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I’ve been writing this blog since 2009, but there still seem to be plenty of interesting topics to mull over. You can subscribe (it’s free) to follow the blog by email – each new post will pop into your inbox.
Women of older generations
By chance, two different people have spoken to me recently about their late mothers, who experienced difficulties in following their chosen career when they were young. One of those women was born in the 1920s, the other in the 1930s. One was a doctor, the other a...
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Mozart’s birthday (etc)
Today, January 27, is Mozart's birthday. 269 years since he was born! His is the only 'composer birthday' I regularly remember, I suppose because he is still my favourite composer despite stiff competition from about 25 others. I remember his birthday for its own sake...
A competition for concertos
I spent the past couple of days popping in and out of the first round of the Concerto Class held each year by the Edinburgh Music Competition Festival. The Concerto Class is strictly for amateurs; those who get to the final are given the opportunity to play their...
Recipe books
I’ve just finished reading ‘Julie and Julia’, an entertaining account of Julie Powell’s year spent cooking her way through Julia Child’s 1961 ‘Mastering the Art of French Cooking’, the book which famously opened the American public’s eyes to the art and style of...
Czech piano trios
This month the Florestan Trio's new disc is out on Hyperion Records. It's a CD of three marvellous Czech piano trios by Smetana, Martinu and Petr Eben. It was a particularly arduous disc to record because all three works - though particularly the Smetana and Martinu -...
Mandate for more of the same
Many thanks to everyone who gave me feedback after my request for same on this blog's first anniversary. In the fevered run-up to this Thursday’s UK General Election, and with political rhetoric ringing in my ears, I’m happy to announce that I have been...
A square of sponge
I played a concert this week and noticed that my page-turner, sitting beside me at the piano, was holding what looked like a generous square of fudge in her left hand. As a fudge fan myself, I didn’t find it hard to imagine why one would wish to have a square of fudge...
Haydn’s Gypsy Rondo trio
A kind person at International Piano magazine has sent me, without comment, a copy of the May/June issue. It turns out to have a survey of recordings of Haydn’s ‘Gypsy Rondo’ piano trio. ‘The Florestan Trio … displays uncommon musical intelligence while refusing to...
Happy birthday, dear website
Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday, dear website, Happy birthday to you! This blog 'went live' one year ago today. To mark the occasion, what better than a photo of the cherry blossom which has just come out in the garden? The first...
Wild Surmise Soufflé
'You're looking at me with a wild surmise!' said Bob as I came into the kitchen. I said I was trying to identify the unusual aroma coming from the oven. 'It's wild garlic', he explained. The clutch of pungent green leaves in this week's organic veg box was a challenge...
Wrong notes versus wrong words
We attended a funeral in a small church this week. As we sat waiting for the service to begin, an organist was stumbling through some well-known hymns, their outlines blurred by a haze of wrong notes. Though I tell myself to lighten up, I find I’m very impatient...
First ducklings of spring
Well, not ducklings, actually, but baby coots seen this afternoon. They were obviously extremely young, and it was difficult to photograph them because they kept zooming and darting about. Their parents kept diving down to look for food, and while they were...
Mark Morris at the Coliseum
On Saturday we attended the last night of Mark Morris Dance Group performing ‘L’Allegro, Il Penseroso ed il Moderato’ at the Coliseum. Readers will remember that Mark Morris is a hero of mine. Dance critics were in raptures about this show, but I still think that Mark...
Look, no planes
Like most other people in Britain I've been relishing the sudden quietness resulting from the closure of our airspace because of a drifting cloud of volcanic ash from Iceland. On Saturday I sat in the garden for ages, because it felt so special to be sitting under...
On the shelf (or table)
Yesterday a friend was visiting Oxford and sent me this photo of my new book on the 'welcome table' in Blackwell's bookshop. It's the one with the black cover in the centre of the picture. As I haven't yet seen any copies of the book in a store near me, I was...