PrettyInScarlett

I read with interest an article by Diana Ambache in the November issue of Classical Music magazine about the (often sadly lacklustre) profile of female composers past and present. Earlier this year I acquired a Schott publication called Klaviermusik von Komponistinnen - a collection of 24 pieces by both familiar and more obscure female composers from the 18th century to the 1980s. It's a great collection with some absolutely wonderful pieces, including Maria Szymanowska's Nocturne in B flat .   For further information on female composers and their works, Ambache has set up the Ambache Charitable Trust  to promote women composers and support performances of such works; plus the online resource Women of Note  which provides biographical and catalogue details of a range of composers.   

Durham Amateur Pianists was featured on Radio 3 Breakfast as part of their incredibly useful  Musical Map last Thursday 18th October. The Musical Map has information on musical groups, events, festivals and more right across the UK.   My compatriots with Ottawa Piano Group held a meeting with a difference last Sunday at Southminster United Church, performing on a 1904 Heintzman grand piano. What a treat! The event was attended and recorded by CBC Radio 91.5 FM. Edited highlights and interviews from the performers aired on CBC Ottawa Morning on Tuesday 22nd October, which is available to listen again online . The clip provides an excellent profile of how piano groups for amateurs function.     

In the spirit of friendly comparison with Ottawa International Writers' Festival, last week M and I went to see a few events at this year's Durham Book Festival . The week started off with an excellent talk at the Gala Theatre on Tuesday 15th October by Dr Lucy Worsley on her new book  A Very British Murder . Humourous and informative, with extra information about her day job and some good questions and comments afterwards (I also found her website, which answered my question, where does Lucy get her coats!?)    Saturday 19th October saw us at Durham Town Hall for 2 events. Stuart Maconie delighted a full house with a  very witty talk about British social history through pop music, themed from but encompassing more than his latest tome, The People's Songs . The following event was entitled 'Discovering the North'. Filmmakers Michael Smith and Maxy Neil Bianco introduced 3 films from their series Another England , exploring the ideas of home an...

Last week I finally had the opportunity to visit Oslo with M. Amongst all the sightseeing and visiting friends, we managed a couple of musical activities. By way of an odd prologue, Thursday evening (autumn equinox) there was a torchlit riverside walk along the Akerselva river into downtown Oslo, complete with random but interesting sound, light and music installations along the way, including a few singer-songwriters, choirs and fire-eaters! light installation on Akerselva Friday evening we went to the Oslo Konserthus to see the excellent Oslo Philharmonic featuring Janine Jansen performing Britten's Violin Concerto Op. 15. From our cheap seats behind the orchestra, we enjoyed the Concerto - including the odd macabre bits - and the opening work, No 1 from Leó Weiner's Hungarian Folk Dances Op 18. For our ears the concluding work, Dvořák's Symphony No 8 was something of a let-down - too formulaic and predictable after Britten. No negatives from Saturday af...

Continuing my week of excellent piano music, last night I logged on to Skype to attend a special meeting of  Ottawa Piano Group , featuring a masterclass by performer and teacher Jenny Regehr . Jenny started the session with a short introduction on the themes of what one wants to say musically and how to say it, focusing on alignment and the importance of listening to what one is playing. She touched on the 'vibrancy' of the OPG - it seems the group has developed quite a reputation! The three brave students for the afternoon were: Christopher, playing Milonga del Angel by Piazzolla; Nick, playing Schubert's Impromptu Op 142 No 2 ; and Julie, playing the 2nd movement from Beethoven's Sonata Op 10 No 1 . All excellent performances, and the common themes from Jenny's analysis included comments on the melodic line and buoyancy in chordal playing - the emphasis being on constant movement and flow. It was certainly an entert...

Since moving to Durham I have been looking for fellow amateur pianists, with some success: the inaugural 'Durham Amateur Pianists' group met earlier this month and another meeting is scheduled for October. I also attended 2 other amateur piano events. Chris Jolley on the Yamaha piano First up on Wednesday was Gateshead Piano Workshop , a montly event held at Caedmon Hall in Gateshead Library. The established workshop features teacher and performer Venera Bojkova . The programme, pre-announced about 2 weeks beforehand, included Brahms' Op.117 Intermezzo in Eb ; andante from Sonata in C K545   and adagio in B minor from K540 by Mozart; and the last 4 from Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky. A really friendly and informative evening! Something slightly different yesterday, as I went to Manchester for the UK meeting of online group The Piano Cloud . The Piano Could is a SoundCloud and Facebook group whose members encompass all genres and abilities including ...

Laura Beth Salter So far M and I are enjoying our new home in Durham - made it to see the Lindisfarne Gospels and had a fun trip in and around Alnwick. However for a pair of music fans the lack of a proper record shop is probably the biggest downside (although the lovely people at Spillers Records do have an online shop...). We were therefore very keen when I spied that the art & culture folk at Empty Shop were promoting a one-day pop-up record shop, Hot Potato Records. Our first visit around midday saw the transformed premises (formerly used as Blockbuster on North Road) hosting a steady stream of customers browsing the racks of LPs and CDs from Newcastle based Reflex Records as well as labels Discount Horse, Box Records, Plan-It-X, Cruel Nature Records and more. Plus free tea and coffee! Enjoying the vibe and browsing away, between us we chose LPs by Sigur Rós, Bonobo, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club plus 5 curiosities from the bargain boxes. Mixed bag but 3 out of 5 good ...