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Interesting to read today's Guardian leader invoking Benjamin Britten (and George Crabbe) in its assesment of the departing Tony Blair ~ 'Christianity underpinned so much about his prime ministership, from his 1997 identification of the act of voting Labour with spiritual redemption - "one cross on the ballot paper, one nation was reborn" - to his attempts to persuade the public of absolute truths. The effect could be brilliant. But it produced a strange sort of defiance, especially after Iraq and in the response to terrorism, a leader who came to believe, like Peter Grimes, that he could see the shoals to which the rest of Britain was blind.'
I wonder which operatic character the Guardian will use in their assesment of George W. Bush? And talking of political failings, now read the story of Peter Grimes' first conductor.
Photo is the 1995 Royal Opera House production of Peter Grimes. Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report broken links, missing images and other errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk
There are currently lots of exciting things happening on the English contemporary music scene, although you wouldn't think so from the lugubrious article in today's New York Times. It just goes to show that, despite George W Bush and Tony Blairs 'special relationship', there is still a yawning gap between England and America. It is all summed up in this priceless anectdote from John Drummond's very English autobiography:
I met Bernstein occasionally over the years, especially after I became friendly with the management of the New York Philharmonic. I would go to their concerts in New York, and several times my visits coincided with Bernstein's appearances. One evening he conducted a whole programme of music by living composers, all of whom were present: Roger Sessions, Ned Rorem and William Schuman. Halfway through Rorem's piece - a song cycle - Bernstein started coughing and left the platform. We sat in embarrrassed silence while his hacking could be heard off-stage. Afterwards I went round to see him and found a huge group in the Green Room, most of whom were in tears of emotional commiseration. Bernstein wept his way slowly through the crowd, kissing, sobbing and acknowledging the cries of 'You're the greatest', led by the unlikely pairing of Billy Rose, the band leader, and Isaac Stern. It was America at its most flesh-crawling.
Now read about my own encounter with a naked Lennie.
John Drummond's Tainted by Experience is published by Faber, ISBN 0571200540. Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report broken links, missing images and other errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk
