My Occasional Thought For The Day

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Andrew R's last day. He has resigned and is moving to England. So there was a soiree at the local tavern in Saint Leonards. But I felt ill after a long day. No doubt I was poor company.

[3rd June 2006: Very early, I lay down at home, fell asleep & slept for eleven hours.]

Late this afternoon the radio drifted sightly off the 2MBS-FM signal. F. Berwald's "Concert Piece" with Bassoon solo was playing. The Bassoon's deep dry resonance was distorting!

So I put on the CD of Danzi "Bassoon Quartets Opus 40" recorded by Island. Budgies' delight!

"Mozart In The City" Series

"Mozart and Company"

The Sydney Symphony Orchestra [SSO],
in Chamber Mode.

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

7.00pm, at the City Recital Hall, Angel Place.

Director: Dene Olding.

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Joseph Haydn: Symphony Number 8 in G, Le Soir.

This Haydn Symphony would seem unusually mature for his Number 8, but I read in the programme that chronologically, it should actually be Number 22!

The Orchestra used tonight, I imagine, mirrored the original Esterházy Orchestra for which it was scored. There were 3 each of 1st Violins, 2nd Violins, Violas & Cellos; 2 double Basses; 2 Oboes; 1 Flute; 1 Bassoon; 1 Harpsicord. The arrangement tonight was, in an arc from the audiences' left: 1st Violins; Cellos; Violas; 2nd Violins. The Double Basses where behind the Cellos. The Harpsicord was behind on the other side, with its long narrow end separating the Violas & 2nd Violins. The Wind was on a platform at the rear, parallel to the audience; from left: Flute, Oboes, Bassoon.

The Orchestra played very well; with full emotion! The music deserved, and in fact, demanded it! Allegro Motto - an opening fast movement, with lots of energy, and all instruments involved. Andante - walking pace, relaxed, with only the Strings and Harpsicord. Menuetto - a real gem, in three parts. The first and last used essentially the full Orchestra. The middle used just the leader of each of the String sections: that is of the 1st & 2nd Violins; Violos; Cellos; Double Basses. They played in great sympathy, with each intrument taking its turn as soloist, including the Double Bass. Masterly! La Tempesta (Presto) - The full Orchestraonce more, clearly needed to whip up the required storm, which they did indeed. The scoring here had a clever touch, in that the Wind would stop & the Strings tone down, so that suddenly the Harpsicord, which had been playing the whole time, but hardly heard & only adding depth to the whole, came through very clearly, for a few bars, over the top of the rest of the Orchestra, as if it were a Soloist.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:
Symphony Number 31 in D, K297, Paris.

The Paris I have heard many times. It is very good & was very well played.

The Orchestra here was filled out to full Chamber Mode. The strings were complete, but were in the essential same pattern in the arc. The Wind and Brass needed two rows, with, from the left, pairs of Horns, Clarinets, Bassoons & Trumpets at the rear, and Flutes & Oboes in front. The Harpsicord was replaced by Timpani.

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Interval

I went for a walk down to Martin Place and back, to clear my head and ease my leg soreness. I had been tending to fall asleep, I was so tired; with the exception that my hearing was fully alert and I missed not a note. Strange what we creatures are capable of!

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Franz Schubert: String Quartet in D Minor, D810,
Death And The Maiden

Arranged for String Orchestra by Gustav Mahler.

All Wind, Brass & Percussion were gone, with just the full strings left. But the arrangement had altered, with the 2nd Violins next to the first, then the Violas, and the Cellos opposed to the 1st Violins.

My problems with Mahler's adaption of Schubert's brilliant work, I have never shied away from. The Orchestra played with enormous energy, with the fast Movements played at a quicker than usual pace. The audience reaction was enthusiastic, which was proportionate with what they had heard, and it was the best I have heard the Mahler version played. But!! It still leaves the shortcomings of the Maher adaption!! He does not quite understand what the work is all about. He makes it far too smoothe, far too little varied in pace; too tame & bourgeoise!! And no amount of brilliance by the Orchestra can overcome this inherent weakness.

My nodding off got much worse. I hit my head on the board behind the back of my seat at least ten times! Yet the hearing part of my mind was still fully cogent! Again, I missed not a note!!

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~12.00pm. - As I walked past Finks Restaurant at 61A Bay Road in Waverton, a Terrier, completely without warning, rose up on its hindlegs and made as if it were to bite me on my left knee. Immediately & instinctively I turned towards it, looked directly into its eyes and said to it in a calm voice:"That isn't very nice." It barked a few times and then went and sat under its master's chair.

