstein’s fiendishly difficult ‘Symphonic Dances from West Side Story’ (with Northampton Symphony Orchestra - reviewed here in March 2008, and with Milton Keynes Sinfonia - reviewed here in January 2015). Spielberg’s film is a homage to the 1961 original, directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise - and is notable for the involvement of Rita Moreno, who played Anita then and is now given a newly invented role as Valentina - Tony’s employer and confidante. Spielberg also invited Stephen Sondheim, who wrote the lyrics to Bernstein’s music, onto the set during the filming, though Sondheim sadly died before the film was released. Spielberg’s recreation of 1957 Manhattan is amazing, using state of the art CGI to make you feel you are there. The gritty realism sometimes sits oddly with the ensemble dance sequences in the New York streets, and uncomfortably reveals the true brutality of this version of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ with some gruesome violence. The new screenplay by Tony Kushner adds a lot of scenes of dialogue, which really help you to understand the motivations of the characters and explain their behaviour, but make the film far too long. Nevertheless, the music is fantastic (featuring the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel), the singing is brilliant (particularly the leads - Ansel Elgort as Tony and Rachel Zegler as Maria) and the dancing is amazing (choreographed by Justin Peck, with some nice nods to Jerome Robbins).

‘The Trouble with Goats and Sheep’ by Joanna Cannon

7 January 2022

I’ve been really really enjoying Joanna Cannon’s novel ‘The Trouble with Goats and Sheep’. Set in the long hot summer of 1976, it tells the story of a small suburban cul-de-sac somewhere in England where one of the residents has gone missing. Many of the novel’s chapters are narrated in the first person by 10-year-old Grace who sets out, with her friend Tilly, to solve a mystery that neither of them really understands. Grace’s naive perspective is very endearing, allowing the reader to unravel what has happened more quickly than she does - in a similar way to Mark Haddon’s 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time'. Grace and Tilly’s relationship is also charmingly reminiscent of Pooh and Piglet. Alternating with Grace’s narrative are chapters in the third person from the perspective of the other residents of the avenue which gradually reveal events nine years earlier which appear to have a bearing on what is happening now. I was a little disappointed that Joanna Cannon didn’t just give us the whole story through Grace’s eyes. The other chapters have to withhold information more artificially to prevent the reader from knowing the whole facts too soon. Nonetheless ‘The Trouble with Goats and Sheep’ is entertaining and intriguing with plenty of period detail from that memorable summer.

Northampton Symphony Orchestra concert

17 December 2021

Because of the intervention of the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been two years since the last Northampton Symphony Orchestra Christmas Cracker concert - which always feels to me like the official start of Christmas. All last week, amid scary news about the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, I was convinced that this year’s concert was going to be cancelled at the last minute. So it was wonderful to find myself back on the stage of the Spinney Theatre in Northampton on Sunday afternoon in front of a sold-out audience (albeit with restricted numbers to allow for social distancing). The audience, and most of the orchestra, had to wear face masks throughout, and there were no mince pies, mulled wine or carol singing. Nevertheless it felt fantastic to be back playing the usual mix of Christmas tunes and film music after such a long break. Over the years, the traditional smattering of Santa hats and reindeer antlers amongst the orchestra has evolved into an increasingly competitive fancy dress competition. Those of us in the horn section prepared for our performance of Klaus Badelt’s music from ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ with matching pirate hats, some elaborate pirate outfits, cutlasses and one 6-foot parrot costume! The centrepiece of the Christmas Cracker concert is always a narrated piece: this year we returned to ‘The Snowman’ by Howard Blake, with excellent storytelling by our compere Alan Bell and a brilliant solo rendition of ‘Walking in the Air’ by young soprano Elizabeth Aston. Another highlight for me was the stunning flute solo by Graham Tear in the final bars of ‘Han Solo and the Princess’ by John Williams (from ‘The Empire Strikes Back’). We finished the afternoon, of course, with an encore performance of Leroy Anderson’s ‘Sleigh Ride’ - and, at least in that moment, normality was restored. It was a lovely concert: a happy and moving experience.

‘Blue as the Turquoise Night’ by Eric Jacobsen, Kayhan Kalhor and Sandeep Das

10 December 2021

I first discovered the Iranian musician Kayhan Kalhor through his 2004 album with Ali Akbar Moradi, ‘In the Mirror of the Sky’. Kalhor plays the kamancheh - a Persian bowed string instrument - and combines Iranian classical music with Kurdish folk music. His playing has a beautiful, eerie quality. I love ‘Silent City’, the album he made with the Brooklyn Rider string quartet In 2008 which creates a stunning ambient sound world, like a film score for an imaginary film. This week I have been listening to ‘Blue as the Turquoise Night’, a new album by Kayhan Kalhor, Eric Jacobsen and Sandeep Das. It’s an interesting collection of pieces including ‘Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur’, a four-movement work composed by Kayhan Kalhor for Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad Ensemble, here featuring Kalhor’s kamancheh soaring over a full string orchestra, accompanied by Sandeep Das on tabla. But the track that has really caught my attention is the sublime ‘Atashgah’, composed for Kayhan Kalhor and Brooklyn Rider by Colin Jacobsen, one of the quartet’s violinists, here in a version for string orchestra conducted by the composer’s brother Eric Jacobsen. Kalhor’s kamancheh has an improvised conversational quality, appearing to tell a passionate story that builds to a joyous conclusion backed by luscious string harmonies. In complete contrast, the album also includes two Balkan tunes featuring the New York Gypsy All Stars and an RD Burman Bollywood composition arranged for tabla and strings. It’s an odd but fascinating mixture.

‘A Thousand Ships’ by Natalie Haynes

3 December 2021

I’ve written here before about my enthusiasm for BBC Radio 4’s ‘Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics’ (reviewed here in July 2020) in which the comedian and classicist Natalie Haynes takes a fresh look at the ancient world. I’ve now finally got around to reading ‘A Thousand Ships’ - Natalie Haynes’ version of the Trojan War through the eyes of the women. The book is a surprisingly straightforward retelling of all the familiar stories, albeit from welcome new perspectives. We get Clytemnestra’s take on her revenge against her husband Agamemnon, Cassandra’s frustration with having to live with the curse of her foresight and, best of all, Penelope’s increasingly exasperated unanswered letters to her absent husband Odysseus as he manages to take 10 years to return from his victory at Troy. These letters take a Joyce Grenfell-like approach to the Odyssey. Although she starts the book with the fall of Troy, Natalie Haynes fills in all the backstories in the way a sophisticated modern TV show would. ‘A Thousand Ships’ is, necessarily, very episodic - more a series of short stories - but by alternating between the various characters, and using flashbacks to create a non-linear narrative, keeps us engaged throughout.

'Crossroads' by Jonathan Franzen

26 November 2021

Jonathan Franzen is a fascinating and impressive writer but his incredibly lengthy novels can sometimes feel like hard work. His masterpiece was ‘The Corrections’ (2001), which cleverly made the reader sympathise simultaneously with people who held completely opposing points of view – turning apparently unlikeable characters into sympathetic people. But his subsequent novels ‘Freedom’ (reviewed here in April 2012) and ‘Purity’ (reviewed here in February 2016) felt like increasingly diminishing returns - a trend continued by his new book ‘Crossroads’, which I have just finished reading as an unabridged audio book, narrated by David Pittu. ‘Crossroads’ is another doorstop of a novel (592 pages) which focuses like ‘The Corrections’ on the members of a family, in this case Russ Hildebrandt - a pastor in New Prospect, Illinois, his wife and four children. Set initially in 1971, we see the Hildebrandts’ domestic life, and their involvement in the church youth group (Crossroads), through the eyes of each of the family members in turn (apart from the youngest child Judson whose perspective we sadly never get). As in his other novels, Jonathan Franzen very cleverly shows us the same events from different points of view, constantly upending the assumptions and sympathies we have formed. It’s a very impressive technique, brilliantly used in the first half of the novel which revolves around the events of a single day, painstakingly sketching in the details and backstories as we alternate between the five viewpoints. The second half of the book stretches the same approach over a longer timeframe. Although it’s wonderfully written, and often very funny, it felt too slow and too long, and all five protagonists - despite having vast archives of mitigating reasons for their behaviour, which are gradually revealed to explain their actions - ultimately all remained quite annoying and unlikeable. Jonathan Franzen always seems to be trying to write the great American novel - saying something about the state of the country through the minutiae of family life - and ‘Crossroads’ reminded me of another book with similar ambitions, Philip Roth’s ‘American Pastoral’, which I also found very impressive but quite hard work to read. Set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, there is a lot of sex, drugs and religion in ‘Crossroads’ but it could have done with a bit more light relief.

Market Harborough Orchestra play-through

17 November 2021

I first encountered the 'Sonatina no. 2 for 16 Winds' by Richard Strauss ('From the Happy Workshop') in 2016 when I performed the piece in Northampton with the Heliotrope Chamber Ensemble (reviewed here in April 2016). The Sonatina was one of the last works Strauss wrote and was intended as a tribute to the wind music of Mozart. It’s incredibly difficult but huge fun to play. It was lovely last Saturday to have another chance to get to grips with this wonderful piece of music in a play-through with members of the Market Harborough Orchestra. Like many amateur music groups, the Market Harborough Orchestra has not yet restarted regular weekly rehearsals after the break imposed by lockdown. Wary of committing to a programme of concerts during this ongoing period of uncertainty, the orchestra is instead organising an occasional series of one-off Saturday sessions for its members to play through a range of repertoire. It was very enjoyable to spend a couple of hours on Saturday afternoon working on the intricacies of the Strauss Sonatina with conductor Stephen Bell, before ‘performing’ the work to ourselves.

