A couple of days ago, I found myself having a Twitter exchange on a subject that I find fascinating and infuriating in equal parts. Several people were having a discussion about Brahms, and Brahms biography, and biographical approaches and writing styles. ‘Purple prose’, one person argued, was necessary in Brahms’s
Now that summer has truly arrived, and my teaching schedule is thinning out, it’s time to start something new. Something practical. Something I need to learn from scratch, and which will help me (I hope) professionally as well as personally. Next Friday, I’m going to have my first driving lesson.
This week has been a real treat for me – because not once, but twice, I’ve had the pleasure of attending live theatrical productions. When I win the lottery (which will be a particularly amazing day, because I haven’t bought a ticket for years), and no longer have to work
One of the great buzz phrases of commerce and indeed education, as anyone who has ever worked in either will know, is the need to ‘manage expectations’. Put to particularly brilliant effect in the BBC’s hysterical 2012, the idea of managing expectations can cover everything from carefully choosing publicity shots
One of the many reasons why I’m continually delighted by my freelance existence is the capacity it affords me to try new things. Usually (unless a would-be employer is feeling particularly kamikaze) the ‘new thing’ is in some way connected with a skill-set or knowledge basis that I already have:
This weekend, I’ve been soaking up the beautiful sights and sounds of the Ludlow English Song Weekend. This is a real celebration of music setting English-language texts, with a strong emphasis on Anglo-American connections this year, including a fantastic concert last night of Whitman settings by a huge range of
For the past few weeks, in preparation for next weekend’s extravaganza of English Song in beautiful Ludlow, I’ve been reading about, and listening to, a great deal of British music… and trying to determine what, exactly, makes it British. From Peter Ackroyd’s Albion to Raymond Williams’s sensational The Country and
A few years ago, a friend of mine told me about a sort of book challenge in which she was taking part. It was simple enough: the idea was to read an average of a book a week for the entire year, so that you could make your way through
Well dear readers, as you might surmise from the title of this particular post, I’ve got the lurgi. (Not, I hasten to add, the Dreaded Lurgi, which as we all know can only be cured by learning a brass instrument produced by Goosey and Bawkes – have a look here
A few weeks ago I was delighted to read an interview in the Guardian with Chinese pianist Yuja Wang. I’m often a bit slow to find out about brilliant new musicians on the scene, and this is evidently no exception: after a friend posted a video on Facebook of Wang