2.00 to 2.05pm. At the dead end of Ross Street, there was a sudden high pitched chorus of unseen Leaden Flycatchers; both beautiful and rather piercing! This was quickly followed by a raucous and highly visible mob of Noisy Miners, in an enthusiastic but unconvincing imitation.

Then the latter erupted in a louder and unprovoked racket. I looked and saw that a solitary Rainbow Lorrikeet was feeding on a flower on one of their trees. The intruder soon decided to depart. The Noisy Miners responded not by their usual pursuit, but rather by flying across the road to some other of their flowering plants and drinking all the nectar they could.

This was soon forgotten, and the intial call and response came again twice. The whole scene took only five minutes, according to my watch.

~2.10pm - On top of the rock cliff at the end of Larkin Street, there were two Wading Birds strolling along the exposed stone surface.

~2.20pm - In a private driveway in the eastern end of Balls Head Road, there were three Top Knot Pigeons [or Crested Pigeons] feeding on something on the pavement underneath a tree. Seeds would seem the most likely.

On 2MBS-FM tonight they played a full recording of Antonio Salieri's opera "Falstaff". This is musically an excellent opera. How good the Libretto? Cannot say. I speak no Italian.

At various points of time today, when I was free to think, I thought about one of my correspondence chess games. The question was: should I follow a certain old line? In the end I decided it was the best course. Strictly speaking, I was not actually analysing it, as I had no images of the board in my mind, and did not consciously consider any particular moves or lines of moves. Rather, I had a non-visual "idea" of the position, which I looked at spacially, albeit an abstract space, without form.

That is the way it felt. I suspect that the spacial analysis was occurring at a subconscious level, which could not be translated in any precise sense to my conscious mind, as it would not understand it. Instead, my conscious had to be content with merely an end result.

Well, at 1.15pm, I discovered that, in a garden in Whatmore Street, there are two Psilotum plants growing in soil. This ancient plant is common in Sydney, but almost always grows in rock crevices. Looking at them, I realised that what I have in that pot at home is Psilotum! But it may not survive its accidental abuse.

1.50pm - I am sure it was a Leaden Flycatcher. The call was right, and what I could see of its quicksilver form confirmed this. I first saw it on the ground under a bush, pattering about and clearly seeking something. The earth there is soft & powdery. It was not feeding, as they only feed on the wing. Then it quickly flew across the path and into thick bushes. I surmise that it was a male collecting soil to make its nest, which is of mud, bowl shaped and on a knob in a cave, or surrogate cave. Beyond those bushes is a cliff face, and besides overhangs, they may well be artificial caves in various concrete drain type stuctures.

2.40pm - I was sitting on a seat near the Waverton sign, on that Railway Station's northbound platform. All asudden was a loud & shrill, yet still beautiful chorus of bell sounds from many Leaden Flycatchers. This was followed, after a brief hesitation, by ironic echoes from two Noisy Miners.

I decided to use two otherwise unused chairs, from my storeroom, for raising the pots on my eastern balcony, so that the plants could get more sun. The balconies are small with high solid walls, and in midwinter the sunlight gets cut off by high buidings. The sun's path will move about the sky! This was going well, so I decided to also cut out the Casuarina, which had planted itself some years ago, and then this year, had mysteriously died. I put the secateurs on to the base of the tree, while I held the flimsy trunk for purchase. In doing so, I discovered that while the branches and needles were dead, the trunk was sporting dozens of little green shoots. So I aborted the cut. Hopefully I no more than grazed it on that side where the blade had purchase. I did, however, trim off the apex and the branches. Later looking at it, I discerned that the pattern on the trunk is a full covering of branch bases, each of which has a very small bud in waiting. Or now, in many cases, no longer in waiting!

No Concerts this weekend for me. Sad! Yet I did struggle all day with mixed results. It took a third attempt before I managed to download Netscape 7.2 browser, and it will not work. I need a browser which does not entangle with Explorer.exe all the time, bringing the Old PC to a frozen condition!

On the other hand, my chess games went alright. Three 2006 Games, four 2005 Games, plus my sole overseas CIF Game have been posted. That is everything on hand, and I felt I had achieved the best moves possible. There was some success in getting things in order, plus some quality time with the Four Budgies of the Apocalypse. Yet I feel dissatisfied.

The fat liquification in my left shoulder is making me very tired. Still tonight, I felt the need to attack some chess games, but only three 2006 Games were posted. And that little took such an deadening effect on my enthusiasm.

I have also been making steady progress on Burton Mack's book about the Q. This important short book had to be painfully extracted from Matthew and Luke, who had both used in, but in different ways.

