...which is just out. Classic FM Magazine sent it to me to review and it knocked my socks off. Virgin Classics has sensibly made a promotional video, so here it is.
Meet the Quatuor Ebene, four adorable young French fellows (what IS it about the French?) giving their fellow countrymen Debussy, Ravel and Faure the full treatment. And, to my particular joy, according the elusive Faure quartet equal status with the other two. Chapeau!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Gramophone Awards 2008, plus some
Here's the complete list of Gramophone Award winners for 2008. There are several I'm pleased to see, but most of all Tasmin, whose Naked Violin project of course involved no record company, therefore has by nature to be independent of any industry pressure. The list I was sent does not include the labels of each disc, but these will no doubt be available on the Gramophone site as soon as they have all recovered from their hangovers.
Baroque Instrumental
Bach Brandenburg Concertos EBS/Trevor Pinnock
Baroque Vocal
Monteverdi l'Orfeo La Venexiana
Chamber
Brahms. Schumann Piano Quintets Artemis Quartet, Andsnes
Concerto
Elgar Violin Concertos etc. James Ehnes; Philharmonia/Sir Andrew Davis
Contemporary
Harvey Body Mandala BBC Scottish SO
DVD
Mozart Le Nozze di Figaro Pappano/dir. McVicar
Early Music
Nicholas Ludford Missa benedicta et venerabilis New College Choir/Higginbottom
Historic Archive
Vaughan Williams Symphony No. 5/Dona Nobis Pacern BBC Symphony Orch & Chorus/Vaughan Williams
Historic Re-issue
Sibelius Songs Kim Borg
Instrumental
Beethoven Piano Sonatas, Vol 4 Paul Lewis
Opera
Janacek The Excursions of Mr Broucek BBC SO/Belohlavek
Orchestral
Miaskovsky Complete Symphonies Evgeny Svetlanov
Recital
Maria Music inspired by Maria Malibran Cecilia Bartoli
Solo Vocal
Barber Songs Gerald Finley/Julius Drake
Lifetime Achievement
André Previn
Special Achievement
Peter Moores
Classic FM Innovation
Tasmin Little, The Naked Violin
Young Artist of the Year
Maxim Rysanov
Meanwhile over at The Times, readers were presented with a shortlist - drawn up by Gramophone reviewers - of discs deemed to be 'the greatest recordings of the last 30 years', and were asked to vote on them. The winner has been revealed as pianist Stephen Hough's adorable rendition of the complete concertos of Camille 'Twinkletoes' Saint-Saens, which is jolly nice for both Hough and CTSS, who well deserve some kind of accolade.
Stephen is that rarity among today's highest-profile pianists: an artist with both imagination and integrity, and one that I will actually cross a road to hear. The others, frankly, I can count on the fingers of one hand.
Now, I adore Stephen's playing as much as anyone and I am absolutely thrilled for him that he should be deemed 'the best of the best'. What I object to is the shortlist. The Saint-Saens is actually not the best of the best, but the best of a pretty staid and frankly boring bunch.
Hello, folks: there is, shock horror, favouritism in the music business. There is political correctness in the music business. There is a lot of incomprehensible rubbish - indeed, complete, utter nonsense - in the music business. Of course, I have favourite musicians too, but at least I know they're my favourites; I believe them to be among the greatest artists alive today, but I don't go telling Times readers that they've made the five finest recordings of the last 30 years (well, I can't; I don't review for the necessary mag.)
Personally I would rather swim back to shore from my desert island than include Harnoncourt's Beethoven in my eight discs, let alone have to sit through Karajan's Mahler. And how do you arrive at a shortlist that does not include any of the following: Krystian Zimerman's Debussy Preludes; Anne Sofie von Otter's Terezin CD; Richard Goode's complete Beethoven sonatas; Andras Schiff in the Goldberg Variations; Mitsuko Uchida's Schubert B flat Sonata; Matthias Goerne and Brendel in Winterreise; Marc-Andre Hamelin's mind-boggling Chopin/Godowsky set? And those are just a handful of pianists plus a singer or two. Discs are churned out month after month after month; everybody likes different ones; any list is simply invidious.
Music industry awards help to raise classical music's public profile, because the media likes winners and snazzy ceremonies. That is their use, and their only use.
Splash.
