Handel Coronation Anthems

A Concert at St John's Waterloo

The Messiah at St Alfege Greenwich

An essential part of Christmas for me is to go to a performance of The Messiah. I went to a wonderful production - performed by the Thomas Tallis Society Choir and Orchestra in the

terrific surroundings of St Alfege Church in Greenwich. Andrew Radley as Countertenor was superb and the close confines of this eighteenth century setting with its galleries and pews allowed the chorus to really project the full force of Handel's wonderful work. Sometimes a counter tenor isn't successful - it can seem forced but Andrew's voice was natural and ethereal. I have to mention the baritone (another voice not so regularly heard) Robert Davies. He managed to add the required degree of gravitas and emotion to the arias.

The Proms - Number 66

The Proms - Number 53

The Proms - Number 35

The programme was Elgar's In The South; Vaughan Williams' Piano Concerto; and Rimsky-Korsakov's Sheherazade, performed by the BBC Philharmonic under the baton of Vassily

Sinaisky. This is a very competent, if unexciting orchestra and I didn't find that the conducting was particularly inspiring, but both the Elgar and the Rimsky-Korsakov is so uplifting that the music just shines through. I'm sure pianist Ashley Wass did a grand job with theVaughan Williams, but I'm not surprised this is not a regularly performed piece. There is always a difficulty with modern music - the romantics had it right - melodies and soaring notes, but in the twentieth century composers tended towards virtuosity - and that alone is not enough. Rating overall: 6/10

The Proms - Number 16

The first of the Proms series of concerts I'd been to in years - the Royal Albert Hall was packed for this collection of popular classics - the first half British, the second German. The Halle Orchestra under the baton of Mark Elder were on good form beginning with a rare performance of Butterworth's orchestral rhapsody A Shropshire Lad. The work was introduced and ended with the poem by A E Housman that inspired this work by a composer who died in the First World War. Vaughan Williams' Eighth Symphony is full of soaring strings and bears all the trademarks of this craftsman of twentieth century music. Janine Jansen the Dutch violinist was excellent as the soloist in Bruch's Violin Concerto No 1. I know this is ever so romantic and regularly appears at the top of 'favourite music' charts - but there is a reason for that - it has the ability to move and push all the emotional buttons, especially when performed by a violinist of Ms Jansen's calibre - I feel the tears welling up at a particular point in the first movement when the strings are rushing headlong higher and higher, with the soloist soaring alongside and above them. The performance culminated with Richard Strauss' quirky Till Eulenspiegel - performed with excellent good humour by this first rate orchestra. The only drawback to the evening was the Royal Albert Hall's notorious echo - which detracted from the reading of Housman's poem using radio mikes. Concert rating: 8/10

A Choral Pilgrimage - The Sixteen

A concert of Tudor music performed at the glorious Old Naval Chapel at Greenwich, designed by Wren, next to the banks of the River Thames. An appropriate setting for this performance by a choir known as the 16. The programme consisted of pieces of religious music from the time of the Reformation in England, so some in Latin, others in English according to the time of composition, and which monarch was on the throne. The choir is excellent, technically, but rather like the Chapel the music was too formal, too plain, and to my ears too unemotional. It doesn't move me. Each group of voices piles layers of song one upon the other giving me the feeling of being wrapped in successive levels of woolly blankets, comfortable but not really exciting or pleasurable. The singing is superb and admirable I'm sure, but not really for me. Rating 6/10

Susannah - an opera by Carlisle Floyd

Now I think there is a problem with modern 'operas'. Since the invention of the musical (bit of singing, bit of acting) 'operas' seem to have gone in one of three ways - they either go so 'serious' that the music is almost impenetrable (Stockhausen?) or they ape the classics (Gershwin) or they are musicals aspiring to be something more, by using operatic singers. Susannah falls into the last category. Unfortunately the other problem with operas in the English language (unless you're watching the ENO) is that they theatre doesn't provide surtitles. Enunciation becomes essential. I'm sure that Donna Bateman (starring as the eponymous heroine) is an excellent singer but what with her operatic style and a very loud orchestra I had terrible problems working out what exactly she was going on about half the time. I've just thought of another disadvantage of modern operas versus musicals - they don't seem to go in for great memorable singalong melodies. I think you might guess by now I didn't enjoy this offering, although I think it was mainly the fact that I couldn't hear the words that spoiled it for me, the music was pleasant enough and the singers were of a good standard, but if I must go and see a tale of repressed emotions in the Southern States of America give me Oklahoma! every time. So in brief this opera is your standard American tale - community of buttoned up people with one person (Susannah) feeling liberated and cheerful - thereby attracting the approbation of the God fearing churchgoers. A hellfire preacher turns up on an evangelising mission, Susannah is observed (and condemned) for outraging public decency (swimming?) and is cast out by the Church. A boy is forced to denounce her, she is required to publicly repent, (which she refuses to do) and the Preacher (seeking her immortal soul) rapes her. Susannah's drunken brother then shoots preacher. An average happy day in Tennessee then. Rating? 5/10

