Metronome markings: blessing or curse?

I went to the new Tosca at Covent Garden and this is what I thought. engelsbergideas.com/reviews/an-u...

Sadiq Khan on Farage’s plan today - “Thousands of Londoners have indefinite leave to remain. They have legal rights and are our friends, neighbours and colleagues, contributing hugely to our city. “Threatening to deport people living and working here legally is unacceptable.”

Update on my article re Ilan Volkov: it is in the printed paper today, but very heavily cut, so please read the online one if you can.

This hurts my soul - my heart axtuslly ached reading this, thinking of the future generations of knowledge that will never be, of students unable to specialise in languages, pursue music, read Latin, take up English literature, become an Art critic, write history. This is how cultures wither & die.

⭐ Great to see that the TUC Congress has passed a Europe motion highlighting the importance of easing mobility for touring artists. 🇪🇺 The motion highlight the significance of UK trade with the EU, and the potential for this to boost UK economic growth. https://bit.ly/4mdSONY

Wondering if I could become a tube driver, double my income and reduce my working hours to the manageable level of 35 hrs a week. I’ve left it a little bit late, but am quite good at tunnel vision.

I'm not sure Kent was even this bad in my 80s-90s childhood (and I can tell you, it was pretty bad). The trajectory is absolutely chilling. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The National Gallery is to embark on the “largest transformation” in its 200 years, with the creation of an entirely new wing.

Mixed messaging: the Southbank Centre ushers leaping on anyone who so much as looks at their screen in the RFH when the only programme available to audiences is via a QR Code… on their phone.

I am one of the growing number of 400 signatories to this letter. It's deeply concerning that the BBC is limiting public access & exploratory academic research into its rich historical archives. The WAC was a bastion of the BBC's public service remit & must remain so! observer.co.uk/news/nationa...

Doing an actual National Gallery lunchtime concert with the wonderful Lara Melda! 10 October, anniversary of Myra Hess’s first concert there in 1939. www.nationalgallery.org.uk/events/myra-...

Just been live on Danish Radio, talking Proms, rather to the amusement of Tom who’s the one who actually speaks Danish.

Ignore the haters. London is the 🐐

‘Ian Penman is preoccupied not by Satie’s influence on other composers, or even solely by his aesthetic, but by his whole personality, his entire way of being in the world.’ @jonathancoe.bsky.social reads 𝘌𝘳𝘪𝘬 𝘚𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘗𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦 𝘚𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘦: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

Cosi is listening to Schumann Lieder…

The Mirror's Kevin Maguire argues the only way for Britain to return to its former prosperity is with a plan to return to the EU after Brexit proved to be a giant con that only leaves us poorer and weaker www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

Letter of the day (in the Times)

Nice gig for home team LPO last night at Proms. Aigul Akhmetshina heavenly in Ravel and Ed Gardner delivering Tippett’s Rose Lake swan song with great affection.

#nowlistening to Jean-Efflam Bavouzet's complete Ravel piano music. Utterly gorgeous. Has everything you could want: clarity, sensuality, brilliance of touch, rich sonority and magnificently evoked narrative atmosphere. Gaspard in particular is a treat and a half. music.apple.com/gb/album/rav...

Good news; Always worth sharing when it comes:

FINALLY a newspaper publishes a proper investigative piece about Unbound, which dissolved earlier this year owing writers and readers vast sums of money (£20,000+ in my case), after a long period of false promises, incompetence, late payments and vagueness. observer.co.uk/news/busines...

This is what happened to Unbound, in detail. For those of us who published with them, loved our excellent editors and even enjoyed finding, er, novel ways to crowdfund, it's tragic. observer.co.uk/news/busines...

Last night’s Prom: so delicious I wanted to eat it. inews.co.uk/culture/arts...

Boo to Bolero, tut-tut to Tchaikovsky and don't get me started on Bruckner...oh OK, do... www.thetimes.com/culture/clas...

