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A sample of the new concerto
My next composition isn’t quite ready yet. But I really like it and want to share it with you NOW. So, there’s a sample below! It may seem my 7 year #PsalmQuest has been on hiatus and maybe you even thought I’d given up already. Well, I was ahead of schedule so after all the Christmas performances I did take some time off over Christmas and New Year to visit lots of people up and down East Coast USA, and then I embarked on my long-awaited Concerto for Bass Clarinet and strings. It’s almost ready and we all have to be thankful to Calvin Falwell and Diana Hessinger for…
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Les Miserables the movie
I’m a fan of “Les Mis” the show. Overall assessment of the movie is good – I liked it and I liked that so many of the audience were directly affected (meaning, audibly sobbing or laughing). Hugh Jackman (Jean Valjean) – bravo! Anne Hathaway (Fantine) – well done. Russell Crowe (Javert) – completely ruined the film. (Sorry Russell!) Amanda Seyfried (Cosette) – she hit the high notes! Samantha Barks (Eponine) – terrific. Really. Isabelle Allen (Young Cosette) – really good singing and acting. A pleasant surprise. Daniel Huttlestone (Gavroche) – brilliant. Helena Bonham Carter (Madame Thénardier) – acting brilliance shone through the terrible interpretation. Borat (Thénardier) – should stick to what he…
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Another Absolutely Best Of!
I’m working on some project documents and listening to Classic FM’s David Mellor (ex-Member of Parliament and even Cabinet member) enthusiastically share his top 20 classical music recordings of 2012 – both new and re-released. Sometimes it’s quite fascinating, especially Max Richter’s rewriting of Vivaldi’s famous Four Seasons violin concertos, two very different versions of Rachmaninoff’s beautiful Symphony No.2 even though the different albums won in different categories, and even Cole Porter’s “Let’s Do It” by Alexandre Tharaud. Yes, I’m just as confused as you. (Amazon affiliate links) Well, I’ve never been much of a fan of “Top” or “Best of” lists, even though it is clearly a marketing gem and seems…
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Very important people
How many very important people do you have in your life? The most difficult for me to get along with but who I value extremely highly, are lawyers. In the USA we need lawyers for just about everything, but especially in the music world. Did you know that most initial music industry contacts are made through lawyers? Not agents, not managers, not even the artists themselves. But lawyers can be intimidating. They charge by the part-hour and good ones attract a hefty hourly rate – rightly so, but when talking or meeting or emailing or faxing their laywers, many clients remain acutely aware of every second. There are many nice lawyers out there who…