The weather continues much the same. Sydneysiders are overwhelmingly complaining about how cold it is. It is hardly that by any real standards.

Today and yesterday, it was wonderful weather in Waverton: Threatening of storms, with chill air and moderate winds, but nothing too brisk and no rain. It was picturesque, for all the senses! A Tuesday which was somewhat colder & windier than the preceding Monday, so while yesterday was just a shirt & moleskins, today I also had my castro jacket on.

Inside, tonight, it was an evening of chess games & reviving my Old PC from purgatory!

Finally I felt forced to completely restore to original, my old PC. It simply hardly functioned at all on the internet. So I carefuly saved to thumb-drive the essentials. Then the restore disk! So it now works better, except I still need to upgrade Explorer from 4.0 to 5.0, and update security from Microsoft.

Doctor Who..

Doctor Who - Tom Baker Era - "The Leisure Hive"

Continued from 14th May 2006.

Doctor Who

The Story - Part 2:

The Doctor & Romana continue on Argolis. The Doctor survives being dismembered in the Argolan Generator [refer part One]. That was a tachyon image, which the Doctor used his Sonic Screwdriver to help create. They are arrested, their cover being blown by the arrival of the real Hardin [an Earth Scientist], whom the Doctor was impersonating. But they are allowed to help with lab experiments on time. Stimson, an Earthling associate of Hardin, is murdered by a myterious green handed intruder. At the end, a malfunction in the Algolan generator ages the Doctor very much. I like the beard!

Doctor Who

The Commentary:

Lalla Ward, who played the Fourth Doctor's companion, Romana, following her regeneration at the end of the Key To Time season.

Christopher Bidmead, who was Script Editor.

Lovett Bickford, who directed this story.

Doctor Who

Part Two

There was a discussion about how the new Producer, Jonathan Nathan-Turner, in his first Doctor Who story, moved the programme away from young children and more towards teenagers.

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Then the following discussion ensued, after about three minutes into the episode, which I find very interesting. It is important, as it hits on a major shift that occurred under the controversial control of Jonathan Nathan-Turner. It is well argued by the two main protagonists. I am most impressed with Lalla Ward, and I agree with her implied point: you can have the science without losing the fun.

... ... ... ...

Lalla Ward: "Ah! The Sonic Screwdriver. I've still got my Sonic Screwdriver, you know. It's a baby version of that."

Christopher Bidmead: "We got rid of that too."

Lalla Ward: "You got rid of all the fun of it! You got rid of K-9. You got rid of the Sonic Screwdriver. God!"

Christopher Bidmead: "We got rid of magical things that somehow stepped in and solved problems, because we had the Doctor to solve them."

Lovett Bickford: "Was that John's plan?"

Christopher Bidmead: "No! It was me and Barry. That premise."

Lovett Bickford: "Barry Letts?"

Christopher Bidmead: "Yes. It was about science and solving things with science."

Lovett Bickford: "Yes, I think that was a good thing. I agree with that."

Christopher Bidmead: " 'Cause you can't have a story if you've got a gizmo that just fixes things."

Lalla Ward: "You've got a gizmo in the Tardis, just landing places. The thing is riddled with gizmos!"

Christopher Bidmead: "But the whole trick about the Tardis is it doesn't work properly."

Lalla Ward: "Neither did the Sonic Screwdriver!"

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Later, Lovett Bickford & Christopher Bidmead are wondering why the characters run out of a room at a certain moment. One may think that the Script Editor & Director would between them know, but this is three decades on!:

Lalla Ward: "Its the questions that actors don't ask. If it says run out, you run out."

I twice played the CD which Vanessa M, out of the blue, lent me: Yanni "In The Mirror". It is pleasant background, but like Brian Eno "Music For Airports - Ambient Four", my mind finds it impossible to concentrate on it. Like, one tries, but it just slips away, refusing to co-operate. With the latter this is intentional. It may well be with the former.

This morning I watched one of the extras on the Calendar Girls DVD, which I borrowed from KIngs Cross Library: "The Naked Truth". This is the story of the real Nettlewell Women's Institute, on which the movie is based. It is clear that the plot is fictional, based on reality. Drama needs conflict, which had to be added, as there is precious little in Nettlewell.

Master Series - "Brahm's Noble Piano Concerto"

The Sydney Symphony Orchestra [SSO].

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

8.00pm, at the Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House.

Conductor: Gianluigi Gelmetti.

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Johannes Brahms: Piano Concerto Number 2 in B Flat, Opus 83.

Soloist: Gerhard Oppitz.