Tom Robinson

12 November 2021

Drapers’ Hall is one of the few Regency buildings in Coventry. It was built in 1831-2 as the headquarters of the Coventry Drapers’ Guild but was last used as a youth magistrates’ court over 30 years ago. Working with The Princes’ Foundation, Historic Coventry Trust has restored the building as a home for Coventry Music Service and a music and events venue. On Thursday evening we were at Drapers’ Hall for the first public event there for more than 30 years, a concert by Tom Robinson. The building, right in the centre of Coventry next to the Cathedral and opposite the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, is in Greek Revival style and consists of a series of grand ceremonial spaces lit by rooflights. It reminded me of the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh and Bath. Regular readers will know I am a big fan of Tom Robinson who we saw perform many times across the country in the 1990s. He spent many years away from touring when he became a regular presenter on BBC 6 Music so it’s been great rediscovering him since he started performing live again (reviewed here in August 2014, November 2015 and October 2017). Thursday’s concert at Drapers’ Hall was a solo performance drawing on Tom’s extensive back catalogue of songs and anecdotes. Now 71 years old he has lost none of his energy, wit, musicality and political passion - adding additional verses to many of his older songs to reference climate change, Brexit and the current UK government. Tom Robinson has always generously supported emerging young artists and it was lovely to see him introducing local singer/songwriter Dolly Mavies, who he had featured recently on his BBC Introducing Mixtape programme, to open the evening at the beautifully refurbished Drapers’ Hall.

'The Midnight Library' by Matt Haig

5 November 2021

Matt Haig’s novel ‘How to Stop Time’ (reviewed here in February 2018) had a great premise and was very enjoyable but felt like a short story expanded into a novel. Reading his 2020 novel ‘The Midnight Library’ I was reminded what an engaging writer he is but I also thought this was another missed opportunity for what could have been a more substantial story. In ‘The Midnight Library’ Norah Seed is frustrated by her life, weighed down by regrets and what-ifs, and considering ending it all. Suddenly she is transported to a magical library filled with books outlining all the lives she could have led if she had made different choices. Opening each book plunges her into an alternate version of herself - and leaves her having to quickly work out what and who she is supposed to know. This reminded me of the sudden-death role-play experienced by the narrator of Stuart Turton’s ‘The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle’ (reviewed here in April 2019) and of 'The Time Traveller's Wife' by Audrey Niffenegger (reviewed here in August 2006). ‘The Midnight Library’ is another take on Frank Capra’s ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’: the alternatives naturally make Norah begin to appreciate what she had in her original life and help her to find a way through her despair. You can imagine ‘The Midnight Library’ as a Richard Curtis film. The alternate realities are very entertaining and initially it’s a gripping read but I felt the narrative needed a few more twists to really take advantage of this inventive structure.

Northampton Symphony Orchestra concert

27 October 2021

Last Saturday I played in my first live concert since the moving experience of performing Beethoven’s ‘Symphony No 5’ with Milton Keynes Sinfonia just before the start of the first lockdown in March 2020 (reviewed here in March 2020). This was the first Northampton Symphony Orchestra concert since we played Bruckner’s ‘Symphony No 4’ in February last year (reviewed here in February 2020) and it felt wonderful to be back in front of a live audience again. Saturday’s concert at St Matthew’s Church in Northampton was a spectacular return for the NSO, marking the centenary of the birth, in Northampton, of the composer Sir Malcom Arnold - who actually played in the NSO himself as a young man. We started with Arnold’s ‘A Grand Grand Festival Overture’, a notorious piece which features three vacuum cleaners and a floor polisher. It was quite an achievement - by several members of the orchestra - merely to track down the vintage vacuum cleaners needed to make the required sound. Our four soloists did a great job cleaning the floor of the church in precise formation, co-ordinated by elaborate hand signals from conductor John Gibbons, before all four were felled by rifle shots aimed by the NSO’s newly appointed President - our recently retired principal trumpet, Nick Bunker. Quite what the new orchestra leader Emily Groom made of this eccentric introduction to the NSO I am not sure but the audience certainly enjoyed the bizarre spectacle. We followed the overture with a completely different example of Malcolm Arnold’s orchestral writing, his ‘Symphony No 2’, composed in 1953. Although the symphony features some of Arnold’s trademark jollity (particularly in the final movement) it is quite a serious piece with a stunning, bleak, Mahlerian slow movement. The symphony, and especially the slow movement, has really grown on me during our rehearsals. I think our performance went very well, with beautiful playing from Naomi Muller on clarinet in the sparse opening to the first movement and a very impressive bassoon solo from Sian Bunker at the beginning of the third movement. We finished the concert in more familiar territory with the ever-popular ‘Symphony No 3’ by Camille Saint-Saens - the ‘Organ Symphony’. It’s a lovely piece with a surprisingly challenging Third Horn part, wonderfully played by Callie Scully. The famous moment when the thunderous organ chords, played by Justin Miller, herald the start of the finale felt incredibly emotional: it was so good to return to live music after the long break caused by the pandemic.

‘Redhead by the Side of the Road’ by Anne Tyler

21 October 2021

Regular readers will remember I am a big fan of the novels of Anne Tyler (see, for example, 'Noah's Compass' reviewed here in May 2010, 'The Beginners Goodbye' reviewed here in March 2013 and 'Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant' reviewed here in July 2014). In 2015 she suggested that her new novel, 'A Spool of Blue Thread' (reviewed here in March 2015) might be her last, but she has subsequently published two more short novels - 'Vinegar Girl' (reviewed here in July 2016) and ‘Redhead by the Side of the Road’ which I have just finished reading. ‘Redhead by the Side of the Road’ feels like a return to vintage Anne Tyler: it features suburban Baltimore life, polite but strained family relationships and a quirky small business. Much like Macon Leary in ‘The Accidental Tourist’, Micah Mortimer is a thoughtful, sensible, slightly dull and lonely protagonist, dominated by his more extroverted siblings. The unexpected arrival on his doorstep of a teenage boy threatens to upset the balanced equilibrium of Micah’s life and makes him reassess his choices. As always, Anne Tyler writes a gentle, poignant, humorous and heart-warming story. My only disappointment was that this short book (less than 200 pages) feels like an extract from a much longer novel. I longed to see more of Micah’s eccentric family and to see what happened to him next.

'Fargo' by Noah Hawley

15 October 2021

I have written here before (in October 2017) about my love of ‘Fargo’, Noah Hawley’s superlative TV series inspired by the 1996 Coen Brothers film. Each season of the show is a self-contained story with a completely different set of characters in a different place and a different time - but always eerily familiar to the previous seasons and the film. The fourth season, which I’ve just finished watching, takes us further back in time, to 1950 in Kansas City, Missouri, and almost acts as an origin story for the other three - showing the early development of gang warfare between various immigrant communities. It’s possibly the most violent ‘Fargo’ (and that’s saying something!) but it’s also incredibly funny - a very darkly comic version of ‘The Godfather’. Chris Rock gets lead billing as the head of the African-American crime syndicate, Jason Schwartzman is wonderful as the hopelessly out-of-his-depth leader of the Sardinian Fadda family and Ben Wishaw is the sole survivor of the Irish family that previously ruled the city. But, as usual, Noah Hawley gives the women the best parts with E'myri Crutchfield playing the still, calm, sensible teenager at the heart of the storm, J. Nicole Brooks fearsome as a gang leader’s wife protecting her children and Jessie Buckley stealing the show as the gloriously deranged serial-killer nurse Oraetta Mayflower. This season’s beautiful surreal digression is (for no particular reason) a very subtle homage to ‘The Wizard of Oz’. There is also one magnificent moment of simple slapstick which completely punctured the violent tension of the plot and had me roaring with laughter, leaving me totally unprepared for the brutal sting in the tale that follows. It was great to spot some recurring ‘Fargo’ motifs and more New Orleans brass bands on the soundtrack. But the real pleasure of ‘Fargo’ is the delicious slow plotting which gradually reveals clarity from confusion and very satisfyingly brings comeuppance to those who deserve it, in the most unexpected ways.

'Going Gently' by David Nobbs

7 October 2021

David Nobbs is a celebrated comic writer whose many successes include the TV series ‘The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin’, ‘A Bit of a  Do’ and ‘Love on a Branch Line’. I’ve just finished reading his novel ‘Going Gently’, first published in 2000. Framing the story of someone’s life by having them reflect on their journey while lying on their deathbed is not a particularly original technique, but David Nobbs uses it to create an entertaining and poignant family saga. Kate lies paralysed in a hospital bed, approaching her 100th birthday, but although she cannot speak her mind is still alert and she spends her time reliving her long and eventful life. Her reminiscences - of her strict presbyterian upbringing in South Wales, her (many) husbands and children and her rise to celebrity status - are interspersed with the conversations happening around her bed between doctors, visitors and other patients. Kate’s life is a remarkable tale, verging on the ridiculous, but which manages to keep just on the right side of plausibility to draw the reader’s sympathy. Nobbs creates a vast cast of comic characters who we warm to despite their quirks and faults. ‘Going Gently’ is a really enjoyable read.

