I alo didn't get picked to go to Poland with the choir, so all in all last week was one disappointment after another. However, on Tuesday this week I did get a free trip to London, courtesy of the BBC - a Radio 4 producer is making a 15-minute programme which (unless I've misunderstood) will be more or less entirely about me! It's not due to go out till September - I'll let you know when I know the date.
It was a really long day - I left my house at 6am and got home at midnight. But it was really nice, especially as one of the interviews consisted of a recorded informal chat over a lovely lunch (at the expense of the BBC, naturally) with one of my best friends from school, Anna Crookes (nee Markland). It's a few years since I last saw her, so we had a great chat, most of which probably won't make it onto the radio!
The interviews were over sooner than I'd expected, so I had a couple of hours free before meeting another of my best friends for a meal after he finished work. I had a bit of a wander through the West End (I was a student in London, about a million years ago, so I know it well enough to find my way round the centre without referring to maps) and ended up sitting by the river outside the Festival Hall reading for a while. This was very peaceful and relaxing, until a very irritating band started playing nearby.
I think they would have liked to have been a mariachi band, but in fact it was just two trumpets and an accordion, and they played the same songs REPEATEDLY for ages, without apparently breathing at any stage. This was quite impressive, but it would have been more impressive if the trumpets had played in unison (or even harmony) rather than *almost* in unison... and if they'd known any of the tunes accurately. They weren't improvising - every time they repeated each song, the tune was slightly incorrect in exactly the same way. It wouldn't have bothered me if I didn't know the tunes, but I did, so it drove me up the wall!
(They played Fernando nonstop for at least ten minutes, before segueing into Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps for another five minutes, and then alternating between the two songs for even longer. Then they stopped, and I thought that was it, but they just moved to a different position on the Golden Jubilee Bridge and started again, this time with Tequila and Tico Tico. And then they moved a third time and spent a while on Autumn Leaves. The fact that I can still remember all the songs two days later, and that I doubt I'll ever hear any of those songs again without being reminded of that afternoon, should tell you how many times they repeated them in the hour and a half I sat nearby!)
Despite the band, though, it was a lovely day, although I'm still exhausted as a result. This wasn't helped by having an intense choir rehearsal last night instead of collapsing into bed for an early night, but hopefully I can do that tonight - and choir was fabulous! We got lots done, but also there was lots of amusement, particularly at Gill's question about how to pronounce the word "chucked" (you had to be there!)
It was the last one before the Week of Choral Madness (tm) which is next week (for those not in the choir, I should explain that we will have long rehearsals and concerts and recording sessions every evening from Tuesday to Friday, plus all day Saturday
Anyway, this is already longer than I'd intended, so I'll stop in a minute - I do have several links to share with you as usual, though! But first... Did you watch Last Choir Standing? What did you think? I couldn't resist in the end, and it wasn't QUITE as annoying as I thought it would be! One of the things I hate most about these talent shows is the fact that they never seem to show very much of the actual performances, preferring to spend most of the programme interviewing the performers and judges. I really can't understand the logic behind this - is this really what the general public want to see? I can only assume so, since it keeps happening (I never usually watch any of the shows if I can help it, but occasionally I've been round at someone's house and they've insisted on watching it). This year's Young Musician was a major disappointment for this very reason - when I saw that it had gone down the same road as things like The X Factor, I was really quite upset.
Anyway, Last Choir Standing did show more of the performances than Young Musician did, although I still don't think they showed any song from beginning to end. Lots of the performances were really good - some were less good. (If you want to see a few without having to put up with the other stuff, some of them are on the website.) The judges weren't too annoying - even Russell Watson! - and in most cases I found myself agreeing with them. I've surprised myself by realising that I actually want to watch more of the series. I'll be interested to see how it all progresses, and whether or not they show more of the actual singing as the competition progresses. I hope so, because some of it is great. But just in case, I think I'll continue to watch via Sky+ so that I can fast forward through the annoying backstage bits!
(If you missed episode 1 and would like to see it, you have 2 days left to watch it via the BBC iPlayer. Episode 2 is this Saturday.)
Anyway, links!
From the Lifehack blog: 8 good reasons to be a lousy musician.
From the BBC Music Magazine: Sistema Scotland plays its first chords.
I noticed this the other day... I suspect it might be a mistake (i.e. the list of performers) but I rather hope not - I'd love to sing Live and Let Die in a choral arrangement! In fact, I might do one and try to sell it :-)
From the Manchester Evening News, I found out about the Carpet of Flowers event which will be in Albert Square next week.
From the Guardian: Community singing doesn't need bureaucracy.
From A Cappella News: The Psychology of Karaoke Explained.
From the Guardian: Operatic dentist lands £1m recording contract.
I'd totally forgotten that the Tall Ships are in Liverpool from 18th July!
My current favourite lolcat is Next Add Tuna :-)
From Slashdot: your computer as your singing coach.
The longest concert in the world has been going on for nearly seven years now, so you've probably heard about it before. But it's in the news again because there was a chord change! Kind of like the intro to Shine On You Crazy Diamond but stretched a bit. (If you've not heard that song, it starts with a G minor chord that's held for several minutes. The moment when the chord changes to D minor is one of my favourite musical moments.)
From Jason Heath's Double Bass Blog: Bury The Violas!
And finally, was anyone else really disappointed with the Glastonbury TV coverage? I know the BBC couldn't possibly have shown everything that was on, but they could have shown so much more than they did! Why was Amy Winehouse's set shown so many times? It was rubbish! Buddy Guy was on at the same time and from all accounts he was amazing. (That link is to a video of his performance - so we know the BBC did film him! I haven't had time to watch all of his set yet, but I will.) I can understand, I suppose, why they would show Amy Winehouse instead of Buddy Guy when they were both live at the same time, but surely they could have shown a BIT of him rather than repeating her one of the times? I was just as annoyed that they didn't show anything of Leonard Cohen, but I've just discovered that he asked not to be recorded, so I suppose I'll have to forgive them. But I would also love to have seen Franz Ferdinand's surprise performance, which again is on the BBC site so was clearly filmed - I wonder why they didn't show it? I liked Jay-Z a lot more than I'd expected to, but again, why couldn't they have missed out just ONE of the repeats of his set to show Franz Ferdinand?
The Proms start next Friday, so no doubt I'll have similar things to rant about then. For now, I need to sleep :-)
4 comments:
Not Sunday as well!! We will be dead after the Wrap party on the Saturday! I agree about the sound . I thought last night was great to help iron out problem notes. Won't it be amazing if everyone remembers what we did for Tues!?
You know, you're right! Wonder why I got it into my head that it was Sunday too?
Sorry to hear about the job - there's one out there for you somewhere!
Thank you Barbara - sadly all the employers in Manchester seem to disagree with you!
The producer who interviewed me on Tuesday is convinced I will get a job as a result of his programme - but unfortunately it's not being broadcast until September...
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