Blog
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...
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...
Organic inspiration
It’s amazing what the arrival of a box of organic vegetables and farm produce can inspire. Hours after taking delivery of our box, Bob had made this superb quiche with courgettes, aubergines, leeks, olives, garlic, rosemary, crème fraiche and home-made pastry. Here it...
New website for Florestan Trio
The Florestan Trio has a new website built by the same brilliant guy who designed mine. Take a look by clicking here!
Pitch Inflation
My piano tuner asks whether I'm happy to keep my piano at the usual pitch, A=440. Yes. Why wouldn’t I be? Well, he says, some British orchestras are now asking for pianos to be tuned at A=442 Hz. Now that there’s so much musical traffic between countries, we’re under...
Updating golden oldies
Last night we watched an enjoyable BBC4 programme, ‘The Great American Songbook’. Various artists such as Paolo Nutini, Melody Gardot, Krystle Warren, Gwyneth Herbert, José James and my own personal favourite, Claire Martin gave us their own, updated versions of...
Changing attitudes to recording
At the moment I have seven or eight new pieces on the music desk of my piano. I have to learn them all by the summer. Some are works I’ve never heard played, and in such cases I find it helpful to listen to a recording before I start work. The internet has made things...
Coals to Newcastle (as it were)
An intriguing exchange in Sainsbury’s this morning. Two women were standing at the flour section frowning at a tiny bag of flour which one of them held in her hand. ‘Do you bake?’ she said to me. I nodded. ‘Could you tell me whether I’d get 24 fairy cakes out of this...
Calm before the storm
The weather has turned cold again, and on the day I took this photo in Richmond Park, we had hail, thunder and lightning in the afternoon. By now, the high winds and heavy rain have probably ripped most of the early blossoms off the bushes. So I think I was lucky to...
Tossed Salad and Scrambled Eggs
Bob and I were arguing over breakfast about the theme tune at the end of ‘Frasier’. We’re working our way through a box set and enjoying the Frasier ambience all over again. But we had rather different memories of what notes he sings to the words ‘tossed salad and...
Is your journey really necessary?
Weekends in London are becoming a nightmare of public transport challenges. Every week we’re notified of which tube lines will be closed or partially closed at the weekend. The list often seems cheekily long. The whole Victoria Line is often closed, the whole Circle...
Signs of spring
Suddenly there are signs of spring everywhere in the neighbourhood (and presumably further afield as well). I wish I knew whether these lovely blooms in our local park are camellias or rhododendrons, though at least I've got that far. 'La Dame aux Rhododendrons'...
Miaowing up the wrong tree?
Our cat remains a popular ‘search topic’ on this blog. So perhaps it’s time for an update. About 18 months ago our 14-year-old cat collapsed and lay miserably for a few days on a drip in the corner of a cage at the local animal hospital. She was diagnosed with...