Wigmore Hall

What a civilised place the Wigmore Hall is! Members of Classical Partners who gathered there on Sunday 2nd October for one of our regular visits to Coffee Concerts enjoyed a fantastic recital followed by delicious lunch in the Wigmore Restaurant.

The quality of the performances seems to be better every time we go and the Hall’s marvellous acoustic enhances the recital even more. This week we were treated to the Kungsbacka Piano Trio, named after the Swedish town in which they gave their first performance and where they have established an annual festival. Their programme combined a couple of Beethoven’s most impressive works for piano trio along with a brand new work by Hans Henze which was equally stirring but in a totally different style. The packed hall seemed to lap it up.

Forthcoming treats on offer at the Wigmore Hall include the Nash Ensemble, Nicola Bennedetti, Paul Lewis, Steven Isserlis and Stephen Hough. See http://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk/whats-on

After the recital we adjourned to the Bechstein Room downstairs for the complimentary glass of sherry that accompanies one’s coffee concert ticket and then in to the stylish and elegant but oh-so comfortable Wigmore Restaurant for a leisurely three-course lunch.

After a couple of hours of delicious food, wine and lively conversation, CP members went their various ways, eg one lady on to her choir rehearsal, and another small group of members were last seen heading towards Oxford Street, for a cup of tea and spot of shopping in John Lewis.

We will be back at the Wigmore Hall early in the New Year for another relaxing Sunday outing. Meanwhile members of Classical Partners have some great concerts, theatre and opera to look forward to. If you are interested in attending top class cultural events and meeting like-minded people at the same time – see our Events page for details of what’s coming up http://www.classicalpartners.co.uk/Events.html

Posted in Find Love, Food, Intimate music, Live Music, Relationships, Social events, classical music, meet others, music | 2 Comments »

Dudemania!

According to the Times last week, the LA Philharmonic Orchestra’s resident conductor, Gustavo Dudamel, is “the coolest man in classical music”, an extraordinary musical talent with the charisma of a Clooney, Pitt or Depp.  The young Venezuelan conductor, known to the LA locals as the ‘Dude’, rose to fame as the world-conquering maestro of the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra and since October has been music director of the LA Philharmonic.

As part of their first international tour with the Dude, the LA Philharmonic are playing two sell out concerts at the Barbican later this week and Classical Partners has secured 16 tickets for the second of these on Friday 28 January, featuring Mahler’s epic Ninth Symphony.

Classical Partners also saw Dudamel in 2009 at the Royal Festival Hall when he conducted the Philharmonia Orchestra in a performance of Mahler’s 5^th Symphony.  Those who were with us that evening will I am sure remember what an exciting and moving concert it was, culminating in a long standing ovation for Dudamel and an almost unprecedented level (for a British classical audience) of whooping and cheering!

Dudamel seems to forge a very special connection with the orchestras he conducts and gets memorable performances out of his musicians.  He has a special wisdom and humanity for Mahler’s symphonies and, still only at the age of 29, has already twice conducted the Ninth (for which he no longer requires a score) with other orchestras. 

We should be in for a treat on Friday!

Posted in Live Music, Social events, Uncategorized, classical music, meet others, music | 8 Comments »

Elgar Room

Last week we took a group of Classical Partners to The Proms.

Before the concert we had a meal in the newly refurbished Elgar Room and I have to say they have done a great job. It is now a contempory and stylish place yet it is still comfortable. Quite a feet, as I find most “modern” dining spaces just too hard. Clean lines and sparse furnishings often make for an attractive but inhospitable environment. The menu was not too big but offered a good selection of meat and fish. I would recommend you check it out next time you are in the Albert Hall.

The concert was not bad either. The Prommers showed their delight with extended stomping and whistling. I agree wholeheartedly with them for Osmo Vanska and the Minnesota Orchestra’s rendition of Beethoven’s Ninth, but not the Berg Violin Concerto. It is not a piece I particularly like so that’s no real surprise.

Posted in Live Music, Proms, Social events, Uncategorized, classical music | 3 Comments »

Canadian Trio Give Gold Medal Performance

I should have known that there was something good going to happen last Sunday. From the moment the clocks changed I was already a little out of kilter. My drive to the Wigmore Hall that I have done dozens of times was going smoothly until I realised that I had taken a wrong turning somewhere and was about two miles off course. No problem, I still arrived with a few minutes to spare.

Diving downstairs for a coffee and to meet up with the group of Classical Partners I was a little surprised not to see anyone from the group but they soon started to arrive. A couple of calls on the mobile let me know that one person could not make it and that one was going to be late. I was now getting worried as I could not find the two new members whom I had not met before. Just as the concert was due to start one of them introduced themselves. I had to leave the other’s ticket on the door as I went in, not perfect but the best I could do.

The Gryphon Trio from Canada, made their Wigmore debut, performing Schumann’s Piano Trio No 2 in F followed by Beethoven’s Piano Trio in B flat “Archduke”. They were absolutely sublime, even the clouds scudding over the Wigmore’s skylight seemed to alter the hall’s lighting in perfect concert with the music. Even though I freely admit that my personal taste tends to be for more dramatic symphonic music, I loved every minute of their performance.

After the concert, I managed to find our missing member and our group enjoyed a lovely relaxed Sunday lunch in the Wigmore’s fine restaurant downstairs. What a great way to spend a Sunday. Truly Gold Standard.

Posted in Live Music, Social events, Uncategorized, classical music | 9 Comments »

Encore?

I was lucky enough to attend Nikolai Demidenko’s recital at the Wimbledon music festival last Saturday.

The Great Hall of King’s College School is a great venue for a piano recital, with a lovely atmosphere and good acoustic. A haven on what was a horrible damp evening. Since it was the first year of the festival I am prepared to forgive the confusion over seating. When our group of twelve arrived to take up our reserved seats in row 3, there were only six seats available in that row. I hope in future they will number the seats.

Demidenko’s playing was superb! He plays with great colour and range and his sense of rhythm and pace are flawless. At times during the Schubert Sonata in D I was sure that he had other instruments at his disposal, such was the variety of sound he produced.

The performance should have ended with Mussorgsky’s masterpiece “Pictures at an Exhibition.” I say should have, because after Demidenko had transported the audience around that famous exhibition and left us transfixed in wonder, he returned to play two short encore pieces which, nice though they were, left me feeling somewhat downbeat. Is it just me or does anyone else agree, that these encores often add nothing to the entertainment? By their very nature they tend to be short un-substantial pieces that detract from the crescendo of the programmed pieces. There are bound to be exceptions but in this case they were superfluous.

To find out more about our music events for singles see Events.

Posted in Live Music, Social events, classical music | 2 Comments »