Opera, Gardening, Politics, Cats....

The garden today

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:13:15 +0200

I am just about to go and plant the beautiful violas I bought yesterday.

And I am hoping there will enough blackberries and windfall apples to make a blackberry and apple pie!

The Garden Today

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:31:19 +0200

I have a whole load of cherry tomatoes on the vine...first time I have tried to grow these, and they are really delicious!

And the other thing I am really happy with is the chili plant....I have lots of chillies, so I have picked some to make chilli oil.

I am also really happy with the way the COMPOST has progressed! (Beautiful image of compost here.....!)

I started the compost bin when I moved into the flat nearly three years ago, and the contents have rotten down to produce some lovely crumbly, brown, rich compost.

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The Garden Today

Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:22:54 +0200

We are back from Italy now.....as I sit at my desk typing this, I am inhaling the scent of a vase of freesias which I just picked from the garden!

There are many different kinds of tomatoes...will be able to make chutney again soon!
And I have more courgettes than I ever had before...in fact, I think I have a MARROW!!!

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Visit from Italian Partisan

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:57:42 +0200

Today we had the great honour of a visit from GARIBALDO BENIFEI, an Italian anti-Fascist fighter and partisan, who is now ninety-seven years old.< here is a YouTube clip of him talking about some of his memories. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYvzawsyxJw He came (with a younger comrade ) to visit us at our house in Nugola, to sign a copy of his autobiography and to tell us about his experiences as a political prisoner during the Fascist era and as an anti-Fascist campaigner after 1943. We owe this signal honour to the fact that he tracked down my partner, TOBIAS ABSE, in the Livorno phone-book! Toby is the author of a book about anti-Fascism in Livorno between 1918 and 1922. (It was originally his PhD thesis, and was expanded for publication). On Sunday we were at a dinner to commemorate the laying of a stone in memory of a young anti-Fascist who was killed in Livorno in 1922, and somebody recognised Toby's name, and....this great hero of the Resistance came to visit us! He is the president of A.N.P.P.I.A (Associazione Nazionale Perseguitati Politici Italiani Antifascisti). There is a link here with more info about the organisation. http://www.anppiasardegna.it/ As you can imagine, I am really proud of Toby and his contribution to the history of anti-Fascism.

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The garden today

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 10:21:01 +0200

This is the garden in Italy....

There is a wonderful old fig tree, from which I have already collected lots of ripe fruit...

Perhaps the most beautiful item in the garden is the rosemary, which my mother-in-law planted about 20 years ago...not only does it look beautiful, but it smells gorgeous!

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Livorno today

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 10:12:19 +0200

Wonderful occurrence today - we were rescued by a knight in shining armour!!

Well, actually a friend in a slightly battered old car, but....we were waiting for the bus to go in to Livorno, and someone told us that we were in for a long wait, as there had been an accident on the road into Livorno.
THEN.....incredibly, with true operatic last-minute timing, a friend of ours appeared at the bus stop and gave us a lift into Livorno! What made it more amazing was that usually he goes in on his moped.....

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The garden today

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 19:33:58 +0200

Ate the first peas from the garden today! Really sweet and delicious!

The beans are flourishing as well.....

I almost don't want to go to Italy later this week! But we have a garden there too.....

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The Garden today

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 09:34:06 +0200

The nasturtiums have started to flower, they look so wonderful!

The lavender is looking well too...it is the variety Stoechas, that you see here....with big fat flower-heads!

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Climate and Capitalism Seminar in London, 12 September

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 22:58:39 +0200

BRITISH ECOSOCIALISTS PLAN CLIMATE AND CAPITALISM SEMINAR

[From Socialist Resistance]
Planned for Saturday September 12, Climate and Capitalism is the first seminar organised jointly by Green Left and Socialist Resistance, the ecosocialist currents in two of Britain’s left parties, the Greens and Respect. This energetic and open day of discussion will bring experts, campaigners, radical activists and others together. The event will be in the Friends’ Meeting House, London, NW1 (at Euston).

The plan for the day

After registration at 10, the opening plenary will be addressed by Romayne Phoenix, from Green Left, and Ian Angus, editor of The global fight for climate justice, a new book being launched next month. Romayne is a Green councillor: Ian is one of the Socialist Resistance advisory board.

Before lunch, at least three workshops will be held, all with plenty of time for questions and discussions, to give the context for the combined economic and ecological crises. Amongst those planned are:

Crisis and the response: with Sean Thompson, author of new pamphlet on the Green New Deal, and the Scottish Socialist Party’s Raphie de Santos, co-author of ‘Socialists and the Capitalist Recession’
Gender, ecology and ecosocialism: with Sheila Malone, co-editor of ‘Ecosocialism or Barbarism’
Alternatives to the market: with a panel invited including Derek Wall, former principal speaker of the Green Party

The interaction and sharing of experience will deepen in the afternoon, where participants in major struggles for climate and social justice will be speaking. The discussions will include:

Voices from the Global South: facilitated by Ian Angus
Direct action and prefiguration; with speakers from British direct action campaigns
Sustainable cities; with invited experts including the Campaign for Free Public Transport
Alternative production: with speakers from the Swedish and British trade union movement struggles for sustainable manufacturing.

The closing plenary will provide an opportunity to see how anti-capitalists in Respect, the Green party and elsewhere on the left can deepen their co-operation – both in the run up to the Copenhagen demonstrations at the end of this year, and next year’s general election. ‘Socialist Resistance’ editor Liam MacUaid will discuss strategies for uniting reds and greens while Green Left’s Andy Hewett will discuss the tasks going forward to Copenhagen. The event will close at 5.30pm.

How to register

You can register in advance and make two savings: get one-third off the price of your ticket, and a further two pounds on the cost of the book being launched at the conference. Tickets cost 6 pounds unwaged (4 in advance) and 12 pounds waged (8 in advance). To register, make your cheque payable to ‘Resistance’ and post it to PO Box 62732 London SW2 9GQ.

Find out more

Visit http://ecosocialism.org for updates on the event. You can register on that site for updates, and to take part in the preparations of the event. If you have any questions or comments send an email to seminar@ecosocialism.org.

