Late autumn musical harvest: Hafdis Huld and Clare Hammond

Hafdis Huld

General Sherman

The culmination of a very busy week at the end of October (although I am so rarely not busy...) saw M and I back at the Old Cinema Launderette to see Icelandic singer Hafdis Huld. Partly booked because we couldn't get to see the ever amazing Ólöf Arnalds during her short October tour; and partly out of sheer curiosity. Even more so when I discovered the show was sold out!

The evening started with an interesting set from Middlesbrough band General Sherman. Their first few songs reminded me a little of another Icelandic band, Amiina; lo-fi mellow meanderings. A few songs felt a little too ponderous, but overall positive.

Carrying a tour wound (a broken finger) and accompanied by partner Alisdair, Hafdis sat on one of the washing machines and instantly wove a spell. She held the audience for the full length of her set with her witty manner - jokes, song introductions and more - as well as her songs. The aforesaid busy schedule precluded a little prior listening, but the set comprised a career selection, from new songs 'Queen Bee', 'Lucky' and 'Wolf' from current album Home, to older songs 'Synchronized Swimmers', 'Kongulo' and 'Ski Jumper'. A super evening!

Fast forward a few weeks and we were back in Darlington on 9th November for the next in Darlington Piano Society's season. Clare Hammond was in town presenting a varied programme, from Bach to Malcolm Pointon, with lots of unusual (for me) repertoire.To me, Clare's musical conviction was immediately more apparent in comparison to last month's Maria Marchant recital. Clare, who is known for programming 20th century works, knew throughout what she wanted to convey and her performance remained excellent throughout.

Less impressed with the opener, Bach's Italian Concerto BWV971, I really enjoyed the performance of Scriabin's Prelude and Nocturne for the Left Hand, Op. 9. Dreamy but with a definite atmosphere.

I liked the concept of Sibelius' Five Pieces for Piano, Op. 75 'The Trees' - rarely performed - but somehow the works felt less striking than the preceding Scriabin, with the exception of 'The Lonely Pine' which was a super piece, full of austere grandeur. Similarly, I admired the programming of Dinu Lipatti's Sonatine pour piano (main gauche) but found it difficult to engage with the characters of the movements.

After the interval, Clare continued with selections from Mendelsohn's Songs Without Words: Op. 67 Nos 2 (allegro leggiero), 5 (moderato) and 4 (presto). Lovely. In total contrast, Five Epigrams and an Epiphonema (1970) by Malcolm Pointon were short sections of sound, alternating sharp and floating. Really really interesting and full of humour. I felt like there was a sort of floaty link between 1,3 and 5 of the Epigrams; the Epiphonema was a very condensed last laugh.

In performance terms, the closing section, with Chopin's Études Op. 25 (complete) was very intense and impressive, but felt almost too much! A little Handel at the close was a lovely aural refresher.

Music, Poetry and Cake (Gateshead and Lanchester)

Piano at the ready! (by M) After a good few months prep, the concert Piano Music and Poetry (organised through the Gateshead Piano Workshop folks) came around pretty quickly. As one of the participants, I was excited and also a little nervous about the prospect of a Paying Audience. The work paid off, as all the performers were excellent! Well appreciated by the compact audience. The format was in relation to National Poetry Day which was on 2nd October. Each performer chose a poem either in direct or indirect relation to their piece. A summary of the programme: Alan - Liszt Consolation No 4 and Mozart Adagio in B minor Graeme - Chopin Nocturne Op. 62 No. 2 with 'Uncertainty' by Adam Mickiewicz me - Clara Schumann, andante con sentimento with 'Clara Wieck und Beethoven' by Franz Grillparzer Jim - R Schumann Kinderszenen 1 and 7 with 'My child, we were just children' by Heinrich Heine Ernie - Debussy Clair de lune with excerpt from 'Fêtes g...

Sounds of JUNOfest

Classical JUNOs performers Something of a musical melange weekend but an excellent set of events! Eschewing some of the bands and artists we knew, we chose less familiar sounds for our JUNOfest experience. First up was the Classical JUNOs in Concert event at the National Arts Centre , featuring both nominated performers and composers. The mix of contemporary music was brilliantly played by Christina Petrowska Quilico , Susan Hoeppner , Heather Schmidt and the New Orford String Quartet . Quilico amazed the almost 100-strong audience with her performance of Derek Charke's Sepia Fragments in a reduction for piano; I found this piece a really captivating mix of earthly and ethereal elements. Quilico's second performance was of Ann Southam's Glass Houses No. 5 , an hypnotic piece which sounded both fiendishly difficult to play but also very clean and unembellished. Susan Hoeppner's excellent performance of Eldin Burton's Sonatina for Flute and Piano got the po...

Hidden Witness

Moving house completed - for now - and we are back in the Vale of Evesham. The wonders of Facebook unearthed a live gig and St Richard's Hospice fundraiser by slow-burning band Hidden Witness so off we went for an evening out in Worcester. I honestly can't remember the last time either of us did that.... cue pleasant surprise at our venue for the evening, Keystones Cafe Bar . Quite open and spacious in terms of standing room, reasonably large stage and a bar ensconced in the remaining medieval walls - much more atmosphere than many other small bars... A busy few weeks meant I hadn't had time to check out Hidden Witness' SoundCloud page so I had fresh ears and no expectation. The support band, The Miffs , were ok, with a few engaging covers, but sadly (for my ears) nothing memorable. After a short break - in which the background music made me feel both young and old simultaneously - Dan, Chris, Neil and Dan took the stage for an interesting set. A few ...

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