Stirlingshire

1 October 2021

35 years ago, in September 1986, I walked the West Highland Way long distance footpath from Milngavie on the outskirts of Glasgow to Fort William. This 96-mile route was then fairly new: it officially opened in 1980, becoming Scotland's first officially designated Long Distance Route. Last week was a trip down memory lane for me as we had a lovely holiday in a cottage situated on the early part of the West Highland Way at Gartness in Stirlingshire, near to the south end of Loch Lomond. All week there was a steady stream of walkers past our front door and it was great to walk a few sections of the route again after so many years. Loch Lomond is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, and it’s huge - nearly 23 miles long and between 1 and 5 miles across. We walked along the east shore of the loch from Cashel to Sallochy, and from Balmaha up Conic Hill for the view back across the loch. We also enjoyed walks in the Great Forest of Loch Ard, near the start of the River Forth at Aberfolye, and from the remote Stronachlachar Pier along the shore of Loch Katrine. We were very lucky with the weather, seeing plenty of sunshine and only a little drizzle. It was wonderful to return to this stunning part of the country after so long.

‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ by Amor Towles

17 September 2021

‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ by Amor Towles (which I have just finished reading as an unabridged audio book, narrated by Nicholas Guy Smith) is perhaps the ultimate lockdown novel. Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov is very much part of the aristocracy the Russian revolution intended to overthrow but, because he appears to have written some pro-revolutionary poetry, the Bolsheviks don’t know what to do with him. Their compromise, in 1922, is to place him under indefinite house arrest in the Metropol Hotel in Moscow. Moved from his grand hotel suite to a small spartan room on the top floor, the Count lives for years as a permanent guest, dining in the hotel restaurant, reading the newspaper in the lobby and having his hair cut by the hotel barber. A polite and thoughtful gentleman, he gradually becomes good friends with many of the hotel staff and some of the regular returning guests. Meanwhile the world outside the hotel moves on and Amor Towles cleverly shows us a dramatic period in Russian history through the microcosm of the hotel. This technique reminded me of the history of 20th century Germany recounted through its effect on the inhabitants of a small rural village in Edgar Reitz’s magnificent epic film ‘Heimat’. ‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ is a remarkable book - charming, moving, clever and witty. It ranks with my two favourite recent historical novels - ‘Golden Hill’ by Francis Spufford (reviewed here in August 2017) and ‘Now We Shall Be Entirely Free’ by Andrew Miller (reviewed here in April 2020) - beautifully written, historically fascinating and playful. Nicholas Guy Smith’s narration is brilliant, particularly his characterisation of the novel’s many voices, but it is occasionally odd to hear this English narrator using the American author’s pronunciation (eg of basil and oregano) in this tale of the early 20th-century Soviet Union. Alexander Rostov is a wonderfully well drawn character: by the end of the novel he feels like a well-loved family member - slightly old-fashioned, occasionally pompous, but perceptive and caring, and deeply loved, by his friends, his colleagues and us readers.

'Anything Goes' by Cole Porter

9 September 2021

Last Saturday we were at The Barbican in London to see ‘Anything Goes’ - our first visit to a theatre since March 2020. Cole Porter’s 1934 musical was written as feelgood escapism for a depression-era audience, making it perfect for 2021. Director and choreographer Kathleen Marshall has revived her 2011 Broadway production of ‘Anything Goes’, bringing its star Sutton Foster (who won a Tony Award for her New York performance as Reno Sweeney) to make her London debut. Foster is a mesmerizing stage presence, leading a huge cast but she always seems to be the focal point. It’s hard to go wrong with a score that features songs including ‘I Get a Kick Out of You’, ‘You’re The Top’, ‘It’s De-lovely’ and ‘Anything Goes’. The title song tap number which closes the first half of the show is worth the price of admission on its own. There is great support from British veterans Robert Lindsay, Felicity Kendal and Gary Wilmot, and Samuel Edwards impresses as the male lead Billy Crocker. But this is Sutton Foster’s show - a song and dance masterclass. And it was wonderfully emotional to be part of a sold-out audience brought to its feet by an old-fashioned stage musical. It was a joyous occasion. Watch the trailer at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgKQSYBRRC0

SV Musicology - Female Composers Map

3 September 2021

Sakira Ventura is a music teacher from Valencia who has been working to put female composers on the map, literally. Her interactive online map features more than 500 composers - many of them previously forgotten or neglected: https://svmusicology.com/mapa?lang=en It’s great fun delving into the map at random and reading the short biographies before following the links to Wikipedia and Spotify. I’ve been listening to ‘All Things Majestic’ - an orchestral suite by the contemporary American composer Jennifer Higdon which is a tribute to America’s National Parks, inspired by the breathtaking landscapes of the Teton mountain range. I’ve also enjoyed the gentle, thoughtful instrumental music of the young Jordanian-Canadian film composer Suad Bushnaq, including her score for the 2015 film ‘Al Munataf (The Curve)’. Sakira Ventura admits she still has a long way to go to map female composers: she has already identified at least another 500 to be added to the website. I was a little disappointed by the absence of Ruth Gipps, whose wonderful Horn Concerto I discovered earlier this year through the performance by Annemarie Federle in the BBC Young Musician final. But if you’re stuck for something new to listen to the map is a great place to start. More details at: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/aug/19/they-deserve-a-place-in-history-music-teacher-makes-map-of-female-composers

'A Midsummer Night's Dream' by William Shakespeare

26 August 2021

Of all the touring companies presenting summer open-air theatre, I think we have seen more Chapterhouse productions than any of the others. I’ve reviewed 8 of their performances here, including my first ever experience of watching ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (reviewed here in July 2009). Last Friday we saw the latest Chapterhouse production of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ in the beautiful setting of the Swiss Garden at Shuttleworth, Old Warden. It was a lovely evening and a really enjoyable performance - a straightforward but high-quality presentation of the play with some excellent acting. But the highlight (ironically) was the moment, minutes from the end, when the power was lost and the floodlights went out, plunging us all into darkness. The audience instantly produced torches and mobile phones to illuminate the stage and the actors finished their comic dance, humming in place of the recorded music. Puck’s epilogue, which begins “If we shadows have offended …” got a big laugh and then we picked up our garden chairs and the remnants of our picnics and carefully found our way out of the Swiss Garden by torchlight after a magical evening.

'Blast from the Past' by Ben Elton

20 August 2021

Having enjoyed ‘Time and Time Again’ (reviewed here in January 2021) I have been reading another Ben Elton novel, ‘Blast from the Past’ - a gripping thriller published in 1998. It’s not always a comfortable read - dealing with themes of sexual politics and sexual violence - but I certainly wanted to know what happened. The structure of the book feels more like a stage play, set mostly in a single room on a single night, with flashbacks to fill in the characters and how they came to know each other. The chapters are incredibly short, creating a fast-paced story which starts intriguing and builds to genuinely thrilling, with a series of great plot twists. It’s not entirely believable and the characters are not that sympathetic but it’s an exciting and unpredictable read.

'Macbeth' by William Shakespeare

12 August 2021

Last Saturday we returned to Wrest Park in Silsoe to see an open-air production of ‘Macbeth’ by the Lord Chamberlain’s Men. We’ve seen this company twice before, performing ‘Twelfth Night’ (reviewed here in August 2009) and ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (reviewed here in July 2019). The Lord Chamberlain’s Men is an all male outdoor theatre company, a re-creation of Shakespeare’s original troupe of travelling players. They specialise in traditional performances of Shakespeare plays. There are no modern references, props or gimmicks, just a group of excellent actors in full Elizabethan costume – with all the female parts played by men. Their ‘Macbeth’ was therefore a very different version to the production by the Handlebards that we saw in June at Luton Hoo Estate (reviewed here in June 2021) - a charmingly silly romp by three female actors. Saturday’s performance was conventional, clear, extremely well-acted and gripping. It was slickly presented at a fair pace, without any gaps between scenes, taking us through the story (with some sensible cuts) in a mere 95 minutes without an interval. It was lovely to be part of a huge audience for some great live theatre in a beautiful setting.

'The Eternal Rocks Beneath' by Katherine Priddy

5 August 2021

I’ve been enjoying ‘The Eternal Rocks Beneath’, the debut album by English folk singer/songwriter Katherine Priddy. This is a varied collection of original songs which includes traditional English folk, acoustic pop and Celtic styles. She is a fan of Nick Drake and you can hear his influence in her delicate vocals over gentle guitar arpeggios. Many of the songs are backed by string quartet, with some guest contributions on folk fiddle and tin whistle. Some of her writing and her vocal delivery reminded me of the great Kirsty MacColl (particularly on the upbeat ‘Letters from a Travelling Man’, accompanied by swinging double bass and banjo) and there is a also a flavour of my favourite English folk singer Ruth Notman (last reviewed here in November 2019) to the album (especially in the higher range vocals on ‘The Isle of Eigg’). ‘The Eternal Rocks Beneath’ is a lovely album - here is a sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJW3bjff02I

‘This Must Be the Place’ by Maggie O'Farrell

29 July 2021 

I really enjoyed reading Maggie O'Farrell’s 2016 novel ‘This Must Be the Place’ - a exquisitely plotted jigsaw puzzle narrative which flits backwards and forwards in time to piece together the story of a reclusive former film star hiding from the world in Donegal, her American second husband and their families. Each chapter pulls the rug from under the reader as we shift to a different perspective and question what we had previously assumed but the gradual filling-in of the narrative is very satisfying and Maggie O’Farrell builds an extended cast of sympathetic characters.