Oppitz played very well, and the audience called him back three times, but no éncore. It was typical Brahms & interesting, as the Piano was not a virtuoso solo, but rather designed to fit well within the Concerto. So it required good playing, yet this would not be showy. I would think that young aspiring Pianists would not relish it. By performing it well, one is drawing credit on the entire Orchestra, rather than on oneself.

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Interval

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Edgard Varèse: Arcana.

Varèse used lots of Percussion & Brass in a 120 strong Orchestra. The musicians were crowded in on top of each other almost. When, towards the end of interval, I saw plastic shields being installed to protect the Wind Players' ears from the Brass & Percussion, I understood that it would be loud. Early on, the Brass was both rather shrill & penetrating, which was a bit painful on my ears. This is the downside of seat D33, front row. But soon they settled somewhat for a lower volume. Then I was able to listen; shortly discovering an unmistakable resemblance to certain King Crimson music; in particular the "Red" album.

This got me quite excited! I had picked many of the Classical tradition composers who had influenced Robert Fripp [who is in large part, King Crimson!] but the strong influence of Varèse escaped me, for the simple reason that I had never heard of him. "Arcana" debuted in 1927. So cleary predates Fripp, who was born rather later than that date!

The applause was solidly there, but whether many actually liked this somewhat overloud composition is another question.

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Maurice Ravel: La Valse - Poème Chorégraphique.

Ravel's piece was also loud, using a similarly large Orchestra. And I have to admit to liking this composition, even if it is by Ravel. This brilliant Waltz is at the once: both sincere & insincere; both homage & parody. It is a composition by a very angry man! It signified a world which was long lost when he composed it; yet a world he still found dear. And how could he not be angry, as the very people who nurtured it, also sowed the seeds of its destruction?

My ears were rather sore after this two work assault on their delicate membranes! Ah well! It is not every night, so they will recover!

.. ... ... ... ... ... ...

P.S. The First and Second Violins were opposed. The Cellos were next in the curve to the former, with the Violas next to the latter. The Double Basses were behind the First Violins. The Harp was behind the Violas.

After work this afternoon, I visited a specialist: a follow-up on my lypoma [I know not how to spell this!] It is an isolated lump of fatty tissue. This is on my left shoulder blade, and the problem was that it was pinching a nerve and causing me to lose full control of my left arm. On the first injections in April, with a fluid which dissolves fat, it had soon begun to shrink. It is now much smaller: a baby lypoma, the Doctor said.

As I no longer have trouble with my arm, I was reluctant to have more injections, as they had floored me for several days last time. But a second Doctor, who came in to observe, said that a lypoma is the equivalent of cancer for fatty tissue, and unless it was completely destroyed it may well grow back. Added to this was my unmentioned suspicion that it had just begun to!

It took only four needles, rather than the earlier eleven. The early stinging was similar; but this evening the swelling and pain was much the lesser.

On me, I had insufficient money to pay the bill. Again! So I had to leave Neutral Bay, returning later to reduce my debt to nil. Afterwards, as I had once lived in this area, I just wandered about; visited Woolworths twice; noted changes in shop-owners & such. Eventually in the darkness, I took a bus down the ridge slope to the Hayes Street Wharf. Shortly later I was sitting indoors, on the top deck of a Neutral Bay Ferry. Kurraba Road Wharf. Kirribili Wharf. Rolling, pitching & yawing is very pleasant on the subtle wave tops of Sydney's protected Inner Harbour. Then we turned, bee-lined for Circular Quay, with Fort Denison to our left, Admiralty House on our right. In front, across the Sydney Cove, the buildings behind the Quay, still well lit internally, grew persistently bigger in a very relaxing way.

Today my tooth was fixed. The filling had disappeared, and then on last saturday, the remaining high edge, which was on the inside edge of my mouth, was chipped. This, by antiserendipity, left a very sharp edge. It frequently cut into the left side of my tongue, which was like having a steak knife cut across my tongue over a hundred times a day. I developed a disinclination to talk. But my dentist ground down the sharp edge and filled the tooth. All was over very quickly. The result made me very happy.

12.20pm - The scene is across the road from 10 McKye Street in Waverton, more or less in front of the Cherry Tree. - There were a dozen of these large black flying ants, walking on the concrete kerb and the verge grass behind. They were obviously young Queens. They tested the ground surface with their antennae, as they searched for a place to dig a borrow & lay eggs. But their method seemed inefficient. I only watched them for two or three minutes, but I saw at least two retracing ground they had already checked & abandoned, having found it wanting.

Doctor Who..

