What a week
On Tuesday evening Tat and I met up with P&B for a meal at the Canary Club after which we went to the Lonsdale Street Methodist church for the Royal Phil concert. There was a visiting choir from California which sang a varied selection of works from the Americas - they were very, very good. After interval the Phil sang; they were not very, very good. The concert finished with both choirs combining to sing the Fauré Requiem. B and I were glad we stayed (the others had left) as the performance was very satisfying; the orchestra was excellent and the soloists were from the visiting choir. On balance, a positive experience.
Last night I joined BN and KN for dinner at Southgate after which we walked to Hamer Hall to hear the wonderful Mandy Patinkin in concert. What a performer - within ten minutes he had the entire audience dancing the Hokey Pokey, while he sang it in Yiddish! He performed without an interval for over two hours and covered a huge range of music from The band played on through Rodgers and Hammerstein to Sondheim.
The voice is not beautiful: when soft and high there is (to me) an ugly slow vibrato and when belting in his chest voice it's just plain coarse, and much of the time there's not much between the two extremes. But the simple fact is that Patinkin knows his stuff; he knows how to choose songs and how to deliver them. And above all he loves what he does and communicates this to the audience he loves and who loves him. I never expected to hear a straight man singing Broadway Baby and Liaisons; I certainly never expected to hear them sung so movingly. Brilliant!
Tonight was rehearsal for next Thursday's St Peter's day service at St Peter's Eastern Hill. Members of Gloriana are boosting the numbers of the SPEH choir and John W conducted. Tat and had a quick Victoria Street meal beforehand.
Last night I joined BN and KN for dinner at Southgate after which we walked to Hamer Hall to hear the wonderful Mandy Patinkin in concert. What a performer - within ten minutes he had the entire audience dancing the Hokey Pokey, while he sang it in Yiddish! He performed without an interval for over two hours and covered a huge range of music from The band played on through Rodgers and Hammerstein to Sondheim.
The voice is not beautiful: when soft and high there is (to me) an ugly slow vibrato and when belting in his chest voice it's just plain coarse, and much of the time there's not much between the two extremes. But the simple fact is that Patinkin knows his stuff; he knows how to choose songs and how to deliver them. And above all he loves what he does and communicates this to the audience he loves and who loves him. I never expected to hear a straight man singing Broadway Baby and Liaisons; I certainly never expected to hear them sung so movingly. Brilliant!
Tonight was rehearsal for next Thursday's St Peter's day service at St Peter's Eastern Hill. Members of Gloriana are boosting the numbers of the SPEH choir and John W conducted. Tat and had a quick Victoria Street meal beforehand.
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