Sweet Sounds

When I was having a bit of a moan yesterday about people arriving late for concerts it was deeply remiss of me not to say that the concert I was in attendance at was first rate in every way. The level of playing of our Philharmonic Orchestra is quite astonishing and I was particularly enthused by their rendition of Saint Saen's Le Carnival des animaux. I'm so familiar with the suite from various recordings that it came as some surprise that I've never before encountered it live, and I'm very glad it was Saturday evening's rendition that I had the pleasure of enjoying. Somehow our students conveyed the sheer joie de vivre of it all. (I'm using a bit of French since the piece is so quintessentially of that nation.)

In fact, hearing it in sequence in the concert hall made me aware of how off-beat it really is. So modern, for want of a better word. Challenging in its way, once you get beyond the simple jokes in sound. Aquarium particularly sounded strangely gorgeous. Oh, and the cello in Le Cygne was from another, better, world.