Comments

LA TRAVIATA, Royal Opera House, 3 July 2009

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:57:20 +0200

Cast

Violetta...............................................Renee Fleming
Flora...................................................Monika-Evelin Liiv
Marquis d'Obigny.............................Kostas Smorignas
Baron Douphol................................ Eddie Wade
Doctor Grenvil..................................Richard Wiegold
Gastone............................................Haoyin Xue
Alfredo...............................................Jospeh Calleja
Anina.................................................Sarah Pring
Giuseppe..........................................Neil Gillespie
Giorgio Germont..............................Thomas Hampson
Messenger.......................................Charbel Mattar
Servant...............................................Jonathan Coad

Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, conducted by Antonio Pappano

Such a wonderful performance, with a dream cast and conductor! Right from the first note of the prelude, Pappano conjured incfrediblyh wistful sounds from the orchestra, and the entire performance was of this high standard.
Renee Fleming was the best Violetta I have seen in years, looking beautiful though fragile, as Violetta should. She gave a very nuanced performance in Act I, pensive in fors'e lui and frenetic in Sempre libera, with a sub-text almost of hysteria, as she acknowledges that she knows she is dying, and is determined to enjoy what life remains to her. I was delighted that she and Pappano didn't leave a space for the audience to applaud between the two halves of the aria!! (They did at the rehearsal...my view is that it spoils the continuity by interrupting Violetta's train of thought).
Calleja as Alfredo was perhaps less subtle and sensitive in Act I, but then he is playing a rather unsubtle and insensitive young man, so this was in character! Certainly he sang the high notes of his Act II arias with ringing confidence.

Thomas Hampson brought his usual mellifluousness of tone and elegance of person to a character with whom the audience usually has difficulty in sympathising.

One has to realise that Alfredo's father is, by his lights, doing his best for his family, by trying to ensure that his daughter- and, in the fullness of time, his son - can make an avantageous marriage, and the tragedy is that Violetta realises that, in that social milieu, he is right and she can't win...Fleming conveys this so movingly, and Hampson gives the father a feeling of humanity underneath the self-righteousness.
I've included a YouTube clip of part of the scene.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIGWNBgMzt8

I've never heard anyone sing "Amami, Alfredo" with such passion and desperation, and the orchestra reflected Violetta's feelings with equal intensity....I had already started to cry during the scene between Violetta and the father, but this literally had me sobbing. (I didn't bother to try to control it, as nearly everyone else in the audience, at least near me, was crying too!)
I'll just make a few comments about the production. It's a 'conventional' production, i.e. set in the nineteenth century, but I don't have a problem with that!! In the first act, Violetta is wearing a white dress, which one might have thought was unsuitable for a woman in her profession, but (a) it's a beautiful dress and Fleming looks gorgeous in it (b) in fact the statement she is making is..."I can afford this". When she comes to Flora's party in Act II, she is wearing a equally expensive and bejewelled black dress.

After the shocking scene in which Alfredo throws the money at her, the father gives her his hand and escorts her from the room - this wasn't done in the production before, could it have been Thomas Hampson's idea? It's this sort of detail that makes or breaks a production. The point is that just after Alfredo has thrown the money and she collapses, the father offers to help her and she turns away, but then later she accepts his help....
The Prelude to Act III was unbearably poignant - of course, as I intimated, I had already started crying long before. "Addio del passato", of which she gets both verses, was heartbreaking, I am sure that she and the orchestra deserved the applause but for me, I just sat in stunned silence!

Comments

The Garden Today

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:27:22 +0200

I'm very happy with the garden..obviously it has benefitted from the rain! I have the best Sweet Peas I ever had...and soon I will have a feast of tomatoes, pepper, beans and peas. I am growing broad beans for the first time...last year I had some delicious runner beans, but actually I prefer broad beans!
I also have some delicious radishes!

Oddly enough, I never used to be all that keen on radishes before! Obviously they are best when they come fresh from the garden and you eat them straight away!

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The garden today

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 09:57:44 +0200

The rain yesterday did the garden a lot of good - although I am afraid some of the more fragile plants may have become waterlogged and rotten!

The black lilies have started to flower, they look like this...

(This isn't the actual photo, which I haven't developed yet...just posting this as an example, and will post the the 'genuine article' next week!)

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ROYAL OPERA HOUSE: Recital 24 June 2009

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:35:03 +0200

In concert:
Jospeh Calleja
Joyce DiDonato
Thomas Hampson
Vasko Vassilev, violin
Antonio Pappano, piano

(Sorry the graphic of Pappano is so small, I hoped they'd all be the same size!)

