Not being used to getting to Smith Square without the assistance of a Bullingdon, much quality time was expended during the lunch preceding on deciding how to get there. We finally settled on train to Vauxhall followed by tube to Pimlico followed by walk. Which took us by the Doubletree Hilton of John Islip Street, where, attracted by the extensive windows of the first floor lounge, we decided to stop for a comfort & refreshment break. See the comments on this point at reference 2.
Comfortable bar, with the large space nicely broken up with various nooks & crannies for those who wanted more privacy than that afforded by the musak - which did, as often, seem rather loud when we first sat down but soon faded into the background. Brown, fabric, bibelots and glass décor, very much in the current fashion for same. Menus cunningly encased in blocks of perspex. Respectable sauvignon blanc from New Zealand.
Onto St. John's, much more impressive in the fading early evening light and with the lights on than it had been during the day when it seemed rather shabby - in contrast to my old memory of it, probably not many years after post-war reconstruction was finished in the sixties, being smart white, with plaster highlights picked out in blue and gold. The stage in particular looked very well, framed by the tall arch with its long red curtains. All very impressive, with the details of the capitals of the Corinthian pillars providing a good place for the eyes to take a rest from the pianist. Interesting also from the point of view of Humphrey's 'Seeing Red', of which more in due course. Only marred by the lighting support & supply wires hanging out of the ceiling, high above the stage, which rather broke up the intended effect. Had they taken a bit more care, the wires might have been much less intrusive.
The variable part of the stage management was not so clever either. I did not think that Jeremy Nicholas, despite his very suitable credentials for the job, struck quite the right note in his introduction, being too keen to play the funny man. But he did, I grant, inform and that was interesting. I had not known, for example, that Chopin had died so young or that his childhood overlapped the maturity of Beethoven and Schubert. He also said 'Chopin' with the 'o' as in 'shopping', rather than with the 'o' as in 'load' that I would use, but we agreed on the 'i' as in the first syllable of 'anguish'. Mailley-Smith did not have much of a stage presence, and would have done better to stick to the keyboard and to have left the microphone alone. I dare say he will get better in that department with time. I also, for some reason, noticed the size of his hands. No idea whether they were actually unusual in that department, their appearance may have been more to do with the length of the arms of his jacket rather than anything intrinsic.
Then, given that there were a number of short pieces, there was the problem of clapping, which I much prefer to be absent, Unfortunately this audience thought otherwise and the pianist did not tell us to stop. But then Imogen Cooper, with all her experience, sometimes has the same problem.
The playing itself was fine, without score, and I liked the Chopin better than I expected - only really knowing the nocturnes and the 24 preludes, these last being the main course in a concert to come. We will see how we get on.
Quite a decent audience, say two thirds full. More relaxed than a Wigmore Hall audience, with more casual dressing. We wondered how many of them planned to attend all eleven concerts - quite possible given the sensible tempo of around one a month. I am not so keen when they do complete works, or complete sonatas or whatever in one heavy burst, one night after another. Not enough stamina for that sort of thing. There is also the consideration that complete works are apt to include dross, although Nicholas did point out that Chopin was careful in that way and only allowed stuff to be published that he felt was up to the proper mark,
I managed to drop my telephone during the internal, on which it fell apart, which was rather alarming. Back together again, to have been dropped at least two times since. So far so good, but I suppose the electrics are not going to stand too much of this treatment. Just as well that MS back up all the important stuff for me.
Out to walk back to Vauxhall, a pleasant evening walk, if a little longer than BH was expecting. Spotted a small caravan being towed by a motor bike near Vauxhall Cross. An interesting take on the side-car.
Reference 1: http://www.warrenmailley-smith.com/.
Reference 2: http://www.psmv2.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/a-tale-of-two-conveniences.html.
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