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En Vacance

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Albion
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Frederic Cowen (1852-1935)


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« on: August 16, 2012, 08:50:29 am »

This might be a useful place to let each other know when we are going to be on holiday and away from the forum - it would forestall the frustration of members not being able to get in contact with each other or give ready answers to enquiries.

I'm off to Chester this morning and then on to Buxton (to see a rare professional revival of The Grand Duke) tomorrow, hoping to be back either Saturday or Sunday depending on the weather!

 ;D
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"A piece is worth your attention, and is itself for you praiseworthy, if it makes you feel you have not wasted your time over it." (Sydney Grew, 1922)

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Neil McGowan
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« Reply #1 on: August 16, 2012, 09:32:06 am »

I hope you enjoy THE GRAND DUKE :)  I worked with Richard Suart for several years - in addition to his outstanding G&S work, he's fine performer in many other musical genres :)
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« Reply #2 on: August 16, 2012, 02:49:11 pm »

Oh, I'm sooo jealous of you seeing the Grand Duke at all, let alone a professional revival! One of my very favourite Sullivan operas, possibly my favourite, though I could never choose one! Please have a wonderful time: I listened to your upload of the BBC Grand Duke only this morning!
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Albion
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« Reply #3 on: August 18, 2012, 05:04:01 pm »

Oh, I'm sooo jealous of you seeing the Grand Duke at all, let alone a professional revival! One of my very favourite Sullivan operas, possibly my favourite, though I could never choose one! Please have a wonderful time: I listened to your upload of the BBC Grand Duke only this morning!

Hi Jamie - the professional company (and excellent amateur chorus) did a wonderful job of "taming the beast". Some cuts were made including, sadly, the second verses of "Big bombs, small bombs" and "As o'er our penny roll we sing"; but also including, mercifully, most of Ludwig's interminably dull "At the outset I may mention" - all we got was half of the first verse stitched to half of the last verse. Result! Otherwise all the (far superior) 'cut' numbers were there, more or less, and the Roulette Song was simply brilliant, sung by Bruce Graham. "Ah pity me, my comrades true" (in the Act 1 Finale) was sung complete - I've never heard it performed as such before, not in the BBC 1966, DOC 1976, BBC 1989 or anywhere else!

There were some intelligent 'additions' too: Rudolph accepting the Princess of Monte Carlo and describing her as being "as poor as a rat" has always struck me as distinctly awry because no one challenges it to say that, actually, her father has just hit the jackpot - so they had an interjection where the Prince presented her with the roulette wheel as a dowry. They also paired off the Prince of MC with the Baroness, which was more-or-less satisfactory given that Gilbert just leaves her high-and-dry at the end. Julia had a consistently-maintained German accent (a la Ilka von Palmay in the original production).

After seeing Utopia Limited at Buxton last year, performed to the same high standard, this Grand Duke was very special. If only they could do Haddon Hall, The Chieftain or The Rose of Persia! I'm sure it would sell - same as last year with Utopia, they're only performing The Grand Duke twice (last night and the matinee today) which seems frankly bizarre when they could probably guarantee at least one more sell-out evening. Anyway, as you probably know, all the productions (both amateur and professional) are recorded every year, so there are DVDs available. I would definitely recommend UL (2011) and GD (2012) - the latter will be available in a day or two

http://www.gsfestivals.org/shop/dvds

 :)
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"A piece is worth your attention, and is itself for you praiseworthy, if it makes you feel you have not wasted your time over it." (Sydney Grew, 1922)
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« Reply #4 on: August 19, 2012, 01:21:19 am »

Thank you, so interesting to hear that: I love the dowry idea! And yes, "O pity me" has always been mercilessly cut. I've never actually seen it staged, it being the only G&S I haven't.
      I would love to hear "The Chieftain" done professionally, as the Prince Consort recording is a bit weaker than their other ones, particularly Inez lacks the power one might expect. Anyway, I shall look out for the recording. Thanks again for your 'review'.
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« Reply #5 on: August 19, 2012, 02:18:09 am »

.......back on topic ;D ;D

No immediate plans to be away from home for more than half a day or so at a time. No money(just taken delivery of 3 new Dutton cds) and no time to spare  ;D ;D ;D ;D
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« Reply #6 on: August 19, 2012, 04:00:11 am »