This was a programme put together at rather short notice by Pappano and his colleagues..originally it was to have been a recital by Villazon and Pappano, then Villazon cancelled and Hvorotsovsky took over, then HE cancelled!! Fortunately, Thomas Hampson and the others are in London at present, Hampson and Calleja are appearing in LA TRAVIATA, and Joyce DiDOnato is rehearsing for IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA. The violinist Vasko Vassilev is Concert Master of the Royal Opera House Orchestra.
It was a very varied programme, which served as much as anything else to demonstrate Pappano's range and versatility as a pianist. Calleja began the recital with three songs by composers of verismo opera, of which I preferred the third, 'A Vuchella' by Franceso Paolo Tosti, a setting of a poem by Gabriele d'Annunzio,
http://www.recmusic.org/lieder/get_text.html?TextId=250
as this gave not only Calleja but Pappano the opportunity to demonstrate his virtuosity in the piano reduction of the score. Not all operatic arias survive this treatment, and I felt they chose their programme very well.
Johyce DiDOnato then sang Rossini's La Regata Veneziana, which was written with piano accompaniment.
And then Thomas Hampson sang Mahler's LIEDER EINES FAHRENDEN GESELLEN, which for me was the high point of the first half of the programme. Hampson is IMO the greatest Mahler interpreter around today, and I was delighted that he had chosen to perform Lieder...earlier in the pub with friends we had been speculating upon what they would choose to perform, and I said Hampson would probably do Mahler, and I was right!! Because I thought he would do something he had rehearsed, if not performed, with Pappano, and it was a very passionate, involved performance by singer and pianist.
After the interval, the violinist Vasko Vassilev performed two pieces by Tchaikovsky, the secons of which, 'Scherzo' from Souvenir d'un lieu cher was another virtuousic demonstrating of the resources of both violin and piano. He followed this with Rachmaninov's Vocalise.
Calleja then sang a not very interesting extract from Massenet's Le Cid - I find Calleja a pleasant enough singer, but never particularly involved or interesting. Perhaps the choice of repetoire has something to do with this.
This was followed by Joyce DiDonato in the Willow Song from Rossini's OTELLO, again of course in a piano reduction. Is it possible that Pappano made the piano reduction himself? He reproduced the harp music from the prelude exquisitely, making it sound almost like an actual harp.
I haven't finished my euology of Pappano's pianistic virtuosity! Having accompanied Hampson in two less well-know American songs (one of which Hampson discussed on Music Matters on Radio 3 last Saturday...Harry Thacker Burleigh's 'Ethiopia Saluting the Colours', a setting of Walt Whitman), he accompanied DiDonato in 'Can't Help Loving Dat Man' and 'Somehwere over the Rainbow', and he does jazz piano well also!!
The recital finished with Bizet's Au fond du temple saint, sung by Calleja and Hampson.
They all deserve our thanks and congratulations for compiling such an adventurous programme at such short notice.
Can you guess whether I am looking forward to seeing LA TRAVIATA next month??!!

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Fighting the Fascists

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:19:26 +0200

Some of you may already have seen this article in the Guardian....it transpires that the Holocaust Museum shooter has/had links with the BNP.
La lotta continua!/ La lotta continua!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jun/11/holocaust-museum-shooting-bnp-von-brunn

Comments

Fighting the Fascists

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:20:04 +0200

Of course, if "they" are sent "home", we will have no public transport, hardly any health service, no catering industry.....

And where is "home", anyway? Many members of ethnic minorities were BORN here....and so were their parents.

I take it the BNP is not aware of the fact that the reason "they" are here is that their countries were invaded and colonised by Europeans - not just the British - and stripped of raw materials to enrich the imperialist powers!

Comments

Fighting the Fascists

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 19:33:31 +0200

I am delighted to say that the fightback against the Fascists has already started....look at this!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8091666.stm

I am a life-long advocate and practitioner of non-violence...but I cannot say I am sorry that Griffin has been pelted with eggs on his first public appearance after his shameful election to the European Parliament.
It transpires that, though he was uninjured, one of his bodyguards appears to have assaulted one of the protestors...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/jun/10/bnp-protest-assault-charges

And there was another protest in Manchester today...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8093259.stm

Why do I think we should protest in the strongest possible terms against the election of Fascists to the European Parliament? Were they not democratically elected?
Well, yes, but SO WAS HITLER. He manipulated the democratic process to get himself elected so that he could then destroy the democratic process. It indicates, I suppose, that democracy carries within it the seeds of its own destruction...
If we confine our protests against the Fascists to non-violence, unfortunately they will be ineffective...I am really distressed when I contemplate what the future might hold for those of us who have always believed in peaceful protest....

Comments

Further shame

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:48:33 +0200

It is worse, I am afraid...GRIFFIN has gained a seat too. I went to bed at 2 o'clock this morning thinking it couldn't get worse, and at least Caroline Lucas and Jean Lambert had retained their seats...then I was woken by a phone call at about 8 o'clock, and my worst fears were confirmed.
I think we have to re-double our campaign against the Fascists now, much as I feel inclined to just sit and cry.....this is a sad day for Britain.

Comments

YORKSHIRE'S DAY OF SHAME

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 01:45:40 +0200

The BNP (Fascist party) has its first MEP.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8088133.stm

However, at least the Green MEPs Jean Lambert and Caroline Lucas have retained their seats.

Comments

CANDIDE at English National Opera

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 12:29:23 +0200

ENGLISH NATIONAL OPERA, June 28 2008

CANDIDE
Music by Leonard Bernstein
Lyrics by Richard Wilbur, additional lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, John
Latouche, Lillian Hellman, Dorothy Parker and Leonard Bernstein.
Book adapted from Voltaire by Hugh Wheeler, freely adapted by Robert
Carsen and Ian Burton
Orchestrations by Leonard Bernstein and Hershy Kay, with additional
orchestrations by John Mauceri.

(Co-production with Theatre du Chatelet, Paris and Teatro alla Scala, Milan)

