Douglas

To the Wigmore Hall yesterday to hear Barry Douglas again, the venue for Radio 3 lunch time concerts having shifted from St. Luke's (where we last heard him) to the Wigmore. Took a bit of a chance in that neither of us had heard any of it before - Three Intermezzi Op. 117 and Piano Sonata No. 3 in F minor Op. 5, all Brahms. The former being a very late work and the latter being a very early work. But it was all very good and at times I was sucked into the music in a way that is fairly unusual for me. Usually more aloof. Pleased for the breaking out of my rather small box to have been so successful.

There seemed to be a huge amount of material in the sonata, perhaps the product of a young and fertile imagination. There was also a huge variation between quiet and loud, huge enough to make the thing sound a bit silly on the home hifi. Or at least, so I should think.

Audience virtually all people of our own age, with the merest sprinkling of people of working age. Chap in front of me probably played as he was doing a bit of visible fingering. Also a bit of a fidget with his programme. And there was one old lady who indulged in some rather loud whispering at the back of the hall at the start of both pieces. First time I have heard such a thing in the generally very well behaved and musical audiences at the Wigmore.

Took a decent and reasonable lunch afterwards at Ponti's Italian Kitchen where I had an Italian style hamburger made with Scotch style beef. Very nice is was too. Chips served in one of those miniature chip frying baskets but probably oven chips warmed up in the microwave - the best that one can do in the sort of restaurants that we can afford - and are comfortable in.

Quick peek at the Christmas lights around Oxford Circus which were not that great as there was still a fair bit of light. Regent Street rather too big for the amount of lights up. BH did not approve of the advertisement for Marmite appearing in the Oxford Street lights and the generally secular tone of the Carnaby Street lights. Neither of us much cared for the huge red lips and tongues; all a bit coarse. But I did think of Boris with approval as we traversed Oxford Circus on the diagonal, even if we were given barely enough time so to do. His new arrangements are a huge improvement on all the cattle pens we used to have before.

Home via Clapham Junction where we observed a fairly spectacular sunset - more or less south west to judge by the flight path into Heathrow - which accords well with the south east sunrise observed in Lyme Regis (see 3rd December).

PS: continue to be rather puzzled about the connection between the two meanings for secular. On the one hand the secular clergy of the Roman Church and on the other the secular games of the Roman Republic. Maybe one day the penny will drop.