I’ve just come home after the “Motets and Cantatas” concert by the Oahu Choral Society Chamber Choir, and I must say that I heard some fantastic singing tonight. Tonight was the Chamber Choir’s debut, consisting of only 22 singers out of the larger OCS ensemble. The tone of the choir was light and agile, the… Read More A weekend of incredible singing
It is Day Three at the Three Choirs Festival in Gloucester and the music today was so incredibly beautiful and musically so perfect that I felt that I had died and gone to heaven! The first concert we attended was by Stile Antico, a 12-voice a capella vocal ensemble based in London whose voices were… Read More Died and gone to heaven!
Since we had not booked any concerts at the Three Choirs Festival today, we took a day trip to the city of Bath. After yesterday’s opening service there have been six scheduled concerts plus a lecture, so I know we have missed out but sometimes you have got to give yourself a break! I… Read More Bath Abbey
Today marked the opening service of the 289th Three Choirs Festival, and I could not help but think the Brits do it best—the pomp, the pageantry and the sheer grandeur of it all. In many ways it was like the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, with the entrance procession lasting 20 minutes! As we… Read More Who can match the Brits?
“I hate this piece!” That’s what one of my organ students told me at her lesson yesterday, not just once, but several times.”I hate this piece! It’s just so hard!” Yes, this is a difficult piece for an organist to play, but one of those “must learn, must do” pieces for organists, since so many… Read More “Hallelujah” Chorus
Today Vreni Griffith and I spent the day addressing the postcards for Carl Crosier’s Memorial Concert on November 1st — and for the fourth day in a row I didn’t read the morning paper until after dinner! In fact, as I write this post, it’s after 10:00 pm and I still haven’t gotten to today’s… Read More By the numbers
“No, no, NO!” When I woke up this morning, the first day of my “retirement,” I opened my eyes and looked at the clock. It read “3:51” (a.m.) I always thought retired people could throw away their alarm clocks — and I actually haven’t turned on my alarm clock since I came back from vacation… Read More Retired . . . NOT!
Last night’s performance of Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610 capped off a spectacular day and was for me the perfect end of the Boston Early Music Festival. (The Festival does not end until Sunday but it is the end for me because I am traveling to Germany today.) There were just 10 singers (of which there were only 3 women and… Read More Spectacular Vespers!
One if by land, two if by sea was the phrase coined by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in his famous poem about the American revolutionaries. It described the signal Paul Revere was to give to indicate the means by which the British were coming. One lantern hanging in the Old North Church meant they were… Read More One if by land, two if by sea
Shivers of delight ran up and down my spine yesterday as I was listening to the concert by former student, Joey Fala, at St. Andrew’s Cathedral. I was in amazement at his musical maturity, and the ease with which he played extremely difficult passages — the music just oozed out! Here was Joey’s bio in… Read More Beautiful concert, beautiful playing