CANDIDE is rather unfamiliar in the UK, at least in comparison with West
Side Story, but after seeing this production, I must say that it deserves
to be better known.
Voltaire's satire (or comic novel) was updated by Bernstein to the 1950s
(i.e. the time in which it was written - it was first performed in 1956) -
for this production, much of the 1950s setting has been retained -
costumes, stage design, etc - but the spoken dialogue has been updated to
include present-day references. It was intended by Bernstein to be "a
political comment in the aftermath of Joe McCarthy" - the satire seems
obvious enough to me, and to everyone else in the ENO audience, but,
according to the programme notes, "The point of the satire was
anti-American, particularly anti-Middle America, but this went over the
heads of most of the orginal first-night audience". (Then again, if they
had got it, it would probably have been banned......)
During the overture, the stage resembles a giant television set in the
style of the late 50s/early 60s, and scenes of American glamour (including
the Kennedys) are shown on the screen. The linking passages are spoken by
Alex Jennings as Voltaire, who then divests himself of his 18th century
costume to reveal a 1950s suit and tie, in which he plays Pangloss,
Candide's optimistic tutor, who believes that in spite of everything, "all
is for the best in the best of all possible worlds" - this is the subject
of one of the first songs. Jennings then also plays Martin the pessimist
(the one who joins up with Candide in the second half, and believes that
this is the WORST of all possible worlds).
Voltaire's Westphalia has become "West Failure" - which in due course goes
to war with "East Failure", the point (Voltaire's point, effortlessly
transferred to a 20th century setting) is that the two powers are
identical in their barbarity, each believing that the other is the evil
one...
The role of Candide was sung pleasingly by Toby Spence - he's the only
character who has what might be described as set-piece, "operatic-style"
arias - the rest do have solos, obviously, but the lyrics of Candide's
songs are not ironic or witty, as are most of the others, his songs
describe his reaction to the increasingly bizarre experiences he
undergoes, until he is finally stripped of all his illusions, but decides
he'll marry the gold-digging Cunegonde anyway,as they now no longer have
any ideals about each other and they'll "make their garden grow". This
isn't quite how Voltaire's novel ends - that is, in Voltaire there is a
real garden attached to the house in which all the main characters end up
(having survived various attempts on their lives, drowning, execution, etc
etc), and they do cultivate it and live on its produce, so it is real as
well as being a metaphor. For Bernstein, it becomes the occasion for the
final show-stopping number, in which all the characters and the chorus
join.
The opera (operetta? musical? piece of musical theatre?) follows the broad
outlines of Voltaire's novel, and for the most part the updating is
seamless, since most of the institutions that Voltaire was satirising are
still unfortunately in existence. When Pangloss and Candide arrive on dry
land, after escaping from West Failure in a ship provided by 'a kindly
Anabaptist' (sic) , there is an earthquake and Pangloss and Candide are
arrested and accused of being responsible for it. The trial scene is of
course a parody of the MacCarthy HUAC trials in the 1950s, after which
Pangloss and Candide are sentenced to be hanged. (They miraculously
escape, of course - although we don't find out until the end that Pangloss
has escaped too). Then there is a chorus number which beings cheerily -
"What a day, what a day, for an auto-da-fe"......it's a bit of a pity I've
booked to see DON CARLO this afternoon, I HOPE I can forget about this
before I get there!! It's an excellent satire on the hypocrisy of Church
and State, the lyrics are very witty - throughout, in fact, but it was
this number which I particulaly noticed.
Apart from the overture, the only other well-known number is Cunegonde's
"Glitter and be Gay". Anna Christy, who was previously seen here as Lucia
di Lammermoor, was indeed a very 'glittery' Cunegonde, reaching the high
notes with great skill and accuracy, and without a hint of shrillness. I
haven't seen it in context before, it is actually the centre-piece of a
dance routine, in which all Cunegonde's lovers and suitors surround her,
presenting her with diamond bracelets and necklaces. Bernstein's musical
inventiveness seems inexhaustible!
The orchestra of ENO was conducted by Rumon Gamba.
**************
Dr. Jane Susanna ENNIS
http://members.fortunecity.co.uk/leonora/opera.html

Comments

Thomas Hampson and Wolfram Rieger at Wigmore Hall

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 17:16:46 +0100

Thomas Hampson and Wolfram Rieger at Wigmore Hall, 15 Dec. 2007

I just left the Wigmore Hall, and found an Internet Access point just opposite, so I can write about the concert while it's still fresh in my mind. (For people I've already discussed this with - it
IS the same programme as the Chatelet programme last year).

The Kerner Lieder are not well-known, on this evidence Kerner was not as great a poet as Heine (indeed, he is almost forgotten today), but some of the songs are very attractive, especially when performed by Hampson and Rieger. Hampson's performance was sometimes mellifluous and suave, sometimes passionate, always intelligent and committed, always with beautiful intonation. He and Rieger have been performing together for years now, and Schumann especially needs a
pianist who is an equal partner with the singer, not an "accompanist" - so many of the songs have piano postludes which reinforce the sentiments expressed in the song.

Two of the Kerner Lieder are songs about travel, set to cheerful melodies - some more serious, or contemplative, for instance "Stille Liebe", in which the poet expresses his regret that no poem is truly
adequate to express the praise of his beloved....

During the interval I drank some wine and discussed the manifold talents of Thomas Hampson with the people sitting near me - (nothing to do with the looks, HONEST!!! )

Then after the interval he sang DICHTERLIEBE, but it is a version which contains the songs that were omitted from the original publication - that they have been re-discovered is thanks to Hampson's research, there is a long article in the programme about the publication history.

What impresses one about Hampson's performance is that he appears to be EXPERIENCING what he sings about, not just NARRATING it. Again the smooth, mellifluous tones in the first songs - his voice sounds like melted honey sometimes! And he can be passionate as well - in 'Ich grolle nicht', he really spat out the final "nicht", and even his facial expression was involved - angry, tormented. The point of this song is that the poet is claming that he doesn't "bear a grudge", but of course the fact that it exists at all demonstrates his anger and bitterness.

"The notion that Schumann either ignored or tried to soften Heine's irony is a widespread one that has not been frequently enough challenged". His interpretation of "Ich grolle nicht" is a case in point, as is "Am leuchtenden Sommermorgen".....I was struck by this when I saw the performance at the Chatelet, and he and Rieger have deepened and refined the interpretation so that the ironic nature of the song is even more apparent. The flowers exhort the poet "not to be angry with our sister" - and one realises that perhaps Heine's flower imagery isn't as charming as it appears on the surface, because what the flowers are in effect saying is...."She's just a flower, what do you expect from such an ephemeral creature....we just fade and die..." I mean that Hampson really emphasises the ironic subtext of this song.