Doctor Who - Tom Baker Era - "The Leisure Hive"

And especially "The First Five Minutes"

Doctor Who

The Story - Part 1:

The first five or so minutes are the most imaginative opening of a Doctor Who story: on Brighton Beach, in winter, having missed the opening of the Pavillion by many years. Across the shingle go Romana & K-9, while the Doctor snoozes in a deck chair. Romana throws the beach ball away in a huff. K-9 chases it in to the water, and fuses rather nastily!

So they go to somewhere more pleasant for a holiday: the Leisure Hive on Argolis. But there is teachery in paradise.

Doctor Who

The Commentary:

Lalla Ward, who played the Fourth Doctor's companion, Romana, following her regeneration at the end of the Key To Time season.

Christopher Bidmead, who was Script Editor.

Lovett Bickford, who directed this story.

Doctor Who

Part One

Christopher Bidmead: "I love that opening shot".

Lovett Bickford: "Look at that!"

Christopher Bidmead: "It's beau ... Its a very long lens".

Lovett Bickford: "Ya."

Christopher Bidmead: "And then you begin this pan. And it goes on ... For how long? A minute and a half?"

Lovett Bickford: "Something like a minute and a half. It's the perfect length."

Lalla Ward: "Its historic for Doctor Who. we never had an opening like this before. It makes a change from being in the Tardis with that thing going up and down" ... "It's wondefully surreal. It really is. It's gorgeous."

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Lalla Ward: "This dreadful shingle! ... God! It's so like the British holiday setup that one dreaded as a child."

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Christopher Bidmead: "We were a bit stuck by the limitations of it." ... "That was Quantel."

Lalla Ward: "In a way, because there was so little in the way of technical ability then, the things you did were so inventive becasue you had to work so hard to do them. Now ther's a kind of profligacy of using special effects to such an extent."

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Lalla Ward: "Poor K-9!"

Christopher Bidmead: "We wanted to get rid of him."

Lalla Ward: "I know you did. Nathan-Turner hated K-9."

Christopher Bidmead: "Well I did too."

Lalla Ward: "Well your a pain. The both of you. I loved K-9 and thought it was very sad he was written out."

"Calendar Girls". Actually I was not planning to borrow this DVD from Kings Cross Library, as I suspected it would be too sentimental. Pleasantly surprised I was. It is well acted & produced; is humourous at times; sad at times; but never schmaltz.

The Marais Project.

3.00pm, in the Independent Theatre, North Sydney.

............

Works of Marin Marais [1656 - 1728].
Sieur de Sainte Colombe [1640 - 1690].
Robert de Visée [1650-1732].
............

Jennifer Eriksson & Catherine Tabrett - Viola Da Gamba.
Marshall McGuire - Harp.
Tommie Andersson - Theorbo & Baroque Guitar.
John Barnard - Narrator.

This performance was for Marais' birthday. He turns 350 on the 30th May.

It was well played, with the combination of instruments being such that the melancholy, yet rather sweet tones of the Viola da Gamba pair, dominated when they were used; not by volume, but by the sheer nature of their tonal qualities. These are the seven string Viola da Gamba, not the six string version I heard a few years ago, with the Sydney Philharmonia Choir Orchestra. The seventh string, which adds a deeper bass, was an innovation of Saint Colombe, the great player and maker of these instruments. He was for a while, the teacher of the teenage Marin Marais, the shoemaker's son who hated making shoes! However, Marais was, after but a short time, thrown out, as he would soon be better than his teacher; not for the salacious reason given in a certain french film.

The works played today were sometimes original compositions, but were often transcriptions from that time. So while some works required all instruments, there were pieces for Solo Harp, Solo Theorbo, and Duet Viola da Gamba. And there were works in which just one of the five instruments dropped out. The emphasis today was on short compositions and according to the programme, these were a genre which was very popular in that period, and a speciality of Marais.

Very enjoyable! Marais, Saint Colombe & Visée were clearly very talented composers. That they are not better known nowadays is perhaps due to the culture of the Sun King's Court at Versailles, which rather limited what they composed.

Posted four 2005 chess games tonight. It was rather too late for my sleep, yet still before midnight. There was a fifth game, but in a final rechecking of my analysis, my move proved fatal. Thus I chose not to play it after all.

This afternoon: seven 2005 chess games posted. However, only six had a move from me; while the other had no move written by my opponent.

Master Series - "Dvorak's Cello Concerto"

The Sydney Symphony Orchestra [SSO].

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

8.00pm, at the Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House.

Conductor: Gianluigi Gelmetti.

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Antonin Dvorak: Cello Concerto in B Minor, B.191.