Baroque Instrumental
Bach Brandenburg Concertos EBS/Trevor Pinnock
Baroque Vocal
Monteverdi l'Orfeo La Venexiana
Chamber
Brahms. Schumann Piano Quintets Artemis Quartet, Andsnes
Concerto
Elgar Violin Concertos etc. James Ehnes; Philharmonia/Sir Andrew Davis
Contemporary
Harvey Body Mandala BBC Scottish SO
DVD
Mozart Le Nozze di Figaro Pappano/dir. McVicar
Early Music
Nicholas Ludford Missa benedicta et venerabilis New College Choir/Higginbottom
Historic Archive
Vaughan Williams Symphony No. 5/Dona Nobis Pacern BBC Symphony Orch & Chorus/Vaughan Williams
Historic Re-issue
Sibelius Songs Kim Borg
Instrumental
Beethoven Piano Sonatas, Vol 4 Paul Lewis
Opera
Janacek The Excursions of Mr Broucek BBC SO/Belohlavek
Orchestral
Miaskovsky Complete Symphonies Evgeny Svetlanov
Recital
Maria Music inspired by Maria Malibran Cecilia Bartoli
Solo Vocal
Barber Songs Gerald Finley/Julius Drake
Lifetime Achievement
André Previn
Special Achievement
Peter Moores
Classic FM Innovation
Tasmin Little, The Naked Violin
Young Artist of the Year
Maxim Rysanov
Meanwhile over at The Times, readers were presented with a shortlist - drawn up by Gramophone reviewers - of discs deemed to be 'the greatest recordings of the last 30 years', and were asked to vote on them. The winner has been revealed as pianist Stephen Hough's adorable rendition of the complete concertos of Camille 'Twinkletoes' Saint-Saens, which is jolly nice for both Hough and CTSS, who well deserve some kind of accolade.
Stephen is that rarity among today's highest-profile pianists: an artist with both imagination and integrity, and one that I will actually cross a road to hear. The others, frankly, I can count on the fingers of one hand.
Now, I adore Stephen's playing as much as anyone and I am absolutely thrilled for him that he should be deemed 'the best of the best'. What I object to is the shortlist. The Saint-Saens is actually not the best of the best, but the best of a pretty staid and frankly boring bunch.
Hello, folks: there is, shock horror, favouritism in the music business. There is political correctness in the music business. There is a lot of incomprehensible rubbish - indeed, complete, utter nonsense - in the music business. Of course, I have favourite musicians too, but at least I know they're my favourites; I believe them to be among the greatest artists alive today, but I don't go telling Times readers that they've made the five finest recordings of the last 30 years (well, I can't; I don't review for the necessary mag.)
Personally I would rather swim back to shore from my desert island than include Harnoncourt's Beethoven in my eight discs, let alone have to sit through Karajan's Mahler. And how do you arrive at a shortlist that does not include any of the following: Krystian Zimerman's Debussy Preludes; Anne Sofie von Otter's Terezin CD; Richard Goode's complete Beethoven sonatas; Andras Schiff in the Goldberg Variations; Mitsuko Uchida's Schubert B flat Sonata; Matthias Goerne and Brendel in Winterreise; Marc-Andre Hamelin's mind-boggling Chopin/Godowsky set? And those are just a handful of pianists plus a singer or two. Discs are churned out month after month after month; everybody likes different ones; any list is simply invidious.
Music industry awards help to raise classical music's public profile, because the media likes winners and snazzy ceremonies. That is their use, and their only use.
Splash.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
New season ahoy
Barely are the Proms over when the big UK orchestras start their new seasons, and it seems more important than ever to set off with something of a bang. Few pieces are more 'bangy' than The Rite of Spring, and if you head for the Royal Festival Hall tonight, that's what you will hear from the LPO and Vladimir Jurowski. Popular stuff now, unlike 1913, but the rest of the programme is jolly intriguing. Ligeti Atmospheres; the premiere of a new violin concerto 'Mambo, Blues and Tarantella' by Mark-Anthony Turnage with Christian 'golden boy' Tetzlaff as soloist; and Symphony no.8 by Vaughan Williams (I'm promised it is short).
