Christmas Letter 2008

Mercifully, I was better in time for the Coriole Music Festival. As you read on through the year, you'll see why I didn't get a chance to reflect on the experience as I have in previous years. I remember that it was wonderful, though!

The theme was "Two cities, two centuries...": classical Vienna and Paris of the late 19th to early 20th century. What stood out for me was the virtuoso piano playing of Ian Munro, and the chansons and Lieder sung by Rosalind Martin and accompanied by Roy Howat.

I liked their performances so much that I rushed out to hear Martin and Howat again, three weeks later in Canberra, in a very similar programme. That was a concert put on by Art Song Canberra (formerly the ACT Lieder Society) which I joined for the first time this year. I thoroughly enjoyed all the Art Song concerts I made it to, and have already joined for next year. I must say, it's lovely to have a good concert to go to on a Sunday afternoon!

Other singing I've enjoyed listening to this year:

• numerous Oriana concerts - one in Gunning where, despite 40 years of living in the area, I'd never actually been before
• various performances at All Saints' - the Variables; Igitur Nos; a combined concert of Oriana, the Resonants, and Igitur Nos...
• Hesperion XXI in the refurbished Llewellyn Hall - although the music was more popular than I'm comfortable with, and my whole point in going was to hear Montserrat Figueras, who was ill and didn't come to Australia (and the hall now has no central aisle - it takes forever for people to file in - and then you sit there wondering what would happen if there was a fire)
• a Christmas concert by the Wayfarers, conducted by Judith Clingan, where I realised that I'd only ever heard Britten's Ceremony of Carols performed with piano accompaniment before - the harp is so much better!
• the Carol Service of the Choir of Our Lady and St Cecilia

One day I'm going to get to Sydney for the Pinchgut Opera. It was going to be 2008. Maybe next year, if I'm back from Holland in time!

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Page created 20 December 2008; last updated 23 December 2008