Soloist: Antonio Meneses.

I did not know he wrote one, until I read the Programme. Clearly I was paying less than full attention when I booked. It was very good!! Very dramatic!! Dvorak clearly understood the nature of the Cello. The Programme was very entertaining: Dvorak once wrote a letter to a Composition student, saying that he hated the Cello & regretted writing a Concerto for it; as the range of the Cello is the same as that of the Orchestra as a whole, it is a pointless exercise.

The Brazilian Cellist had not quite the personality I have come to expect of Cello Soloists. But the performance of Soloist and Orchestra? I thought it was very good. The audience, as a whole, by their noise thought it was even better than I did!

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Interval

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Sergei Prokofiev: Symphony Number 5 in B Flat, Opus 100.

It was rather loud, as the large Orchestra was loaded with easily sufficient Brass & Percussion. The style was Neoclassical, but it had a driven persistence, which made it less melodic than his First Symphony, which I heard the SSO play quite recently. I suppose that the First, being composed in retreat in the country, during the dangerous days of the Russian Revolutions, was likely to be lyrical, as compensation; whereas the Fifth, being composed in Russia under Stalin, would contain an essence of frustration.

Be that as it may, I thought the Orchestra played it very well, and the prolongued applause, as with the Dvorak Cello Concerto, confirmed this. In my somewhat delicate head condition [not drunk, just unwell!] I would have preferred something less prominent of brass & percussion. Yet I enjoyed it; surviving an entertaining, if aurally challenging evening!

.. ... ... ... ... ... ...

I was the first patron inside the Concert Hall, which is a new experience for me, I think. It is a spinoff of my continuing to arrive on time; rather early actually. I sat in D33, front row, where I relaxedly watched musicians & people arrive, until a young lady said, quietly & politely, that it was her seat. So it was! D33, also front row, is my Saturday seat. D27 is my friday seat. Having apologised & moved, I could continue to observe the gathering hordes!

This afternoon, I paid the annual fee to my Internet Service Provider. Yes, that is what ISP stands for! Ironic, as my Internet connected Old PC, mostly is not. Its fault, not mine!

Of late I have read much fiction by Georges Simenon, mostly with Inspector Maigret.

...

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

donna anna - sang very well, act good.

donna elvira - sang very well - at times did jeanie little acting which irritated me

don alfonso - sang very well - act possibly static, but that is part

don g - sang very well, good speaking voice, but did not have the charisma - compare teddy rhodes

leperello - sang well when it was slow, but when he had to sing faster, not so good

zelina - singing good - but great sopranos record batti batti, which makes it hard to impress

her boyfriend - also sang well, acted well , except both he & selina had unconvincing pseudo-irish accents, which were also inconsisitent.

the communicator irritated me, not himself, but his role as [1] unnesecessary [2] irritating [3] omostly in rhyme which was mostly very ordinary

set minimal ok

orchestra small - from r horn-bassoon- 2 clarinets-flute-viola-cello-d bass - 2 violins

conductor played electronic keyboard at times - for harpsicord it worked - but the electronic accompaniment for act don g aria & duets, too loud sharp edged harsh,

direction some question

statues with don g going to hell good

costumes generall good

... ... ... ... ... ... ...

...

It is 10.40pm. I suppose I should be in bed, but I fell asleep for just over two hours, not that long ago. So I am now utterly awake and alert, although strangely lacking in any real direction, any linear aim. Rather, as Thomas Carlyle said of Thomas Coleridge, my thoughts travel in all directions, as if my mind were a lake, thus achieving nothing; rather than flowing in a clear direction, as a river does.

A CD is playing - Antonio Vivaldi - Concert per vari strumenti. This is seven Concerti for groups of Wind instruments, whose composition varies from one Concerto to the next, involving Oboes, Clarinets, Recorders, Bassoons, and even to be different, Violins. All instruments used are the Baroque versions. I bought this Italian recording at last saturday's Australian Brandenburg Orchestra concert, where Alfredo Bernadini, who plays Oboe on the CD, was the Guest Musical Director. The music, which continues to play, is wonderful. The fast movements are at the usually high pace; whereas the slow movements are very stately. The accentuated difference is very impressive, and has a ring of authenticity about it.

Despite little sleep, albeit I had sleep aplenty friday night, I was up at 6.08am: writing, housework, as my old PC painfully worked it way through the recent English Football results, League & Non-League. It is already promotion playoff time.

Music also? Naturally! The "Little Sonata in C" of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is now playing. This is from the CD: Mozart Piano Sonatas with pianist Andreas Haefleger.