I have singled out one or two Lieder for special mention, but really the entire performance was of a very high standard. They performed just one encore - 'Du bist wie eine Blume' - and were given bottles of champagne instead of flowers!! Then Hampson got Rieger to take a solo bow, and he said a few words of farewell, wishing the audience Happy Holidays.
Now I'm still trying to come back down to earth!!!!
Dr. Jane Susanna ENNIS
http://webspace.webring.com/people/es/somalicat_uk/opera.html

Comments

GOETTERDAEMMERUNG, ROH Covent Garden, 24 November 2007

Thu, 25 Oct 2007 18:37:13 +0200

GOETTERDAEMMERUNG, ROH Covent Garden, 24 October 2007

CAST

First Norn........................Catherine Wyn-Rogers
Second Norn....................Yvonne Howard
Third Norn.......................Marina Poplavskaya
Siegfried.........................John Treleaven
Brunnhilde.......................Lisa Gasteen
Gunther..........................Peter Coleman-Wright
Hagen............................James Moellenhoff
Gutrune..........................Emily Magee
Waltraute...................... Mihoko Fujimura
Alberich..........................Peter Sidhom
Woglinde.........................Sarah Fox
Wellgunde.......................Heather Shipp
Flosshilde........................Sarah Castle

Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Chorus Master.................Renato Balsadonna
Concert Master................Vasko Vassilev

Conductor......................Antonio Pappano

Director..........................Keith Warner
Set Designs.....................Stefanos Lazaridis

Musically and dramatically, this has been a wonderful RING. I've already
praised Pappano's conducting to the skies, and if anything this was even
better than the preceding evenings. He gives detailed attention to every
nuance of orchestral shading - I espcially noticed details like the brass shining
out when Siegfried and Brunnhilde swear their oaths in Act II. Siegfried's
Funeral March was truly heroic, and poignant, and compensated for the fact
he doesn't GET a Funeral March on the stage, he gets up and wanders slowly
off - I imagine it's meant to represent a ghost disappearing into the mists, but
it would have been a bit disappointing had the music not compensated for the
deficiencies of the staging.

John Treleavan was in much better voice that he was in SIEGFRIED, and
managed quite a creditable performance. Lisa Gasteen had recovered from her
indisposition, and was in radiant voice - this is probably an even more testing
role than the WALKUEURE Brunnhilde, as she develops so many facets of her
character - she starts as a young girl in love, then she is a betrayed (and
brutalised) wife, then an avenging fury and finally, when all this is over, she
has attained wisdom and resignation. Gasteen rose magnificently to the
challenge, with steely, ringing tones for the confrontation in Act II, and
mellow in the Immolation scene - I remember when I saw her last year, her
sensitive enunciation of 'Ruhe, ruhe, du Gott' brought tears to my eyes, and it
did again yesterday evening. Really a great and believable Brunnhilde.

Another splendid performance was given by the Waltraute, Mihoko Fujimura.
Not only a lovely mezzo voice, but a really intelligent, sensitive portrayal of
the role.

The Hagen was James Moellenhoff. (Apparently it was to have been Kurt Rydl -
it would probably have been too much to expect Tomlinson to sing Wotan
AND Hagen). I liked the quality of stillness he had, which contrasted well with
Gunther (Peter Coleman-Wright) and Gutrune (Emily Magee), who were
portrayed as very restless, nervy and fidgety. This suits the character of
Gunther very well, of course, emphasising his insecurity. Hagen then remains
on the stage during Waltraute's narration (though the audience forgets about
him, as Mikoko Fujimura's performance is so gripping), and the scene that
follows - he does nothing until the very end, when Siegfried announces that
he intends to place his sword between himself and Brunnhilde - then Hagen
rises and lifts his chair in a gesture of triumph. He had the right quality of
grimness, suddenly relaxing into sardonic humour, in the Summoning of the
Vassals.

I will say a few words about the staging - one thing I particularly disliked was
the fact that when Siegfried comes back disguised as Gunther - well, he is
there wearing the Rubik Cube, sorry Tarnhelm, but - SO IS GUNTHER. This is
ridiculous, and makes nonsense of the whole scene, the point of which is that
IT ISN'T GUNTHER. The other problem is that Brunnhilde has a horse's skull -
remember the Valkyries all had horses' skulls? - which she gives to Siegfried
(Fuer den Ring nimm nun auch mein Ross), which he then hands to Hagen
when he arrives in the Gibichung's Hall.......I still do not see what the point of
this is. (Never mind, watch Pappano conducting instead!!)
However, there were aspects of the staging I liked - in the Immolation Scene,
the statues of the Gods (which were also present on the stage during the
wedding scene in Act II) are brought in to form part of the funeral pyre and
are consumed in the general conflagration. The backdrop is a cloth covered
with mathematical symbols and a swirling galaxy, which is very effective.

A triumph for Antonio Pappano.
Dr. Jane Susanna ENNIS
http://members.fortunecity.co.uk/leonora/wagner.html

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SIEGFRIED, ROH Covent Garden, 21 October 2007

Mon, 22 Oct 2007 09:27:59 +0200

SIEGFRIED, ROH Covent Garden, 21 October 2007

Cast:
Mime...........Gerhard Siegel
Siegfried..................Jon Trevleaven
Wanderer...................John Tomlinson
Fafner....................Philip Ens
Woodbird..................Ailish Tynan
Erda..................... Jane Henschel
Brunnhilde................Irene Theorin

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Conductor................Antonio Pappano

Director.................Keith Warner
Set Designs..................tefanos Laziridis

Yet again, I start by praising Antonio Pappano and the orchestra, the beautiful
subtlety of the Forest Murmurs movement, and especially the serene beauty
of the orchestral passage as Siegfried emerges onto the mountain-top - I
always feel when I hear this that I don't want him to start singing and break
the spell, and never more so than last night!
John Tomlinson was perhaps not in quite as good voice as he had been in DIE
WALKUERE, but this suits the characterisation of the weary Wanderer, who is
still able - just - to frighten Mime with his spear, but of course has no effect
on Siegfried. I especially liked the scene with Alberich (Peter Sidhom), as the
contrast between them was so well conveyed, Tomlinson convincing in
Wotan's declaration of his wish to stand aside and let the younger generation
take over, Sidhom conveying the fact that Alberich HAS NOT CHANGED AT
ALL, the venom in his voice says it all!
I could hardly hear the Mime (Gerhard Siegel) most of the time- and I
gathered that many people in the audience had a similar problem. Trawling
back through my archives, I discover that I had the same problem two years
ago! So I am wondering if it's part of the characterisation - Pappano is usually
very sensitive to the needs of the singers, and never lets them be
overwhelmed by the orchestra. The situation did improve during Act II, and I
was amused by the metamorphosis into the rat when Mime reveals his evil
intentions towards Siegfried.
Jon Treleaven was unfortunately unable to cope with the demands of the role -
he managed the Forging Scene quite creditably, but in the final scene he
was visibly, and audibly, exhausted, hardly managing to sing in tune. Everyone
applauded him for effort, anyway, because he did do his best.
Irene Theorin stood in for Lisa Gasteen and was a sympathetic young
Brunnhilde - she probably won't be able to cope with the
GOETTERDAEMMERUNG Brunnhilde, so if Gasteen has not recovered, we must
hope that Susan Bullock takes over again.
The staging - there are some aspects I like, and some I can do without.....I
actually like the crashed plane round which Mime and Siegfried have made
their home, especially when the Wanderer unexpectedly clambers out of the
cockpit. I was less impressed with the Forest, which looked rather like Santa's
grotto, especially with the stuffed animals. The final few moments of Act II
served to emphasise Siegfried's extreme youth and silliness...he's about to run
off after the Woodbird, and she (played by a young woman dressed in white)
has to point at his sword to remind him to go back for it, THEN to remind him
to go back for the Tarnhelm (silly Rubik's Cube - I'm STILL not happy with
that!) and the Ring.
A couple of days' break, then on Wednesday it is GOETTERDAEMMERUNG.