‘Light Perpetual’ by Francis Spufford

29 July 2021

Francis Spufford’s first novel ‘Golden Hill’ (reviewed here in August 2017) was one of my cultural highlights of 2017: beautifully written, historically fascinating with wonderfully drawn characters and a mesmeric plot – one of the best novels I’ve read in years. If you haven’t read it please do! My expectations of its successor were therefore incredibly high but I am pleased to say that I really enjoyed ‘Light Perpetual’ by Francis Spufford, which I have just finished reading as an unabridged audiobook, narrated by Imogen Church. This is a much more recent historical novel, leaping forward from Golden Hill’s 1746 to start in 1944 with the bombing of a Woolworth’s store in South London which killed five young children from the same school class. This is the spur for a ‘what if’ narrative that reminded me of Kate Atkinson’s novel 'Life After Life' (reviewed here in June 2013) in which the (repeated) death of the main character is not the end of the story but merely the start of a new strand of the narrative, imaging what might have happened if she hadn’t died at that moment. In ‘Light Perpetual’ Spufford shows us the lives that might have been if the five children had lived, using a structure a bit like Michael Apted’s famous Seven Up! television documentaries, revisiting each of the main characters every 15 years. Their stories take us through the second half of the 20th century via a series of linked short stories that allow Spufford to focus on a wide range of real events and situations in painstaking detail. The novel also reminded me of Peter Flannery’s classic TV serial ‘Our Friends in the North’ (reviewed here in April 2006) as we watch the protagonists go their separate ways and bear witness to all manner of historic moments. ‘Light Perpetual’ is in turns brutal, funny, sad, poignant and moving - a very human tale of life and death. It’s a very different book to ‘Golden Hill’ but equally beautifully written (and brilliantly read by Imogen Church).

Suffolk

29 July 2021

We had a lovely holiday last week, spending a few days in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire revisiting some old favourite places for the first time in years. We visited Cambridge, Newmarket, Oulton Broad, Southwold, Snape, Aldeburgh, Bury St Edmunds and Ely. It was great to see the Broads, the beach huts at Southwold, the Abbey ruins at Bury St Edmunds and the Cathedral at Ely - and to have fish & chips on the beach at Aldeburgh. We also enjoyed lovely sunny walks in the North Chilterns (at Pegsdon) and the Cotswolds (at Blockley). It was a glorious week.

‘The Golden Age’ by Woodkid

15 July 2021

I am grateful, once again, to Jess Gillam’s wonderful podcast ‘This Classical Life’ through which I discovered the 2013 album ‘The Golden Age’ by Woodkid. Yoann Lemoin is a French video director who has worked with Lana Del Rey, Katy Perry and Taylor Swift. As Woodkid he created this sumptuous collection of songs about a boy’s childhood - his golden age - and his departure from it through the pains of adolescence. The music features the Paris National Orchestra mixed with electronic instruments and effects. It feels operatic in scale and mood - part concept album, part film score - a little earnest but unusual, melodic and engaging. And naturally Lemoin has created accompanying video material for the album, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWMMdX6KYGM

Wimbledon 2021

6 July 2021

As we travelled to Wimbledon on Saturday it felt like a very long time since we were last at the Championships - though we were actually there for the men’s singles quarter finals the last time they were played in 2019. It’s just a long time since we have been anywhere! This was my first train journey since March 2020 which felt incredibly strange. I am pleased to report that London is still there. But I am more pleased that, following a little rain on our way there, we enjoyed a rain-free day and saw almost eight hours of continuous tennis. We had tickets for No. 1 Court which meant we were lucky to see Emma Raducanu’s amazing win over Sorana Cîrstea - the most exciting atmosphere we have witnessed in many many years of going to Wimbledon. It was genuinely thrilling, but that was just the start of a stunning day. We also had an all-too-brief glimpse of a very promising match between Nick Kyrgios and Felix Auger Aliassime before Kyrgios had to retire through injury. We finished the day watching Daniil Medvedev come back from two sets down to beat Marin Čilić in five sets which was a brilliant match. I think this was our best ever day at Wimbledon.

Nottinghamshire

1 July 2021

We had a lovely holiday in Nottinghamshire last week, staying at a cottage overlooking the Chesterfield Canal, just outside the pretty village of Gringley-on-the-hill, close to the borders with South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. We had some great walks along the canal, and in Sherwood Forest, Clumber Park and Daneshill Lakes. We visited Nostell Priory near Wakefield, Gainsborough in Lincolnshire and Retford. Despite driving there and back in rain we enjoyed a mostly dry and sunny week. It was a wonderful break.

‘Vulture Price’ by Arooj Aftab

17 June 2021

I am grateful to The Guardian’s feature on ‘The best albums of 2021 so far’ for introducing me to ‘Vulture Price’ by Brooklyn-based Pakistani composer Arooj Aftab. It’s a beautiful collection of songs, drawing on traditional Urdu ghazals, accompanied by violin, harp, double bass, and synths, creating a spare texture. The music is a peaceful meditation. The seven tracks encompass a range of musical styles - including jazz, Hindustani classical music, folk and reggae. It’s an interesting and enchanting album.

'Macbeth' by WIlliam Shakespeare

9 June 2021

Last weekend we enjoyed our first live theatre since seeing an open air production of ‘Twelfth Night’, in the car park of The Place in Bedford last September (reviewed here in September 2020). On Sunday we were in the lovely surroundings of the Walled Garden at Luton Hoo Estate, on a beautiful summer evening, for a performance of ‘Macbeth’ by the Handlebards. The Handlebards are “cycling actors who carry all the set, props and costume needed to perform extremely energetic, charmingly chaotic and environmentally sustainable Shakespeare plays across the globe”. We first encountered them at the 2018 Milton Keynes International Festival, where we saw their all-female troupe performing ‘Romeo and Juliet’ (reviewed here in July 2018). We saw them again in 2019 in the garden of the Quarry Theatre in Bedford when we watched their all-male troupe performing ‘Much Ado About Nothing’. Sunday’s show was an all-female production of ‘Macbeth’ played for laughs by just three actors. It was charmingly silly and incredibly enjoyable. Handlebards performances tend to be more about the challenges of presenting Shakespeare with so few actors and how the cast overcome them. I’m not sure anyone unfamiliar with the plot of ‘Macbeth’ would really have followed it but I don’t think that mattered. There was some great use made of bicycle accessories and Lady Macbeth went through quite a lot of hand sanitiser trying to clean her hands of blood. This was glorious slapstick tomfoolery and, after so long away from live theatre, it was wonderful to rediscover the joy of being in an audience again.

'The Final Game' by Caimh McDonnell

4 June 2021

Caimh McDonnell is a former stand-up comedian turned novelist. Having enjoyed ‘The Stranger Times’ - his comic novel which tells the story of a Manchester-based newspaper that reports on the paranormal (reviewed here in April 2021) I have been reading his earlier book ‘The Final Game’. This is a standalone crime novel but features characters from his Dublin Trilogy books. Set in Dublin it follows the members of a private detective agency as they try to work out whether a murder has been committed while simultaneously taking part in a bizarre series of ‘It’s a Knockout’ games to determine who will inherit the dead woman’s fortune. It’s very silly but enjoyable. Caimh McDonnell writes some very likeable characters and, in Jimmy and Phil, has created a lovely odd couple detective pairing.

Andy Kershaw Plays Some Bloody Great Records

28 May 2021

Regular readers may remember I was a big fan of Andy Kershaw’s much missed BBC Radio 3 show. I really enjoyed seeing him live, promoting his autobiography in December 2018, and it was a treat to hear him back on Radio 3 in 2020 for ‘The Kershaw Tapes’ in which he introduced recordings made on his trusty Sony Walkman Pro cassette recorder during his travels in Africa and the Americas in the 1980s. Two more episodes of ‘The Kershaw Tapes’ aired on Radio 3 a few weeks ago and are available to listen to on BBC Sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000vqjl and https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000vwq0. This week I have been immersing myself in the first episode of Andy’s new podcast ‘Andy Kershaw Plays Some Bloody Great Records’, available at: https://andykershaw.co.uk/podcast-1/. It’s great to rediscover his inimitable delivery and a typically eclectic mix of music old and new from across the world. As I have noted here before, I'm not always that keen on Andy’s favourite music but I do share his insatiable appetite for music that is new and different, and his sheer enthusiasm for music is infectious.

'The Get Up' by Madness

21 May 2021

Madness are one of those bands who have been part of the soundtrack of my life: I’ve always loved their particular blend of two-tone ska, zany fun and a hint of melancholy. Sadly I’ve not yet managed to see them live but last Friday I leapt at the chance to watch ‘The Get Up’ - a special online Madness concert from the London Palladium. This global livestream featured Live performances of new and classic Madness songs, framed by scenes of the band arriving at the theatre and watching themselves from the stalls (scripted by and featuring Charlie Higson from The Fast Show). There were some great special guest singers for a couple of numbers. But it was just lovely to see the band working through its extensive back catalogue, sounding wonderful and clearly having a ball. Here’s a brief flavour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQZ-r5oT9lo

East Riding of Yorkshire

14 May 2021

We had a lovely holiday in the East Riding of Yorkshire last week, staying in a cottage near the village of Tickton, just outside Beverley. That area feels a lot like the fens of Lincolnshire, with flat fields bounded by straight ditches and big skies filled with stunning sunsets. Beverley is a very nice town, dominated by the impressive Minster, with a long stretch of pedestrianised shopping streets, pretty buildings and little alleyways. We did lots of walking, particularly a little further north in the Yorkshire Wolds around the villages of Huggate and Thixendale where gently rolling hills surround a myriad of almost artificially perfect grassy dry valleys. We also visited the coast, at Hornsea and Bridlington, and it was great to see the sea for the first time in over a year. Above all, after such a long period of lockdown it was just wonderful to be somewhere different: it felt like a much-needed break.