Enjoy the Duttons: I've just listened to them all for the first time: the initial signs are good!
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Neil McGowan
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« Reply #7 on: August 19, 2012, 10:47:30 am »

Sullivan fans may like to know that YEOMEN OF THE GUARD is this evening's BBC R3 Prom concert, available from the BBC R3 website. I'm sure the score is in safe hands with Jane Glover at the helm :)

Elsie Maynard ..... Lisa Milne (soprano)
Colonel Fairfax ..... Andrew Kennedy (tenor)
Jack Point ..... Mark Stone (baritone)
Dame Carruthers ..... Felicity Palmer (mezzo-soprano)
Sergeant Meryll ..... Mark Richardson (baritone)
Wilfred Shadbolt ..... Toby Stafford-Allen (bass)
Phoebe Meryll ..... Heather Shipp (mezzo-soprano)
Lieutenant Sir Richard Cholmondeley ..... Leigh Melrose (bass-baritone)
Leonard Meryll ..... Tom Randle (tenor)
Kate ..... Mary Bevan (soprano)
First Yeoman ..... Jonathan McGovern (baritone)
Second Yeoman ..... Marcus Farnsworth (baritone)

Martin Duncan (director)
BBC Singers
BBC Concert Orchestra
Jane Glover (conductor)
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Neil McGowan
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« Reply #8 on: August 20, 2012, 07:18:21 pm »

Hmmm, I wasn't greatly impressed with the Proms YEOMEN :(  Some of the singing was very grotty, and Glover's conducting was unnecessarily metronomic - for example, she needed to give the soprano her head in the second couplet of the "Ring" aria, which is overtly Tchaikovskian in character with all that across-the-string sweeping chording - but it all passed off like a shopping list :(

However, the thing I disliked most was hamming-up the entire show for laughs - when in reality it's a grim gothic nightmare that happens to have some comic scenes too. The first act trio ("How say you, maiden, will you wed a man about to lose his head?") has a ghastly quality to it that's not a million miles away from RIGOLETTO - and it's that grim ironic element I most missed in this.  I didn't stick around to listen to the second act. Missing arias not restored, either :(  Two stars only from me.
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Vassily
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« Reply #9 on: August 26, 2012, 04:26:02 pm »

Yeoman of the Guard was rubbish.  When one views G&S one expects camp, but this was limp camp

Best proms, so far, for me.  Bernstein Mass, Handel's Fireworks & Water Music.  Rest of it has been a pretty damp squib.  My fave G&S is Patience.
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Neil McGowan
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« Reply #10 on: August 26, 2012, 05:29:10 pm »

but this was limp camp

My fave G&S is Patience.

It's a rich show - lots of humour, and lots of fine music too!

The same is true of YEOMEN, but this Proms production failed to find either. I often like Glover's work - but she strayed into the error of believing 'it's G&S and so there is nothing to it'. The casting was very poor - Phoebe Meryll isn't a forty-something frump, but a coquettish comedienne. She's supposed to be Leonard's younger sister!  And turning Wilfred into Benny from Crossroads was another mistake :(  

Many of the G&S shows have their strong points - if I had to pick one, I'd choose PIRATES, simply on account of the Act One Finale Verdian spoof :)

I've found little else in the Proms program this year to encourage me to tune in on the iPlayer, though.  I suppose it's because I persist in the belief that a festival should consist of works we rarely hear (because they are too tricky to put on normally), or some especially juicy line-up of performers? Too much of this year's program was just standard fare, in run-of-the-mill performances.
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« Reply #11 on: August 27, 2012, 02:46:20 pm »

My favorite G&S would probably have to be Iolanthe.  But I have to put in a word for Ruddigore, too.  You may take it from me...
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« Reply #12 on: September 26, 2012, 08:03:39 pm »

No more catalogues for a few days ;D

I shall by in London until Monday evening.....flooded rail tracks permitting ::)
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kyjo
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« Reply #13 on: September 26, 2012, 11:36:46 pm »

Have a safe trip to London, Colin :). I'll try to fill in for you with some catalogues over the next few days.
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albert
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« Reply #14 on: September 27, 2012, 09:44:30 am »

Very lucky for me next Monday and Tuesday: the complete Brahms Symphonies with Daniele Gatti and the Wiener Philharmoniker.
Time necessary to reach the auditorium from my home: 12-15 minutes by car; 20 by the underground.
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