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DIE WALKUERE, Rpyal Opera House, 19 October 2007

Sun, 21 Oct 2007 00:28:45 +0200

DIE WALKUERE, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, 19 October 2007

Cast
Siegmund.................................Placido Domingo
Sieglinde..................................Eva-Maria Westbroek
Hunding...................................Stephen Milling
Wotan.....................................John Tomlinson
Brunnhilde................................Susan Bullock
Fricka......................................Rosalind Plowright

Valkyries
Gerhilde.................Geraldine McGreevy
Ortlinde...................................Elaine McKrill
Waltraute................................Claire Powell
Schwertleite............................Rebecca de Pont Davies
Helmwige.................................Irene Theorin
Siegrune................................. Sarah Castle
Grimgerde................................Clare Shearer
Rossweise................................Elizabeth Sikora

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Concert Master........................Vasko Vassilev

Conductor..............................Antonio Pappano

Director..................................Keith Warner
Set Designs............................Stefanos Lazaridis

You were probably expecting to see the name of Lisa Gasteen as Brunnhilde in
the cast list, but she had to withdraw because of ill-health - fortunately
Susan Bullock was able to take over at very short notice, and was a more
than adequate replacement.

But I'll start at the beginning - during the first few minutes, the orchestra
sounded slightly 'muffled', the brass not having quite the piercing quality one
hopes for, but this soon improved, and the 'chamber music' quality of much of
the first act (the motifs that characterise the Volsungs and the growing
attraction between Siegmund and Sieglinde) was very sensitively played under Pappano's skilful conducting - in fact at some points I shut my eyes so that I could listen to the music in a more focussed way, it was so exquisite!

Domingo's Siegmund has lost none of its qualities over the years - his German is rotten, but who cares! He produced a really heroic ring with 'Waelse, Waelse, wo ist dein Schwert!', and great tenderness in 'Winterstuerme' - but
the greatest moments were reserved for the Todesverkuendigung, the quite
resolution with which he replies to Brunnhilde's announcement was amazing.
The music rises to a pitch of almost unbearable tension in the orchestra as
Siegmund asks, 'Begleitet den Bruder die braeutliche Schwester? Umfaengt
Siegmund Sieglinde dort?' and then the tension is broken with Brunnhilde's
quiet reply - delivered with calm dignity by Susan Bullock - she is an
experienced Brunnhilde, although this is the first time she has sung the role at Covent Garden. She has a clear voice with soaring top notes (I have heard
her before as Desdemona and as Isolde). I also liked the passionate Sieglinde
of Eva-Maria Westbroek.

John Tomlinson just IS Wotan!!! It's forty years since I first saw the RING, but
Wotan's Farewell still has me in tears, as it did yesterday. Wotan runs the
whole gamut of emotions in this opera, from hope - almost elation - to
despair, and this is one of the best and most convincing performances I've
seen in recent years. At the opening of Act II, he waves his spear about in
triumph, as he obviously thinks he has found the solution to his problem - of
course Fricka (Rosalind Plowright) disabuses him of this notion. When she
finally gets his promise, he kneels to kiss her hand, and she pats him on the
shoulder, as if to thank him. When I saw this production last year, with Terfel
as Wotan, he accepted her embrace - but Tomlinson flinched away from her,
which is perhaps more logical.

Something else which I found interesting - when
he leaves Brunnhilde and storms off in anger, the stage directions AND THE
MUSIC indicate that he should 'stride furiously away', but in fact he walked
very slowly and hesitantly off, while Brunnhilde follows him with his spear,
which he has forgotten - so, although this seems to be acting against the
music, it works as a way of showing Wotan's distress. Similarly at the end of
Act II, rather than storming off in pursuit of Brunnhilde, he returns and kneels
by the side of the dead Siegmund, wringing his hands in despair.

The staging has some attractive moments; for instance, when Spring bursts
into Hunding's hut, this in indicated by a burst of light, and a shower of rose
petals falling from the roof - Sieglinde lifts her face to receive them. On the
other hand, I could really do without the horses' skulls that the Valkyries
carry - I haven't yet met one member of the audience who DOES like this, and
I cannot understand what the point is - unless it's just to get a cheap laugh.
But it has to be said that at the crucial moments the director and stage
designer forget about the gimmicks and just let the cast sing and the
orchestra play - or perhaps it's just that the scene between Wotan and
Brunnhilde in Act III was so gripping that the audience forgot about the
production gimmicks.