On Friday next week the BBC Symphony Orchestra launches at the Barbican with the Beethoven Missa Solemnis conducted by Belohlavek. The LSO has started already - they had a Rachmaninov festival over the weekend, which passed me by - and tonight at the same spot they do Mozart, Elgar and, er, more Vaughan Williams, with Sir Colin Davis. The Philharmonia is now on tour in the 'provinces' and can be heard tonight in Leicester with the splendidly hirsute Leif Segerstam wielding the baton, but in London they set off with a very big bang last night: a gala concert with Esa-Pekka Salonen and more Stravinsky, this time Oedipus Rex.
So Stravinsky and Vaughan Williams emerge as flavours of the month, which is an interesting combination since Stravinsky could probably have eaten Vaughan Williams for breakfast, given half a chance.
I am delighted to say that tonight in the RFH foyer the South Bank will be selling signed hardback copies of my novel Rites of Spring, to match said Stravinsky, in aid of the LPO Benevolent Fund.
On Friday next week the BBC Symphony Orchestra launches at the Barbican with the Beethoven Missa Solemnis conducted by Belohlavek. The LSO has started already - they had a Rachmaninov festival over the weekend, which passed me by - and tonight at the same spot they do Mozart, Elgar and, er, more Vaughan Williams, with Sir Colin Davis. The Philharmonia is now on tour in the 'provinces' and can be heard tonight in Leicester with the splendidly hirsute Leif Segerstam wielding the baton, but in London they set off with a very big bang last night: a gala concert with Esa-Pekka Salonen and more Stravinsky, this time Oedipus Rex.
So Stravinsky and Vaughan Williams emerge as flavours of the month, which is an interesting combination since Stravinsky could probably have eaten Vaughan Williams for breakfast, given half a chance.
I am delighted to say that tonight in the RFH foyer the South Bank will be selling signed hardback copies of my novel Rites of Spring, to match said Stravinsky, in aid of the LPO Benevolent Fund.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Hava nawarda
A press release in the in-box today brought us this photo of a truly great pianist being given a prize by a truly great violinist. At the Jewish Cultural Awards, held in central London yesterday in aid of the London Jewish Cultural Centre, Murray Perahia (left) was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award by Maxim Vengerov.
Now all we need is a) for Murray to make his more-than-welcome return to the piano permanent and healthy, as represented to huge acclaim at the Proms the other week; and b) for someone to please, please, please wave a magic wand and make Maxim play his violin again? Of course, after a quarter-century at the grindstone after which he's only an early-thirtysomething, he deserves a bit of a break. But we fiddle fanatics miss him badly.
At the same ceremony, I'm delighted to say that the Music Award went to Anne Sofie von Otter for her Terezin CD, which is still top of the list of my Greatest Ever Recordings.
I am also pleased to see Vengerov credited with the following excellent statement: "Being here tonight is so important to me because the work of the London Jewish Cultural Centre is really indispensible, binding Jewish people together regardless of their religious or political bias...and tonight is a celebration of what can be achieved and what there is still to strive for, in keeping Jewish culture alive in a modern changing multicultural society." Now, will you please pick up that Strad and play the damn thing?
(photo credit: Ed Robinson)
Friday, September 19, 2008
Want to write? Come to my workshop
I'm holding a one-day workshop called KICK-START YOUR WRITING! on Saturday 1 November, 10.30am – 5pm, in London SW14.
"I've always wanted to write, but..." There’s always something to stop you from writing: time, space, or simply not knowing where to start.
Is this you? If so, this special workshop could be just what you need: a one-day course to help give you the spurt of energy you need to set off on your adventures in creative writing – which can be one of the most rewarding pursuits in the world, regardless of your age, level or experience.
Within a small group setting, we will explore ways into writing through discussions, exercises and some practical pointers to help release those blocks and start to plan your story. Places are strictly limited, so book early!
The price is £60.00 per person and includes lunch, coffee, tea and a glass of wine.
For further details and booking, please email me
"I've always wanted to write, but..." There’s always something to stop you from writing: time, space, or simply not knowing where to start.
Is this you? If so, this special workshop could be just what you need: a one-day course to help give you the spurt of energy you need to set off on your adventures in creative writing – which can be one of the most rewarding pursuits in the world, regardless of your age, level or experience.
Within a small group setting, we will explore ways into writing through discussions, exercises and some practical pointers to help release those blocks and start to plan your story. Places are strictly limited, so book early!
The price is £60.00 per person and includes lunch, coffee, tea and a glass of wine.
For further details and booking, please email me
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