‘The Stranger Times’ by C K McDonnell

28 April 2021

‘The Stranger Times’ is a comic novel by C K McDonnell which tells the story of a Manchester-based newspaper that reports on the paranormal - ghosts, UFOs etc. The book, which I have been reading as an unabridged audio book, narrated by Brendan McDonald, has a fairly predictable structure with a new employee joining the paper providing a way of introducing the reader to the weird world it covers. And some of the funny lines are a bit weak: the rhythm of comic delivery is there but the content sometimes disappoints. But I did enjoy the light-hearted escapism: there’s a nice ensemble of sympathetic characters and some genuine jeopardy with a truly nasty villain.

‘A Promised Land’ by Barack Obama

23 April 2021

‘A Promised Land’ - Barack Obama’s memoir covering the presidential election of 2008 and his first term in office - is a doorstop of a book at nearly 800 pages, but it’s fascinating and very readable. Obama is a self-deprecating author, generous with his praise of colleagues and those international partners he likes - and polite but clear about those he doesn’t. As he introduces us to the many many aspects of the presidency, he provides really helpful two-page summaries of the backstories to a wide range of global issues such as Israel/Palestine, Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union etc. He explains the tightrope he had to walk as the first African American president, coping with the hostility he experienced from some while always being aware of the importance of the symbolism and hope he provided to many. ‘A Promised Land’ is also a lesson in leadership: Obama says much about the nature of democracy, reflecting on how free and fair elections (for example in Afghanistan) are only one element of what is needed for true democracy, and outlining in painful detail the compromises that are needed to pass domestic legislation. Barack Obama comes over as reassuringly humble, sensible, principled and determined - a grown-up in the Oval Office.

NSO horns in the garden

16 April 2021

Since October 2020, when I met my fellow horn players from the Northampton Symphony Orchestra at St Mary’s Church in Wollaston, Northamptonshire, to play through some horn quartets, we have been maintaining a weekly online session, playing quartets via Jamulus. But on Tuesday evening, for the first time in six months, we met face-to-face in a garden in Wollaston to play music together outdoors. It was lovely to see everyone and brilliant to be able to play live again. Having been playing together regularly online we have built up a repertoire of quartets and I think we sounded pretty good. It was wonderful to have the benefit of eye contact to help with our timing and three dimensional sound, really making us realise what we have been missing through lockdown. Despite some mischievous reports on social media the following day that house prices in Wollaston have immediately dropped by 25%, the immediate neighbours were actually very complimentary, describing our playing as ‘lovely’ and asking when we can come again. This week we also launched our latest multi-part lockdown recording: ‘Star Trek: First Contact’ which you can see at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1QavwbuDZY

'Romeo and Juliet' by William Shakespeare

9 April 2021

Regular readers will know that Simon Godwin is one of my favourite theatre directors (see, for example, my review of his National Theatre production of ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ in December 2018). His latest show is an innovative take on ‘Romeo and Juliet’: when his planned National Theatre production of the play wasn’t able to go ahead because of the national lockdown he filmed the cast in the empty theatre to create a hybrid which is part-theatre and part-film. It starts with the feel of a first read-through on an empty stage but soon takes you into the world of the young Montagues and Capulets through close-ups, whispered voice-overs and dreamlike sequences. It also ruthlessly condenses  “the two hours' traffic of our stage” into a speedy 90 minutes, even sacrificing some of the most famous lines to keep the plot moving. It’s effective and engrossing. Like Erica Whyman’s great Royal Shakespeare Company production of the play (reviewed here in May 2018) a very young cast make both the star-crossed lovers and the gang warfare all too believable. Josh O'Connor and Jessie Buckley are a very convincing Romeo and Juliet and the production is incredibly passionate - in both the love and the violence. There is a strong supporting cast, including Adrian Lester, Tamsin Greig and Lucian Msamati. But the show belongs to the young lovers.

'The Picture of Dorian Gray' by Oscar Wilde, adapted by Henry Filloux-Bennett

31 March 2021

On Saturday we watched Henry Filloux-Bennett’s online theatre adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’, co-produced by The Barn Theatre, Lawrence Batley Theatre, New Wolsey Theatre, Oxford Playhouse and Theatr Clwyd. This inventive example of webcam theatre took a very similar approach to the same team’s production of 'What a Carve Up!' by Jonathan Coe (reviewed here in November 2020). Updating Wilde’s story to the present day, and deliberately setting it during the Coronavirus pandemic, allows the company to include several well-known actors (Stephen Fry, Russell Tovey etc) who only have to appear on the end of a video call. The heavy lifting is done by Fionn Whitehead as Dorian Gray with Joanna Lumley, Emma McDonald and Alfred Enoch (who was also in ‘What a Carve Up!’) who are each filmed in separate locations. Henry Filloux-Bennett’s neat conceit is that Dorian Gray is a vlogger who is offered a filter that will keep his online appearance forever young and beautiful while he ages off-camera. The production is visually impressive and makes the various YouTube and Instagram videos believable. But, where ‘What a Carve Up!’ tried to cram too much into a short drama, making it hard to follow if you were not already familiar with the novel, ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ felt a bit short of plot. There’s also a little too much swearing and overpowering background music for me. It’s another interesting example of the developing art of online theatre but didn’t completely hold my attention.

'The Searcher' by Tana French

25 March 2021

After thoroughly enjoying Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad novels (all 6 books reviewed here between May 2016 and April 2018) I was a bit disappointed by her first completely self-contained novel ‘The Wych Elm’ (reviewed here in April 2020). The new Tana French novel ‘The Searcher’ (which I have been reading as an unabridged audio book, narrated by Roger Clark) is another stand-alone story, but with quite a different feel. A former Chicago PD detective has settled in a small rural community in the West of Ireland where he is renovating an old cottage. This is a slow, gentle tale as Cal starts to get to know his neighbours and adjusts to the Irish way of life. But surely a novelist known for her crime stories hasn’t made her protagonist a detective unless there is going to be a mystery to solve? Compared to ‘The Wych Elm’, ‘The Searcher’ is much less dramatic – and much better for it. The inevitable crime investigation reveals itself gradually and naturally as Cal is reluctantly drawn into the hunt for a missing person. As always, Tana French writes beautifully and conjures up the place and its characters very believably. ‘The Searcher’ is crime fiction but, as its title hints, this is really an Irish Western.

'Dream'

19 March 2021

Over the past year live theatre has had to move online. It has been great to watch recordings of a range of stage productions during lockdown, but it has been particularly interesting to see theatre companies starting to explore the potential of streaming video in innovative ways – such as Henry Filloux-Bennett’s online theatre adaptation of Jonathan Coe’s novel ‘What a Carve Up’ (reviewed here in November 2020). The Royal Shakespeare has been piloting the use of digital technology in theatre for some years. Greg Doran’s 2016 production of ‘The Tempest’, in collaboration with Intel and in association with the Imaginarium Studios (reviewed here in November 2016), featured a digital avatar of Ariel, driven by live motion-capture from the body of the actor Mark Quartley, allowing him to appear simultaneously on stage and projected onto a series of moving curtains. Last Sunday we watched the new RSC online production ‘Dream’, directed by Robin McNicholas. ‘Dream’ uses live motion capture to bring the fairies and sprites of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ to life. We saw the actors entering a purpose-built studio in Portsmouth Guildhall before seeing their digital projections interacting in an animated dreamscape. The resulting 30-minute performance was beautiful, with some stunning movement (directed by Sarah Perry). But watching it on screen it was hard to see what it gained from being a live motion capture performance: I found myself just thinking of it as an animated film. It’s an interesting addition to the ongoing debate about the definition of ‘theatre’ at a time when almost everything is viewed on a screen. ‘Dream’ is a high quality production (with music by Esa-Pekka Salonen) but it is obviously an experimental piece, demonstrating the potential offered by technology. You can book free tickets for future live performances of ‘Dream’ at: https://dream.online/home/

'The Great'

12 March 2021

We live in a golden age of television drama but my new favourite is ‘The Great’ – Tony McNamara’s irreverent take on the story of Catherine the Great (available to stream on All4). The series starts with the teenage Catherine travelling from Germany to marry the Russian Emperor Peter. But this version of history is, as the show’s subtitle constantly reminds us, “an occasionally true story”. ‘The Great’ is very dark comedy – incredibly violent, crude and sweary. It’s like a cross between Yorgos Lanthimos’ film ‘The Favourite’ (starring Olivia Colman as Queen Anne, reviewed here in January 2019), Armando Iannucci’s film ‘The Death of Stalin’ and Noah Hawley’s ‘Fargo’ (reviewed here in October 2017). The first series is maybe a couple of episodes too long and could do with a few more sub-plots, but it builds a brilliant group of grotesque but likeable characters, played by a fantastic cast. Elle Fanning is naive, idealistic, determined and ruthless as Catherine, and Nicholas Hoult makes Peter a true monster who gradually becomes more sympathetic. Phoebe Fox, who we last saw as an excellent Ophelia in Simon Godwin’s National Theatre production of ‘Twelfth Night’ (reviewed here in April 2017), is wonderful as Marial, Catherine’s cynical maid. Adam Godley is a menacing presence as the scheming Archbishop (‘Archie’) and Sacha Dhawan is Count Orlo who clearly believes himself to be the only sane man in the Palace. I loved Belinda Bromilow’s scatty Aunt Elizabeth with her trained troupe of butterflies. But Douglas Hodge steals the show as Velementov – the drunken General in charge of the Russian army – demonstrating some fantastic slapstick skills and obviously having a ball. ‘The Great’ will not be to everyone’s taste: the laugh-out-loud moments are matched by as many look-away acts of violence. But I’m really looking forward to season 2.