Off to the Proms for the Budapest Festival Orchestra and Iván Fischer - small matters of Beethoven 7 & Bartók Bluebeard’s Castle 😻🎶

!! Yunchan Lim played ‘Schönste Nacht’ from ‘Die stumme Serenade’ by Korngold as his Proms encore the other day and I have just twigged and heard it and came over a bit wobbly. ❤️🎶🥲

Freelance arts workers are earning an average annual salary 20.5% less than the benchmark set by the Living Wage Foundation’s ‘Real Living Wage’.

128 members of the Royal Ballet and Opera sign an open letter in solidarity with Danni Perry displaying the 🇵🇸 flag at a curtain call, and ask the Royal Ballet and Opera to acknowledge and act against Israel's genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. via Make Freedom Ring www.instagram.com/p/DM3Uib-gGH...

Calling all Myra Hess fans: I'm doing a free lecture about her online tomorrow, Monday 4th, for MILIM Leeds. Starts 8pm UK time. Log on here: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

A rare staging of Korngold’s one-act psychological thriller ‘Violanta’ ahoy.

My Korngold talk starts in 15 mins. 7pm UK time. Available to log on free everywhere, as far as I know.🎶 www.lockdownuniversity.org/lectures/260...

🥁 ICYMI: Analysis by Best for Britain reveals the number of UK musicians playing at music festivals in the EU is still down by 26% compared to pre-Brexit levels. ⚠️ From artists to architects, food prices to travel opportunities, Brexit hurts Britain.

This is tomorrow. No spoilers, but I have been close to 'the horse's mouth' on some of the issues in recent months. www.lockdownuniversity.org/lectures/260...

On Thursday I'm doing a FREE online lecture about Erich Wolfgang Korngold. There'll be some tough issues to chew over. Do join us at 7pm: www.lockdownuniversity.org/lectures/260...

So sad to see this news. I will always remember Amelia fondly and especially the time when we worked together on planning a Korngold festival for the 50th anniversary of his death in 07.

Wishing Lionesses the very best of luck as they take on Spain in the EURO 2025 finals tonight. London will be proudly cheering you on. Let’s bring it home 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

“The UK government’s continued complicity in Israel’s atrocities is unconscionable, and I do not want to spend another day operating on children who have been shot and starved by a military our government supports.” Devastating reporting.

We love this definition! 😍

Gabriel Fauré’s opera Pénélope opens at the Prinzregententheater today. Director Andrea Breth and conductor Susanna Mälkki spoke to me about the work in an article for Opera Now: www.gramophone.co.uk/opera-now/fe...

The Proms are back, looking and sounding terrific. My first night review is in the I Paper: inews.co.uk/culture/arts...

Gloire de Paris🎶 ❤️

Psst…Amazon currently has Myra on Prime with 10% discount and next-day delivery… www.amazon.co.uk/Myra-Hess-Na...

‘“What can be done?” the European diplomat might ask me today. For a start, call a spade a spade. This is an apartheid regime carrying out a genocide on a captive population. End military assistance. Suspend arms exports to Israel.’ Tareq Baconi on Gaza: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

Falstaff at Glyndebourne about to start! Hope they still have the glove-puppet cats. 🐈‍⬛🐈

Mindblowing Salome in concert at LSO tonight with Pappano, Grigorian, Volle and entire team absolutely on fire. They’re doing it all again on Sunday, so get begging, borrowing or stealing.

Today we celebrate the 98th birthday of conductor Herbert Blomstedt. Still active, still touring, still entrancing orchestras and audiences alike. Chapeau, maestro 🫡 📷 © Paul Yates

Word of the day is ‘forwallowed’ (15th century): extremely weary from tossing and turning all night.

The UK’s culture sector is under threat, and the country is at risk of losing its global reputation for excellence, former Shadow Culture Secretary Thangam Debbonaire has told parliament.