Last night I missed the "Inspector Rex" movie, "A Respectable Neighbourhood". I may or may not have seen this before. It may be part one of two; or the whole film, if it be short. Be that as it may, I had fallen asleep in the afternoon, to wake at 7.02pm. After five minutes on my feet, I lay down with the lights all on, and unexpectedly fell asleep again, to wake only after midnight! I saw the normal length Rex on thursday night. Vanessa M missed it. She was asleep. However, last week she saw it, but I missed it. I was asleep.

But there is something I did mot miss, despite having been awake since 3.00am, and not having had any rest this afternoon. I had too much to do. But I was wide awake for:

...

"Sublime Baroque"

The Australian Brandenburg Orchestra [ABO].

Musical Director: Alfredo Bernardini.

7.00pm at the City Recital Hall, Angel Place.

...

The ABO were in wonderful form tonight.
It was a complete pleasure from start to end!

The Guest Director is an Italian Baroque Oboe Virtuoso,
who was a teacher of Paul Dyer, when he studied in the Netherlands.

The layout of the Orchestra was rather unusual. There were small raised platforms on both sides, plus a higher one to the rear. On the platform to the audience right, from the front, there were Oboes, then Bassoons. To the rear of the Winds was the Chamber Organ. Inside the Winds, to the front, were the Cellos. On our left side were the Violins, First in front and Second behind. At front, centre stage, was the Harpsicord. Just to its left, and a little behind was Thoerbo/Baroque Guitar. The Double Bass was just in front of the rear platform, slightly to the left of centre. In either side of the Double Bass were the Violas. On the rear platform, it was Timpani to the right, Trumpets to the left. If an instrument was not needed, the place was left vacant. The only changes were to accomodate a Soloist . ... It was easy for me to see all this, despite my being in my favoured front row, in seat AA57.

...

Arcangelo Corelli:

Concerto Grosso in D Major, Opus 6, Number 4.

This I know very well. It is was delightfully played, with the understand that the Movements were not just derived from what were once Dances, as often in the case of Classical, and especially Romantic compositions. In the baroque they were still Dances. people were likely to dance to them. And that is howthe ABO played it.

For this work, we had an almost full complement on stage. The Strings were complete, plus Theorbo. There were 2 Oboes, 2 Bassoons, 2 Trumpets, but no Timpani.

Dyer played Harpsicord in the first, third & fourth Movements, but Chamber Organ in the Second Movement. It took some deft but quiet walking for him to make the two trips on time; on the return jorney it was only just.

... ... ... ...

Tomaso Albinoni:

Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Continuo in D Minor, Opus 9, Number 2.

Soloist: Alfredo Bernardini.

Again, I have heard it often. The Orchestra was reduced to just Strings, and fewer of them, although the Theorbo was still present; plus the Harpsicord, and of course, the Oboe Soloist.

I was only some four metres away from the soloist, and I watched him intently for most of the the Concerto. He has very long fingers, but quite small shoulders. He held the Oboe in a very relaxed manner, often holding it rather low down, only raising high to play forté. And the sound of the Oboe was very full, most captivating, capturing the emotion as it should be.

... ... ... ...

Georg Philipp Telemann:

Concerto for Viola, Strings and Continuo in G Major.

Soloist: Monique O'Dea.

Viola Concerti were probably a Telemann invention. The Strings and Continuo were much the same as for the previous work. But it was Viola, rather than Oboe as Soloist.

Telemann must have been beloved by musicians. The Viola solo starts fairly quietly, then gradually builds in difficulty, such that the full virtuoso parts in the second half of the final Movement, which is a Presto, giving the Soloist a full fast flourish to finish.

... ... ... ...

Interval

Just as I was about to leave, I realised Ihad dropped my watch. Yet I still had the presence to go and buy the CD of Vivaldi Concerti in the foyer, which includes Bernardini as the Oboe Soloist. The other Solos are Violin, Flute & Clarinet. It was Italian, for there was Italian writing all over it. So $30.00 cost was fine.

... ... ... ...

Giuseppe Antonio Brescianello:

Chaconne in A Major.

I knew composer for me, but there are so many composers of no men ability, it is difficult to know of them all. I love the Chaconne of Henry Purcell, which I have on CD; so it is no surprise that I loved this one. It was played as a dance, and it really made me feel like dancing, although I have no idea as to how to do a Chaconne.

The Programme states that it is a dance of Spanish South American origin, which found it way to Spain and became a popular folk dance. Then like so many folk dances in Europe, it became a French courtly dance.