'The Royal Chase' by Nation Beat

4 March 2021

I’ve written here before about my love of New Orleans brass bands, such as the excellent Hot 8 Brass Band (reviewed here in January 2013) and Minor Mishap Marching Band, Rebirth Brass Band, Youngblood Brass Band and Galactic (reviewed here in February 2019) – all of which featured in the third season of the ‘Fargo’ TV series (reviewed here in October 2017). Very long-time readers may also remember my interest in forró – the high-tempo, rapid-fire dance music from the North East of Brazil. I reviewed a concert of forró music by the legendary Brazilian musician Gilberto Gil at the Royal Festival Hall in July 2010 and the album ‘Light a Candle’ by New York-based Brazilian ex-pats Forró in the Dark in January 2010. So this week I was naturally delighted to discover ‘The Royal Chase’ by Nation Beat – a new album of brass and percussion tunes which bring together New Orleans jazz and Brazilian forró. Nation Beat’s Scott Kettner says “I wanted to reimagine the classic forró songs from Brazil as vehicles for improvisation in a funky brass band format.” He describes the result as “Forró, Funk, Brass ’n’ Sass!” The album is a nice mix of styles and moods, beautifully performed and always catchy. Here’s a flavour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FD07mVtsCDQ

Italian Cookery Workshop by Carmela Sereno Hayes

25 February 2021

Last Saturday I took part in my first Zoom cookery class. Northampton Museum & Art Gallery has organised a series of three cookery workshops with the Italian cook and author Carmela Sereno Hayes. About a dozen of us gathered on Zoom on Saturday morning for the first session, on pasta, soups and sauces. We had been sent three recipes in advance so we could buy the necessary ingredients and have everything ready to cook along with Carmela. I set up my laptop in the kitchen so I could watch the screen while cooking. A lot of the time I was listening more than watching but it worked well. It felt like a bit like a TV cookery programme but with the opportunity to ask questions throughout. And it was good to be making the same recipes together in real time – so when Carmela showed us that the onions should be nice and soft by now we could see that ours were too. It was also nice to be learning the techniques in the familiarity of your own kitchen – making it more likely that I might be able to re-create these meals on my own afterwards. We made pasta e fagioli – a hearty pasta and bean soup – as well as spaghetti carbonara and a red pepper and ricotta pasta sauce. It was great fun and all three dishes were delicious: I will definitely be making them again. More details at: https://www.facebook.com/NorthamptonMuseum/posts/so-pleased-to-announce-a-series-of-three-online-cookery-workshops-with-italian-c/4008030305888199/

'The Carer' by Deborah Moggach

19 February 2021

I’ve been enjoying Deborah Moggach’s 2019 novel ‘The Carer’. Phoebe and Robert have been worried about their father who is elderly and increasingly frail, and lives on his own in the Cotswolds, far from either of them. But they have now found someone who appears to be the perfect live-in carer. As the irrepressible Mandy starts to take over their father’s life, the siblings begin to suspect that something more sinister is going on. ‘The Carer’ is a poignant comic novel that reminded me of the works of David Lodge. Like 'South of the River' by Blake Morrison (reviewed here in April 2017) each chapter is written from the point of view of one of the main characters. Phoebe and Robert’s middle class perspectives make them abhorrent of Mandy’s less than liberal attitudes, but far too polite to say so. This painful class comedy also made me think of 'Middle England' by Jonathan Coe (reviewed here in January 2019). ‘The Carer’ is an easy read, dealing with serious themes.

‘Five Minutes to Make You Love Classical Music’

11 February 2021

I’ve been enjoying ‘Five Minutes to Make You Love Classical Music’ from the New York Times – a growing collection of recommendations, from a range of musicians, artists and writers, of the five minutes or so we would play to make our friends fall in love with classical music: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/arts/music/five-minutes-love-music.html. There are now separate lists for ‘Five Minutes That Will Make You Love …’ the piano, opera, ‘cello, Mozart, 21st century composers, sopranos, baroque music, Beethoven and flute. I’ve been working my way through ‘5 Minutes That Will Make You Love String Quartets’ and really enjoying discovering several pieces I had never heard before. All the music is available to play directly from the web page – and all the extracts are around five minutes long so you can quickly sample a range of styles and genres to find something you like. The short paragraphs from each of the contributors, explaining why you should listen to their choice, are passionate and compelling. They reminded me of the very personal testimonies from guests on The Open Ears Project podcasts (reviewed here in November 2019). On why you should love string quartets, Zachary Woolfe, New York Times classical music editor, says “One of the alchemies of music is that four is the most intimate number. Perhaps because it echoes the mysterious privacy of the family unit, a string quartet somehow radiates greater intensity than a solo or duet.” He suggests that this intensity is rarely as fervent as in the slow movement of Shostakovich’s 10th Quartet, from 1964, and his 5 minute 17 second sample of this quiet, brooding music has made me seek out a full recording of the piece on Spotify. Job done, Zachary!

'City Noir' by John Adams

5 February 2021

This week I’ve been enjoying another musical recommendation from Jess Gillam’s BBC Radio 3 podcast ‘This Classical Life’ (reviewed here in January 2020). ‘City Noir’ by John Adams is a dramatic orchestral piece in three movements that depicts the city of Los Angeles. I’ve been listening to a recording of ‘City Noir’ by the St Louis Symphony Orchestra, conducted by David Robertson. The music feels like the score to an imaginary film noir. It’s a busy, exciting work, parts of which sound like improvised jazz. I saw John Adams in 2016, conducting the London Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican in a concert celebrating his 70th birthday (reviewed here in December 2016) which featured 'Scheherazade.2' – his piece for solo violin and orchestra, performed by Leila Josefowicz. I noted then that John Adam’s music is incredibly entertaining – complex and quirky but never inaccessible. ‘City Noir’ certainly fits that description and is making me want to seek out more music by John Adams.

‘One to One’

28 January 2021

Rosie Millard’s BBC Radio 4 series ‘One to One’ consists of 15-minute interviews with a range of people who are trying to break into the big-time of the creative arts – their dream of success and what it means to them. This week’s episode featured Ben Hopwood who has found fulfilment as an amateur actor with Leeds Arts Centre and talks about the advantages of pursuing your ambitions in amateur rather than professional theatre. It was particularly good to hear about Ben’s experience of acting with the Royal Shakespeare Company in 2016 in 'A Midsummer Night's Dream: A Play for the Nation' (reviewed here in May 2016). This was the RSC’s touring production of Shakespeare’s most popular comedy which visited 14 theatres across the UK as a co-production with 14 amateur theatre companies who provided local actors in each location to play the rude mechanicals – and marked the culmination of the Open Stages programme originally developed by Voluntary Arts and the RSC in 2009. You can listen to Ben Hopwood’s story (and the other episodes in the ‘One to One’ series) at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000rn4x

‘The Clockmaker’s Daughter’ by Kate Morton

22 January 2021

I’ve really enjoyed reading ‘The Clockmaker’s Daughter’ by Kate Morton – a compelling and beautifully written novel which feels like a family saga. It actually tells the story of several families with connections to Birchwood Manor – a grand country house next to a bend in the River Thames in Wiltshire. A non-linear narrative gradually fills in the details of what happens to an epic cast of characters who are mysteriously drawn to the house between 1862 and 2017. At times the book feels like a collection of linked short stories as we focus on the events of particular moments in the history of the house in turn. But it is the links between these stories, their protagonists and their descendants that are fascinating. The novel is part romance, part murder mystery, part ghost story. It’s entertaining, moving and clever and I sailed through its nearly 600 pages.

FolkBaroque

15 January 2021

Baroque at the Edge is a festival, founded by my friend Lindsay Kemp, which invites leading musicians from all genres to take the music of the Baroque and see where it leads them. This year, unsurprisingly, the festival has moved online, presenting a series of streamed concerts, talks and interactive Zoom discussions, which are running throughout January: you can still buy tickets to watch the recordings until 31 March 2021. I really enjoyed FolkBaroque – a concert recorded at LSO St Luke’s in London, featuring the ensemble La Nuova Musica, directed by David Bates, joined by the soprano Lucy Crowe and the folk fiddler Tom Moore, which explored the links between folk and baroque music. The programme contrasted and combined classical and folk music, from a similar historical era. It was particularly interesting to compare the different violin techniques demonstrated by Tom Moore and the ensemble’s violinist Thomas Gould. It was a delicate, clean, precise  performance, beautifully filmed without an audience in the cavernous space of St Luke’s. Alongside well-known traditional tunes including ‘Danny Boy’ and ‘If I were a black bird’ it was great to discover some unfamiliar repertoire. I really liked the ‘Ciaccona’ by Antonio Bertali – a piece for virtuoso violin which predates JS Bach’s famous ‘Chaconne’ by 50 years. But I thought the standout performance was the singer Lucy Crowe whose amazing voice and clarity of diction were brilliantly displayed in this online performance. See: http://www.baroqueattheedge.co.uk/

‘Troubled Blood’ by Robert Galbraith

8 January 2021

‘Troubled Blood’ is the fifth Cormoran Strike novel by J K Rowling (writing as Robert Galbraith). It’s the longest novel in the series (I read it as an unabridged audio book, narrated by Robert Glenister, which was almost 32 hours long) but nevertheless felt less rambling and more focussed than its predecessors. This may be because, for the first time, Strike and his partner Robin Ellacott are investigating a cold case – the unexplained disappearance of a doctor who left her surgery more than 40 years ago and was never seen again. Piecing together what happened so long ago, interviewing witnesses, suspects and the original investigators, or their descendants, creates a clearer narrative structure, less diverted by emerging events. And the solution to this crime is clever, hard-to-spot but satisfyingly believable and, when revealed, explains a myriad of small clues imperceptibly laced through the novel. J K Rowling still manages to demonstrate a strange lack of understanding of budget hotel chains (why choose to be specific about it being a Premier Inn if you are not going to get the details right? - is no-one editing these novels?). But I still enjoyed the murder mystery – the best puzzle of the series so far.