Anna Bolena @ The Hackney Empire

This little performed Donizetti opera sung by the English Touring Opera in a very dramatic production. Although the scenery was minimal the costumes were sumptuous and the orchestra appropriately competent and understated. I hate it when the orchestra is intrusive to prevent clarity of the singers' voices. The singers on this occasion were all excellent, especially the title role and Percy. I'm having a week of the life of Anne Boleyn - (see the entry for The Other Boleyn Girl on my film blog). Donizetti certainly takes a very different take on the life of the ill-fated Tudor Queen. In his opera Henry is already stuck inot a steamy affair with Jane Seymour and is plotting to entrap his 'innocent' wife Anne in infidelity, with former beau Percy. Meanwhile lovelorn page Smeaton (confusingly sung by a woman) provides the 'evidence' which convicts Anna Bolena, her brother, Percy and Smeaton. The English T0uring Opera are a very good ensemble and guarantee excellent productions. Alas this particular opera doesn't provide any themes or set pieces to set you humming as you leave the theatre. Donizetti goes for constant frenetic energy and you can end up feeling bludgeoned by the constant emotion. Rating: 8/10

Counterpoint on Radio 4

I went to a recording (well two rounds to be exact) of the Radio 4 music quiz Counterpoint at the recently renovated Radio Theatre in Broadcasting House. A new series begins to be broadcast from 24th March. This quiz was associated for many years with the late Ned Sherrin, and will now be chaired by Paul Gambaccini, who has a very different style. I thought Ned would be irreplacable by Paul has taken the quiz in a different, perhaps lighter direction. I don't mean the quality of the questions have been diluted or the music is less serious, but his handling of the contestants is gentler, and gives them the space to think and makes the quiz somehow more tense, and enjoyable. Mr Gambaccini is also a writer of great sensitivity, and many years ago his book Love Letters, struck a great chord with me. I hope the audiences for Counterpoint will grow and grow.

Last Night of the Proms

The Proms have been a national institution for many many decades. The Last Night is a bizarre spectacular demonstration of national pride, flag waving and traditional British songs. One might have imagined that it would become stuck in the past, a gradually aging audience of no interest to the young and viewed from abroad as yet another example of eccentric British behaviour. However, ticket sales for the whole Proms Season reached a record high, and the spin off Last Night events - the Proms in the Park attract vast audiences, this year reaching a new venue - Middlesbrough. As these are outside, open air events it surprises me how many people want to attend in view of the unreliable weather. It deters no one. The standard of performances are amazingly high and every year a new range of pieces are added to the hard core of traditional Elgar and Arne, so beloved of Sir Malcolm Sargeant.

Amy Winehouse

Today the troubled singer's father-in-law suggested on Radio 5 Live that her fans should stop buying her tracks as an incentive towards getting her into rehab. I find this totally bizarre and unsupportive. She's never going to say 'yes' if she's pressurised into the decision. What do you all think?
I have to say I wasn't much of a fan but could appreciate her talent. And then her latest song 'Tears Dry On Their Own' began to get regular airings and I'm hooked. She is remarkable - but really does need to get her head together. I could see how troubled she was during an appearance on the terrific TV programme 'Never Mind The Buzzcocks'.

Signs of Aging

I was listening to 'Loose Ends' on Radio 4 this evening and I was shocked to hear that Marc Almond (famous for Tainted Love) is going to be 50 shortly. This really bothers me - I will always imagine he is just over 20 - but then I'm always surprised to find out that people are my age - I think I look vastly younger than them. Is this just distortion of thought?