The orchestra was similar to that before interval, except that Andersson swapped his Thoerbo for his nine-string Baroque Guitar.

... ... ... ...

George Frideric Handel:

Concerto Grosso in B Flat Major, Opus 6, Number 7, HWV 325.

Once more a work I know well. There are so many that Handel wrote as interludes in his Oratorios, but a dozen stand out. The five Movements bore Italian names except for the final, whic is named Hornpipe. Handel was in England, and no doubt wished to flatter his adopted countrymen. The Hornpipe is unusual, as it a folk dance derived from a French courtly dance. Almost always, it is the other way around!

I know & love it well.

The main change in the Orchestra here was the Theorbo took over from Baroque Guitar.

... ... ... ...

Johann Sebastian Bach:

Orchestral Suite Number 4 in D Major, BWV 1069.

We now were back to the full complement that we had with the opening Corelli number. The exceptions were that the Thoerbo disappeared; the Timpani made it debut; an Oboes were now three, although Bassoons and trumpets stayed at two.

There are only a small number of these Bach suites known, so I should know them all. But Number Four seemed as unfamiliar to me as it was delightful. The Movements were mostly dances, and they were played as dances! I was picking the dance types from sound, like the Gavotte, the two Menuettos. It was just sheer pleasure!

It is interesting the way composed the piece as two groups, the Stings & the Winds-Brass, which were for the most part contested each other. Also for some short periods the whole Orchestra would be silent, except for the three Oboes & two Bassoons, with the Bassoons playing a very simple bass line, while the Oboes combined, each with a different scoring, into a complex intertwining melody. It was the ultimate: a virtuoso technical exercise in composition, which sounded very good to the ears.

... ... ... ...

Éncore

Johann Sebastian Bach:

Final Movement, Gigue in Orchestral Suite Number 3.

Ah well. It took just a little persuasion. This Jig is just great! This I do know as it would be difficult to know J.S. Bach at all and not know Orchestral Suite Number 3.

... ... ... ...

Today I renewed my annual membership of 2MBS-FM, at a cost of ninety dollars. It seems only right to put some money in to this public radio station. After all, the Four Budgies of the Apocalypse would surely be their most dedicated listeners.

2.20pm - An incident occurred on the grass verge, between the concrete footpath and the concrete kerb, near 10 Woolcott Street in Waverton. There was some food there, but I am not sure what. The cast: an adult Magpie Currawong with its half-grown youngster; a pair of Topknot Pigeons and a Noisey Miner. All are native Australian birds.

The adult Magpie Currawong threatened one Topknot Pigeon, which vocalised in return and refused to budge an inch, to the point of visibly shaking with the intensity of its response. The second Topknot Pigeon was annoyed with the Noisy Miner and they flew off close together in an aerial sparring match. Eventually they parted and the Pigeon returned, but then almost immediately flew off. Its mate, which the Magpie had not threatened again, took off vertically and followed it uphill.

The surprise to me was that a Topknot Pigeon was prepared to stand up to a Magpie Currawong, which is a notoriously dangerous bird, especially when it is has a youngster which needs protection.

Six correspondence chess games posted tonight: one 2005 & four 2005; two came yesterday & three today; but unlike tuesday, I had the white pieces in only one. All four black games are the Caro-Kann Defense: two Classical Variation; one Fantasy Variation; one Panov Attack.

It was unpleasant in Waverton this afternoon. In the lower & more open areas it was sunny, very warm, with still air, such that I perspired. Then, in those parts of the ridge which have prolongued morning shade, there was a cold breeze, and as I was in & out of shade, the perspiration in my shirt chilled me. Down then to the plain which spreads to the Harbour, and again very warm with sluggish air, concentrating the irritants which affect my sinuses, which made me unnaturally tired & very sluggish.

Coming home, or trying to, for I was delayed nearly half an hour, in and just south of Saint Leonards Station, as the train had a faulty brake. I used the time to read the final short chapter of "Maigret And The Man On The Bench" by Georges Simenon. This is much more than just a story of the solving of murder. It is a dissection of a certain family & the question as to what a person's aim in life is. After all, the stairs creaked, not because they were old, but because they were not built properly! Read it first, before going here, as I will give away some of the plot.

Tonight, despite unpleasantly sore ankles, I managed six correspondence chess games, four of this years & two of last years. By an odd coincidence, I am white in all six games. Is this an advantage? Or, as Savielly Tartakower put it: "the player with the first move gets to make the first mistake."

The sky was wonderful in Waverton this afternoon. Grey clouds with lacerated margins were windswept chaotically in a full Wagnerian tempest. But there was all but no rain.