Friday 6 March 2009

Nowt much

It's a beautiful morning.

I have two orienteering events to go to this weekend, which is very nice. If the weather is anything like this tomorrow or Sunday it will be great. It's not warm, but this is the least of my problems when running, or rather lumbering. More sunshine like this would just be fabulous, though.

I only get to go orienteering if the car is OK ... it's going in this morning with a list as long as your arm of (we hope) minor defects. Going Oing without the car would be somewhere on the difficult < - - > impossible spectrum, probably well towards the right. The car is getting on a bit, to put it mildly, so every visit to the garage is a bit worrying in case it's going to be the one where they turn round and tell us it's time to give it up!

After the weekend I get stuck into a couple of very busy weeks. The next Haydn Chamber Orchestra concert is on the 21st and there is a Grand Union Orchestra show at the Hackney Empire on the 20th and 21st. Because of the HCO gig I can only do the 20th with GUO but even so I am thrilled to bits to be back with them after quite a few years. So the next two weeks have plenty of rehearsals, alongside a few other things which I want to do or which must be fitted in or both.

I am quite pleased with myself because I've assembled the HCO programme on my Wretched Young Persons' Portable Phonographic Device and am making efforts to be a bit less clueless than usual by actually having done some listening, practice etc. Actually I know two of the items already (one of them very well) and only one is really new to me (Haydn Symphony no 60) so it's that one that's getting most of the attention. On the Radio 3 website I found a rather good Discovering Music programme about the Haydn so I've got that to listen to now as well.

Mrs von Neustadt and I are hoping to go to the flicks tomorrow night to see The Class (Entre les murs) although looking at the schedule I am assailed by sudden doubts (about when/whether we can go, not the film itself) so watch this space.

I can't go to the luncthime concert today as I have an important meeting. Missing the concert is a pity but not the end of the world - there are certainly plenty more to come!

And I think that's it. Sorry it's a bit waffly and inconsequential but I don't have time to write anything profound or edit and post an existing longer piece and it's still better - for me, anyway, if not the reader! - to write something than nothing at all. Have a nice day, as they say.

2 comments:

Lottie said...

All sounds good! In order of your mentioning:

1. It has indeed been lovely weather, although unexpectedly frosty the last two mornings! Thought we'd seen the last of that till next winter.

2. Maybe it might be time to replace the peugeot sometime soon?

3. I have been thinking of going to see the Grand Union/Hackney Empire extravaganza; it seems to include pretty much every type of 'world music' that I've been brushing up on this year! Will definitely try to make it down now.

4. I always mean to do more intensive listening to things which I am playing but never seem to get round to it... hmmm... maybe I will buy the Vivaldi 4 violins which I am conducting in a few weeks off itunes right now!

5. I want to see The Class, let me know if it's any good!

6. I very much enjoyed reading (and responding too) this post!

Strawberryyog said...

Right then:

1. Yup. It was quite nice while I was running (=lumbering/walking) on Saturday, and very nice on Sunday, though it changed fast in the afternoon.

2. The Peugeot still seems to be struggling on and "the lads" round the corner have fixed many of Friday's list of ailments. Replacing it would be great if I had say £10K spare, and I do not ... :(

3. Oh yeah, come along, it'll be fun. It's such a while since I did a GU show ... I can't wait!

4. I now know the Discovering Music programme about Haydn 60 more or less off by heart. But will this improve my performance? Watch this space!

5. The Class is an entirely wonderful film and I cannot recommend it strongly enough. It felt like the Phoenix audience we saw it with were 90% teachers, such were the snorts of familiarity, outrage etc ...

6. Thank you! :)