Tomorrow is SIEGFRIED.
Dr. Jane Susanna ENNIS
http://members.fortunecity.co.uk/leonora/wagner.html

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DAS RHEINGOLD, Royal Opera House, October 17 2007

Thu, 18 Oct 2007 16:19:02 +0200

DAS RHEINGOLD, Royal Opera House, 17 October 2007

Cast:

Woglinde...................................Sarah Fox
Wellgunde...............Heather Shipp
Flosshilde ......................Sarah Castle
Alberich.................................... Peter Sidhom
Wotan......................................John Tomlinson
Fricka.......................................Rosalind Plowright
Freia........................................ Emily Magee
Fasolt.......................................Franz-Josef Selig
Fafner.......................................Philip Ens
Froh.........................................Will Hartmann
Donner..................................... Peter Coleman-Wright
Loge.........................................Philip Langridge
Mime.........................................Gerhard Siegel
Erda.........................................Jane Henschel

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Concert Master Vassko Vassilev

Conductor...................................Antonio Pappano

Director......................................Keith Warner
Set Designs..................................Stefanos Lazaridis

I hope the excellence of this performance is a good omen for the rest of the
RING! Pappano drew such burnished tones from the orchestra, right from that magical, mysterious beginning - and I liked the fact that there wasn't the
usual business of the conductor coming on beforehand to be applauded, it
creates a much better atmosphere if the sound seems to emerge from
nowhere. The orchestral balance was ideal, and Pappano takes it at a tempo
that seems exactly appropriate and also gives due emphasis to the passages
for solo instruments at crucial moments. Pappano is also very sensitive to the needs of the singers.

I would single out for special praise John Tomlinson's Wotan and Philip
Langridge's Loge. Tomlinson's deep sonorous voice is of course well-known and highly praised, but he is also a gifted actor and gave a very subtle
characterisation of Wotan as a god with very human failings! Especially, of
course, that of greed and lust for power, and he is beginning to intuit that this
is going to be his undoing, even as he waves the sword around before the
entry into Walhall.

Loge, of course, will have nothing to do with any of this.
the particular qualities of Langridge's tenor voice are ideal for this role (who is actually my favourite character in the RING!) . There are nice touches of
comic genius, such as the fact that when Donner summons the thunder, the
other gods stand apathetically around while Loge sits under an outsize
umbrella - eliciting laughter from the audience, as of course it's yet another
way in which Loge undercuts the pretensions of the others.
Peter Sidhom as Alberich seemed to start off tentatively, but this was
obviously part of the characterisation, as he gained in power - and of course
malevolence - in the Nibelheim scene. This is the point at which I must start
to describe the production - Nibelheim is, among other things, a laboratory in
which monstrous experiments on humans and animals are being perpetrated, there is a mutilated skeleton on a hospital trolley, and Loge throws some of
the body parts away - later, after Alberich has been captured by Wotan and
Loge, Mime throws some more body parts away. (An interesting idea, BUT I
started to wonder if it wasn't a bit too 'busy').The actual gold which Alberich
has been amassing is barely visible, as it is all packed into suitcases, which
Mime has to carry around, and which are too heavy for him.
The Tarnhelm is - an outsize Rubik Cube, which glitters in certain lights

- yes,
Ok, but the novelty will have worn off by GOETTERDAEMMERUNG (I've seen
this production before!) One thing I did like, though, was that when Alberich is tricked into turning himself into a toad - a little toad with a MINI-Rubik Cube
on its head hops across the stage!
Mime is sung by Gerhard Siegel, who emphasised very well the contrast
between the Nibelung brothers - Mime lacks the tragic grandeur that makes
Alberich a distant cousin of Milton's Satan - something that was very apparent when he cursed the Ring - which of course is now on Wotan's finger, and
Alberich actually takes Wotan's hand when he curses the Ring - I haven't seen it played like this before.

I'll return to the beginning now - the Rheinmaidens are naked right at the
start, but as soon as Alberich appears they hurriedly scramble into some
clothes (probably not before he's had a good stare, though, as they don't see
him at first).

One thing I particular liked about the staging was that the
projections of green wavy lines that indicated the Rhine gradually change into a spinning globe with Mercator projections - the globe becomes smaller and smaller as the Valhalla scene approaches, and Valhalla is shown as the interior of a rather grand mansion with a black marble fireplace and matching black furniture.

Fricka and Freia were wearing very elegant Edwardian tea-gowns.

Rosalind Plowright was very good as Fricka, her warm mezzo tones contrasting well with the soprano of Emily Magee - who sang well but her characterisation was a bit lack-lustre. I liked the fact the she seemed to tentatively respond to Fasolt's genuine affection for her. The giants were sung by Philip Ens and
Franz-Josef Selig.

***********
Dr. Jane Susanna ENNIS
http://members.fortunecity.co.uk/leonora/ring1.html

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The Garden

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 17:22:44 +0200

Delighted today....just on my way home from the Garden Centre, having bought two trays of violas for a quid each!

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The Garden today

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 16:15:09 +0200

Back from Edinburgh......
The garden's looking good, thanks to the neighbour who looked after it in my absence.
Harvested LOADS of cherry tomatoes when I got back!

I ate them for lunch today - well, there are one or two left for this evening, along with the salad, all of which was grown in the garden.

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Edinburgh Festival 2007

Sun, 26 Aug 2007 18:02:00 +0200

My last day in Edinburgh!!
I think I've used the time profitably....last night I went to a concert by the folk group Whistlebinkies.
Here's some info about them...
http://www.footstompin.com/artists/alphabet/pv/whistlebinkies

They played a varied programme of traditional Scots music and music from other Celtic countries, including Brittany, and also some music from the 17th. century. During the interval I was able to chat with Rab Wallace, who plays Lowland Pipes and Small Pipes (not the ones you blow into - more like Northumbrian pipes), about the overlap between Early Music and Folk Music, had a very interesting discussion.
The other instruments include a clarsach (Scottish Harp)

and more conventional instruments such as flute, fiddle, double bass.

After the interval they played a piece written for them by John Cage - 'Scottish Circus' - and some of the audience didn't realise it was the John Cage and carried on chatting..... ah well..
*************

This afternoon (Sunday) I went to the People's Story Museum
http://www.cac.org.uk/venues/peoples_story.htm

which is a museum of the working lives of people in Edinburgh. it currently has an exhibition of Trade Union Banners.