‘Time and Time Again’ by Ben Elton

8 January 2021

I haven’t read a Ben Elton novel for many years: his transition from stand-up comedian to author began (in 1989) with a series of enjoyable but unsurprising comic novels, after which I lost touch with his work. It was great to discover a more recent book, ‘Time and Time Again’ (published in 2014) which shows Ben Elton maturing into a more sophisticated novelist. This is a gripping time-travel thriller about trying to right the wrongs of the 20th century by going back to 1914 to prevent the outbreak of the Great War. It’s a cleverly plotted and compellingly paced story, carefully researched and genuinely exciting – and all the better for not trying to be funny.

Bellowhead - live online concert

11 December 2020

Regular readers will know I have been a fan of the English folk big band Bellowhead since I first saw them at the WOMAD Festival in July 2006. When the duo John Spiers and Jon Boden, themselves already established folk music stars, invented a folk big band which brought together musicians from folk, classical and jazz backgrounds they created a unique sound. For twelve glorious years Bellowhead performed stunning new arrangements of traditional folk tunes that got toes tapping and faces smiling across the world. I last saw them on their farewell tour in 2015 at the Riverside Theatre in Aylesbury (reviewed here in November 2015). So it was an unexpected pleasure to have the opportunity to enjoy another live performance by Bellowhead last Saturday as they played a one-off online reunion concert to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their album ‘Hedonism’ (reviewed here in October 2010). It was a typically slick, exuberant, joyful show, excellently filmed by Stabal – a platform for live performance on-demand content – at a mid-18th-century mansion nestled deep in the English countryside. Rapid cutting between a host of handheld cameras made you feel like you were in the room with the band. I love a band that dances to its own music and there was some manic morris dancing on display here. This is a band that demonstrates musical delicacy, the ability to turn on a sixpence rhythmically and knows how to rock out. It was lovely to revisit some old favourite tunes, with a few new twists, and quiet emotional to see Bellowhead back together again. For a flavour see Bellowhead’s July 2020 lockdown video of ‘New York Girls (Live From Home): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M764hJDFvjM

‘Once Upon a River’ by Diane Setterfield

3 December 2020

I’m really enjoying ‘Once Upon a River’ – a beautiful and intriguing novel by Diane Setterfield. Set around the River Thames in Oxfordshire in the late 19th century, the carefully crafted prose made me wonder whether the book had been written in that era, before I discovered that Diane Setterfield is a contemporary writer and this novel was published in 2018. The book starts on a dark winter’s night in a riverside pub where the locals are interrupted by the arrival of a wounded stranger carrying the lifeless body of a small child. From there the story winds backwards, forwards and sideways like the ever-present river, allowing the tale to emerge gradually as the various pieces take their places in the jigsaw puzzle narrative. The Oxfordshire riverside setting made me think of 'La Belle Sauvage' – Philip Pullman’s ‘His Dark Materials’ prequel (reviewed here in December 2017). And the descriptions of the river reminded me of Charles Dickens’ omniscient third person narrator 'floating' over the landscape in ‘Bleak House’ (reviewed here in October 2007).  The book’s gradual colouring-in of the local community and the various families who have a stake in the story also had a lot in common with ‘Reservoir 13’ – Jon McGregor’s amazing prose portrait of a small Derbyshire village (reviewed here in January 2018). I particularly enjoyed having no idea where ‘Once Upon a River’ was going but total confidence in the author who was taking me there. I look forward to reading more by Diane Setterfield.

'Voodoo Sonic' by Parov Stelar

27 November 2020

I’ve been a big fan of electro swing for years – though without knowing there was a name for this emerging music genre. In 2009 I came across Imam Baildi – two Greek brothers who take old Greek tunes from the 40's, 50's and 60's and add modern instruments and beats to create music which is cool, mysterious and incredibly catchy (reviewed here in May 2009). I then saw the French band Caravan Palace at the 2009 WOMAD Festival (reviewed here in July 2009), playing the gypsy jazz swing of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli to pounding high-tempo electronic beats. At WOMAD in 2012 I saw The Correspondents mix swing-era big band records with contemporary electronic beats (reviewed here in August 2012). In 2013 I discovered the Dutch singer Caro Emerald and her old-fashioned big band swing, updated by a modern four-to-the-floor dance beat (reviewed here in April 2017). The Latvian band Dziļi Violets (reviewed here in February 2019) have a similar modern take on old-fashioned swing. But my new favourite electro swing is Parov Stelar – Austrian musician Marcus Fuereder – who has just completed an epic album ‘Voodoo Sonic’, released gradually over the past year as three EPs. ‘Voodoo Sonic’ is a more varied collection than Parov Stelar’s earlier albums (I would particularly recommend 2013’s ‘The Art of Sampling’) with more purely instrumental tracks. It’s great fun: this is playful and inventive dance music – cool quirky and infectious.

'What a Carve Up!' by Jonathan Coe, adapted by Henry Filloux-Bennett

17 November 2020

I’ve written here before about our chance discovery, around 1996, of Jonathan Coe's novel 'What a Carve Up' in a second-hand bookshop in Cambridge. Coe quickly became one of my favourite contemporary novelists so I was thrilled to discover a new online theatre adaptation of ‘What a Carve Up’ by Barn Theatre, Lawrence Batley Theatre & New Wolsey Theatre. Written by Henry Filloux-Bennett and directed by Tamara Harvey, this is an interesting example of the emerging genre of webcam drama. It frames Jonathan Coe’s tale of 1980s Thatcher’s Britain with original protagonist Michael Owen’s son Raymond investigating, in 2020, the 1991 multiple murders of members of the Winshaw family that his father is assumed to have committed. Raymond (Alfred Enoch) is recording his findings straight to camera while playing-in archive audio recordings of the testimony of some of the people who knew his father and the Winshaws. This cleverly allows the production to involve some very well known actors (including Celia Imrie, Stephen Fry, Derek Jacobi, Gryff Rhys Jones, Rebecca Front and Robert Bathurst) who have literally phoned in their performances. (Incidentally Robert Bathurst – here playing Thomas Winshaw – played Michael Owen in the 2005 BBC Radio 4 adaptation of ‘What a Carve Up’.) Raymond also uses the video recording of a 2020 interview with the one remaining member of the Winshaw family, Josephine Winshaw-Eaves (played by Fiona Button) who is interviewed by Tamzin Outhwaite. Raymond’s tendency to obsessively pause and rewind the various YouTube clips he is showing us is a nice nod to his father’s fascination with pausing and rewinding his VHS tape of the 1960’s film ‘What a Carve Up’ in the novel. Indeed the whole online production feels like more of a homage to the book than a coherent drama in its own right. Fans of the novel will love the many knowing references but, by cutting up the content of a lengthy and complicated narrative and revealing it to us in iterative bite-sized morsels, I suspect Henry Filloux-Bennett may have made it nearly impossible to follow if you are not already familiar with the story. I also felt the 2020 parallels (such as Josephine Winshaw-Eaves campaigning for a second Trump term) were a bit clunky, and ignored some elements of what happened next to the Winshaw clan from ‘Number 11’ – Jonathan Coe’s own sequel to ‘What a Carve Up’ (reviewed here in January 2016). Nevertheless it was fun to revisit the original story. And the innovative online format was intriguing, feeling like something that could have been delivered as a one-person Edinburgh Fringe show, now transferred online. ‘What a Carve Up!’ runs from 31 October – 29 November 2020. Tickets can be purchased at www.whatacarveup.com. A portion of the proceeds raised will be donated to a freelance fund to support the creative workforce that the theatres would not be able to survive without.

'Albion' by Mike Bartlett

13 November 2020

Last weekend we finally got around to watching the live recording of Mike Bartlett’s play ‘Albion’, which was broadcast in the summer as part of the BBC’s Culture in Quarantine season. Mike Bartlett is a really interesting writer who explores a wide variety of dramatic formats and styles. He is perhaps best known for his TV dramas ‘Doctor Foster’ (written in the form of a Jacobean revenge tragedy) and its recent companion series ‘Life’, starring Victoria Hamilton. But I have also enjoyed his writing for the stage, including: ‘Charles III’– a modern Shakespearean history play, written entirely in blank verse (reviewed here in January 2015); ‘An Intervention’ – an unconventional two-hander looking at what happens when you hate your best friend (reviewed here in April 2014); and his contemporary version of ‘Medea’ by Euripides, starring Rachael Stirling (reviewed here in November 2012). ‘Albion’ is, as the title suggests, a state-of-the-nation play which uses the allegory of a very traditional English country garden to address issues raised by Brexit. In the Almeida Theatre production, directed by Rupert Goold, Victoria Hamilton plays a woman who has purchased her childhood home and plans to restore the garden to its original Victorian design. It can be enjoyed as a darkly comic family drama about personal grief, but you can also see the relationship between the family and the local community – now excluded from what had previously been a communal garden – as a commentary on the UK’s departure from the European Union. The action is all set in the garden and has the feel of an Alan Ayckbourn play but with underlying connections more reminiscent of Tom Stoppard. It takes on some unsettling themes but is also very funny, and brilliantly acted with a stunning central performance by Victoria Hamilton.

