Last night’s NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC concert was, on reflection, excellent. I say, on reflection, because I really didn’t like Sofia Gubaidulina’s Violin Concerto, performed by Anne-Sophie Mutter, the violinist for whom it was written.
It was 32 minutes of jarring atonal bombast, followed by barely audible murmurings. Having said that -- Mutter was at her usual best. I think a majority of the audience applauded her and not the piece.
The evening started off well with a brief work by Prokofiev and ended on a very high note with Tchaikovsky’s beautiful Symphony No. 2, “Little Russian.”
Had an interesting “extra” experience at the concert. What, you are no doubt breathlessly asking? Well, as I previously posted, this concert was an extra ticket by virtue of being a subscriber and it was located in the rear orchestra, house right.
When I got to my aisle seat I discovered that seated to my left were several rows of well-dressed young people, and immediately Billi Pod’s WTF Alarm went off==>this might be a problem, thought I.
Well, folks, I was 110% wrong. The group (108 kids) was the Hingham High School Band & Orchestra, from Hingham, Massachusetts, a smallish town about 15 miles south of Boston. The group is participating in The Heritage Festival and will perform on Saturday. They couldn't have been more well-behaved and focused.
It was obvious that they were excited about being at a concert in Avery Fisher Hall @ Lincoln Center. Seated to my immediate left were 3 guys: Bass Saxophone, Oboe, and Saxophone. We had an interesting chat before the concert began and during intermission. I gave one of the adults this blog site and told them I would be posting something about their group.
Feeling their excitement and energy helped me leave Avery Fisher Hall with a broad smile on my face.
Today it is bright, sunny and cold==>38º @ 7:30am. When will it ever end? This afternoon I will stay in the warm confines of PHC to watch ...
4:05==>YANKEES vs. TIGERS. AJ Burnett aka Loser Boi will be on the mound, making his first start of the season. A whole lot depends of whether Loser Boi can rebound from his puke-inducing 2010 season. If not, the Yankees could be in deep trouble. We will see ...
Then tonight is ...
8:00==>JERUSALEM - “In the woods of South West England, Johnny Rooster Byron, former daredevil motorcyclist and modern-day Pied Piper, is a wanted man. The council officials want to serve him an eviction notice, his son wants to be taken to the country fair, a stepfather wants to give him a serious kicking and a motley crew of friends wants his ample supply of drugs and alcohol.” (Broadway - discounted TDF ticket)
This show is in very early previews and stars Tony winner Mark Rylance. In the name of fair and unbiased reporting Billi Pod has to admit that he has a very “iffy” feeling about this show. Again, we will see ...
GO YANKEES AND GO GATORS!!
Billi Pod
“Don’t pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight, he’ll just kill you.”
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