March Music

 On 17th we had a double header, beginning with Music Matinee at Scots Church featuring a pianist playing 4 pieces (calling them 'tunes' seems disrespectful).  Details, including notes provided by the performer, are at  https://www.musicmatinee.org/mar-17.  

It was very enjoyable especially the 3rd and 4th movement of the Chopin.  I wondered about the comment by Anton Rubinstein who is said to have remarked that the fourth movement is the “wind howling around the gravestones”.  That was actually very accurate!

In the evening we went to an open rehearsal in Hamer Hall by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, preparing for concerts on the 19th and 20th. The notes commented that the conductor, Benjamin Northey, would decide which music was performed, and how!

I expected this would be the Rite of Spring, but instead it was the Joe Chindamo work. A bonus was that Joe was sitting in the stalls( the rabble - about 300 of us - were in the circle. It was an excellent event with about 1/2 of the time being actually playing the music, 1/4 discussing how the conductor wanted it played (a pause at one point to bring in a discreet microphone to bring the singer "into the house") and 1/4 a conversation with Joe Chindamo about his intentions with the work. (He had been involved in the discussion/performance phase, explaining what he had in mind when composing.)

A very good event, and at $20 a seat, very good value.

Our 3rd musical event was to a double opera performance by Fine Arts and Music at Melbourne Uni, held in the Grant Street Theatre.  I will note that I was a tad grumpy as a result of it raining as we walked from the tram; got a trifle more grumpy that they had no signs from Grant to the door (which was obscure); and got even more grumpy (so that is grumpy-cubed) by having to hang around is a waiting area for unknown reasons.

The first opera was Mahagonny Songspiel by Brecht and Weill, whose work I usually like.   In particular we really enjoyed a performance in 5th Ave NYC by an Austrian cabaret singer: a retrained clever and funny performance.  To understand my dislike of this performance, I compare it with one by the fadista Mariza in Carnegie Hall - a musical style at home in dodgy bars in Lisbon, not a huge hall seating 2,800 punters.  This was the opposite: a small venue but the performers blasted out as though they were in Hamer Hall.  Far too loud and aggressive.  As far as I could work out a couple of women went to a bar, got wrecked and hung out with 4 travelling salesmen.

We then had a 20 minute interval where we had to go out to the waiting area while a tiny amount of scenery was added to the performance area.

The second Opera was Suor Angelica by Puccini.  (Reflecting back to the MSO rehearsal, at one point Northey likened the work to Alban Berg which I think he meant as a compliment.  Joe Chindamo's face fell, commenting "I was trying for Puccini.")  This was much better than the first effort although I could not  help but compare the lead singer - a young woman carrying quite a bit of condition - with Agnes Nitt from Terry Prachett's Discworld series.  She did indeed have nice hair and could sing well (although not duets with herself) but she was indeed carrying quite a bit of condition.  No idea what all this was about and having just read a synopsis would have to say I think that either my memory is a tad shot or the director of this took a few liberties with the 1918 libretto - which is not in itself a biggie.