‘What’s Funny About …’

 6 November 2020

I’ve been catching up with ‘What’s Funny About …’ - a fascinating series on BBC Radio 4 Extra in which TV veterans Peter Fincham and Jon Plowman talk to the writers, producers, and performers behind some of Britain’s biggest TV comedy hits, and hear the inside story of how they brought their programmes to the screen. To date they have addressed ‘The Vicar of Dibley’, ‘The Thick of It’, ‘Absolutely Fabulous’, ‘Blackadder’, ‘Goodness Gracious Me’ and ‘W1A’, with guests including Dawn French, Armando Iannucci and Meera Syal. Each episode gives an interesting glimpse behind-the-scenes into the making of some of our favourite recent TV comedies. Fincham and Plowman add an interesting perspective as they were personally involved in commissioning or producing many of these series. And there are intriguing insights into the rivalries between some of the writers and performers (explaining why most of those involved in making ‘Blackadder’ don’t seem to be talking to each other any more). You can listen to all six episodes of ‘What’s Funny About …’ on BBC Sounds at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000j35x/episodes/player

NSO horns rehearsal

 30 October 2020

On 14 March I played Beethoven’s ‘Symphony No 5’ with the Milton Keynes Sinfonia at the Chrysalis Theatre in Milton Keynes (reviewed here in March 2020). As I wrote here at the time, it was an inspirational evening that felt like a bright moment of hope in dark times, but there was a strong expectation that this might be the last live music any of us experiences for quite a while. Since March I have practised playing my French horn at home, I have taken part in several multi-part lockdown recordings and I have pioneered experimental online orchestra rehearsals using the Jamulus software – but I have really missed making music together with other people in the same room. Last night, 229 days after that Milton Keynes Sinfonia concert, I finally got the chance to take part in a real live face-to-face rehearsal. Four of the horn players from the Northampton Symphony Orchestra met at St Mary’s Church in Wollaston, Northamptonshire, to play through some horn quartets. This recently refurbished church provided comfortable surroundings, plenty of room for us to be significantly socially distanced from each other and a pleasantly flattering acoustic. It was really exciting to see each other again after such a long break, and to play music together in which we could make eye contact and co-ordinate timing. We played some simple tunes before attempting a few more ambitious arrangements, including the two pieces we had recorded as multi-part lockdown videos earlier this year (the Scherzo from Shostakovitch ‘Symphony No 10’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHqPuxWZ3p4 and ‘It Don't Mean a Thing if It Ain't Got That Swing’ by Duke Ellington & Irvin Mills: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ceYfHAHI9Y). Playing these live revealed quite how much editing we had each done to our recordings! As a thank you to the church, we also recorded a live performance of ‘Silent Night’ which will be used in the St Mary’s virtual Christmas carol concert. With rising infection rates across the country and severe local restrictions already in place in many areas, we were very lucky to be able to get together yesterday evening. I hope we can meet again soon but I’m incredibly thankful we managed to play music together this week.

'The Kershaw Tapes'

23 October 2020

Regular readers may remember I was a big fan of Andy Kershaw’s much missed BBC Radio 3 show. I last encountered him at The Stables in Milton Keynes on a tour of talks to promote his autobiography (reviewed here in December 2018). So it was a real treat to hear Andy back on Radio 3 for a two-part Sunday Feature ‘The Kershaw Tapes’ in which he introduces recordings made on his trusty Sony Walkman Pro cassette recorder during his travels in Africa and the Americas in the 1980s. These two programmes are a great introduction to what makes Andy Kershaw such a compelling broadcaster – his raw enthusiasm for music, his bemused reflections on the eccentricities of the world, his journalistic framing of a good story and his Zelig-like ability to have been present at key moments in history. The short description of his first trip to Equatorial Guinea in the first episode of ‘The Kershaw Tapes’ is a beautiful miniature Kershaw story – fascinating, incredible, absurd, terrifying and life-affirming. And there’s some great music – exclusive live recordings of some of the world’s greatest musicians performing in their own homes, or in the kitchen of Andy Kershaw’s small flat in Crouch End. You can listen to both episodes of ‘The Kershaw Tapes’ at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000mrgj

'Hold Fast' by Stick in the Wheel

 16 October 2020

Amongst the plethora of excellent new English folk music recordings that seem to come out almost every week, ‘Hold Fast’ – the new album from London-based duo Stick in the Wheel – caught my attention because of its unpredictability. Nicola Kearey (vocals) and Ian Carter (guitar/producer) have produced an eclectic collection of songs with some fairly conventional acoustic guitar folk sitting alongside tracks with more of a rock feel plus some electronica and pop. The lyrics include poetry from 10th century Saxon Britain, 17th century London slang and a Yiddish lament. By its nature the album is a bit of a mixed bag (the Guardian’s review suggested Stick in the Wheel were maybe trying too hard) but the best tracks have a swagger reminiscent of Bellowhead. See, for example ‘Budg & Snudg’ featuring the accordion of John Kirkpatrick (whose son Benji Kirkpatrick was a member of Bellowhead and who I reviewed here in April 2009): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpTfg1LVS0w

'Pure' by Andrew Miller

 9 October 2020

The best book I’ve read so far this year was Andrew Miller’s 2018 historical thriller ‘Now We Shall Be Entirely Free’, set during the Napoleonic Wars (reviewed here in April 2020). I was keen to read something else by him and have just finished ‘Pure’ – a novel he published in 2011 which is set in pre-revolutionary France of the 1780s (which I read as an unabridged audio book, narrated by Jonathan Aris). Andrew Miller’s writing is wonderful – beautifully crafted and constantly amusing. He conjures up the reality of living in Paris in 1785, through the quirky tale of the demolition and clearing of an old church and cemetery. He creates an extensive cast of believable, sympathetic characters and his protagonist, the engineer charged with overseeing the demolition project (“a man, neither young nor old”), floats through the story with an innocent naivety. But ‘Pure’ lacks the thriller plot of ‘Now We Shall Be Entirely Free’: it’s a much more gentle tale which feels more interested in the period (and the early stirrings of revolution). Despite three dramatic and violent incidents that punctuate the narrative, you are left with the feeling that not much has really happened. Nevertheless, it’s an enjoyable and entertaining read and I look forward to reading more Andrew Miller.

Northampton Symphony Orchestra online rehearsals

2 October 2020

All our lives have been turned upside down this year by the Coronavirus pandemic. And while it doesn’t compare with the trauma suffered by those who have lost loved ones or those who have lost their livelihoods, living in lockdown has been deeply unsettling and stressful in itself. The restrictions to our social lives, our ability to travel and our opportunities to take part in the activities we enjoy have made us think more carefully than ever about our quality of life. What have you missed most? What do you most yearn to be able to do again? I have been an amateur musician almost all my life. In the early days of lockdown playing music provided great comfort, distraction, challenge and emotional release amongst the worry and uncertainty. I have been playing my French horn almost every day since March: I may even have improved slightly! But playing music on your own, or with recordings, is just not the same as playing music with other people. Like many other amateur arts groups, the Northampton Symphony Orchestra (with whom I have been playing now for 20 years) quickly replaced its regular weekly rehearsals with online social chats on Zoom. It has been great to keep in touch with other members of the orchestra but you can’t play music together via Zoom or any of the other video-conferencing platforms: the audio delay (latency) is just too big. (Try singing ‘Happy Birthday’ with each other the next time you are on a Zoom call – maybe while also washing your hands! – and you will quickly see how impossible it is.) I have collaborated with some NSO members on 2020’s emerging new artform – the multi-part lockdown recording. Recording a video of yourself playing along with a click-track so your contribution can be merged with others to form a virtual performance is surprisingly difficult but it felt good to have a creative project to work on with friends, albeit remotely. It’s definitely not the same, however, as actually playing music together live. So when I read an article about a choir in the USA that had been experimenting with low-latency audio software that enabled them to sing together online, I got very excited. I have spent the last two months exploring software originally designed for rock bands who wanted to jam together online, and looking at whether any of these programs might work for an orchestral rehearsal. The best option seemed to be a free, open source program called Jamulus. It’s a little fiddly to set up, and it only works if you have the right hardware (you need to be able to plug your computer directly into your router with an ethernet cable – wifi is just too slow) and a fast internet connection, plus a lot of patience! On 19 August we held our first online orchestra rehearsal: it was technically challenging, frustrating, at times hilariously bad, but exciting and ultimately actually quite inspiring. Eight of us managed to connect through Jamulus, and with NSO conductor John Gibbons holding us together on piano we eventually managed to play through the entire first movement of Beethoven's 'Symphony No 3 (Eroica)'. It was a far from perfect experience but after a break of more than five months this first opportunity to actually play live music with a group of other people again was incredibly enjoyable. And the best evidence of this is that everyone involved was keen to do it again soon. This Wednesday, our fifth NSO online rehearsal, was the best yet. We had ten people taking part, including violins, viola, cello, flute, oboe, clarinet, horns and piano, and worked on the ‘Symphonie in D minor’ by César Franck and Mendelssohn’s ‘Hebrides Overture’. Each week we have managed to tweak the software settings, address hardware issues and improve the small remaining audio delays. The sound quality is not wonderful and there are always a few technical problems but it’s getting better every week. This Wednesday actually felt like a proper rehearsal as we went back over certain passages of the music and managed to improve them. It’s still no substitute for making music together in the same room but, given the prospect of ongoing restrictions for many months to come, our online rehearsals have been really enjoyable. And working through the technical challenges and solving them together as a group has been a rewarding experience in itself.