PrettyInScarlett

A few further notes relating to a previous post about female composers : music website Sinfini Music has a summary article of recommended contemporary female composers  providing an insightful introduction to a vast (and sadly often overlooked) sector of classical music.

With the arrival of the annual Christmas Festival this past weekend, the city started to feel (even) more festive. Walking around the centre after visiting the seasonal food market, there were plenty of carols being performed by choirs, brass bands, big bands...at one point I heard 2 different carols simultaneously at each end of Silver Street!   Some of the hardier groups were still out playing when I returned later for one of the weekend's festive concerts (clearly organised to tie in with the Festival but who can go to different concerts at the same time?), A German Christmas by the Caritas Ensemble , raising money for Diabetes UK. The concert had a seasonal theme but avoiding the more popular end of the carol repertoire.   About 16 of us sat in the very intimate setting of  St Chad's College Chapel for an evening of song and instrumental music for soprano, flute, cello and piano. A very peaceful atmosphere develo...

A piano acquaintance alerted me to the sixth Young Pianist of the North competition which finished on Saturday. Unable to get to any of the competition rounds, I did make the masterclass in Newcastle on Saturday 30th November featuring pianists from the main category with teaching from Pascal Nemirovski , Bernd Gretzke and Françoise Thinat .   Each teacher in turn provided feedback to the young competitors, who played repertoire including sonata movements by Beethoven and Mozart, interspersed with some Chopin. It was interesting to see how the young pianists operated under pressure - those who could successful deconstruct and reinterpret based on teacher suggestions, and those who couldn't!   I didn't purchase a programme so sadly don't have detailed notes of the pieces performed. The standout performer - one to watch, indeed - for me was 17 year old Elizaveta Klyuchereva, who had Pascal Nemirovski in beaming smiles!   The broad themes from comments and sugg...

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...