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Harpsichords at St. Cecilia's

Sat, 25 Aug 2007 17:48:32 +0200

St. Cecilia's Hall, Edinburgh, August 2007

I have attended two recitals at St. Cecilia's Hall, which is part of the University of Edinburgh's Department of Music. It has one of the two best collections in the world of early keyboard and stringed instruments (the other is at Yale University). The harpsichords in the illustration are not from this collection, just illustrations of the sort of instruments they have in the collection.
The first lecture/recital was of music by C.P. E Bach, played on the clavichord, and the performer, Colin Kingsley, explained how Bach influenced Haydn, some of whose early pieces he then played on the fortepiano - he explained that may of Haydn's works would be impossible to play on a clavichord (although they can be played on a harpsichord),because the style, the chords, the fingering, every nuance of the piece is adapted to a fortepiano or a harpsichord. The fortepiano he used was one from the late 18th century - they are all original instruments, no reproductions! It includes an early sustaining pedal, but at this stage the player had to operate the pedal with their knee...the pedal at the base of the instrument appears with the pianoforte proper.
This afternoon I attended a recital entitled 'His Majesty Commands' - music from the court of Frederick the Great of Prussia, including a piece for flute and keyboard by the King himself, which was interesting, because I knew he was a competent performer, but I hadn't realised he wrote himself.
The next piece was by Frederick's teacher Johann Joachim Quantz, and the other pieces were by J.S. Bach and C.P.E Bach. The instruments were a baroque flute and a fortepiano - a different fortepiano from the one used in the previous concert, they have a very large collection!
During the intervals the audience was invited to visit the collection, it is quite stunning it its range, it has some of the oldest harpsichords and clavichords ever made - I talked to the curator, who said that she does play all of them, they have to be played in order to keep them in good condition.

(Sadly, I only have one more day in Edinburgh....)

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Anonymous 4 in Edinburgh, August 21

Thu, 23 Aug 2007 18:02:19 +0200

Greyfriars Kirk, Edinburgh, Tuesday August 21.
Anonymous 4 performing a Medieval Ladymass

Anonymous 4 is a group of American performers and scholars who specialise in Early Music, but are also venturing into the contemporary repertoire.
A Ladymass, as its name implies, is a Mass dedicated to the Virgin Mary, who was greatly venerated throughout Europe in the later medieval period. The programme note explained some of the background...
In the 13th century, a Mass to the Virgin (a Ladymass) was offered daily in the Lady Chapel of Salisbury Cathedral.Most large churches had Lady Chapels where such votive masses were celebrated, either daily (as at Salisbury) or on Saturday, a day dedicated to Mary. Of the English polyphony that survives from this time, almost all of which is sacred, roughly two-thirds is in honour of the Virgin; much of this music could play a role in the Ladymass. For this programme we have used liturgical polyphony and chant, along with other devotional works from thew 13th and earlu 14th centuries, to create a composite Ladymass.

This performance followed the performance by the Orlando Consort which I found so inspiring. The Ladymass doesn't follow the usual sequence of the Mass, but consists of poems and hymns dedicated to the Virgin, sometimes praising Her for Her own virtues, sometimes asking her to intercede with Her Son for the redemption of sinners. The Latin hymns were interspersed with two Middle English poems, one of which - Edi beo thu hevene quene - I know from other Early Music/Folk Song collections. (I'm very interested in the overlap between Early Music and Folk Music!)
The other is a Middle English version of the Stabat Mater.

The women's voices weaving together in polyphony sounded beautiful, rather unfamiliar, as most liturgical music that survives from the Middle Ages was written for male voices, but obviously there is no reason why it could not be adapted - one of the sequences I found most effective was O ceteris preamabilis, sung as a duet.

And some of the poetry - complete unfamiliar to me, and to most of the audience, is incredibly rich im imagery. I will just quote a few lines from Salve mater salvatoris.

Venter tuus o puella, thalamus, palacium,
aula, domus, templum, cella, civitas, sacrarium.
Virga, rubus appelaris flos, fenestra, ianua,
mater dei, lux solaris, iesse stirps ingenua.
Vitis, uva, rosa, stella, margarita, lilium.....

Thy womb, o maiden is wedding bed, palace,
hall, house, temple, chamber, city and shrine.
Thou are called sprout, blackberry-bush, flower,
window, door, mother of God, sunlight, genuine branch
of Jesse, vine, grape, rose, star, pearl, lily......

The recital included plainchant sequences, which make an interesting contrast to the polyphony.

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Edinburgh Festival, 21 August

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 19:55:49 +0200

Lousy weather all day, but hasn't stopped me enjoying the Festival!

Last night I went to Haydn's THE CREATION at the Usher Hall. The Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the Edinburgh Festival Chorus were conducted by Roger Norrington, the soloists were Katharine Fuge, Ian Bostridge and Matthew Rose.
The orchestra contained instruments such as natural trumpets, which gave a different colouring to the music. I had never heard of Katharine Fuge before, but I loved her clear, sweet voice, especially in the section about the creation of plants and flowers (which is my favourite section anyway). Bostridge sang very authoritatively, his voice filling the hall, and without the dryness with which he has sometimes been afflicted in the past. Matthew Rose didn't appear to be in good voice at the beginning, there was some roughness and insecurity, but he improved as the evening progressed, and was very good in the role of Adam.

I've just come from Greyfriars Kirk, where I heard a recital by the Orlando Consort. I am returning at 9 p.m. for a Ladymass performed by Anonymous 4 ...
The programme consisted of music by Josquin and his contemporaries, including Ockeghem - mainly hymns to the Virgin, but concluding with a lament for the death of Ockeghem written by Josquin. It is part of a series of concerts of polyphonic music, and I found it fascinating, as, although I'm very interested in Early Music, I have concentrated more on the instrumental rather than the vocal repertory. One of the singers has to give the note before the hymn starts (like tuning in an orchestra), and the voices then weave intricately together.
After the performance I was able to talk to the performers and they explained more about how polyphony works. One of the members is a counter-tenor, because of course women didn't sing in church choirs during the Middle Ages, although it was explained to me that girls WERE taught to sing, and sang in choirs for convents.

All in all, a fascinating evening - I love Edinburgh, in spite of the weather!

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