There are two exhibitions which recently opened in London that have a connection with Diego Velázquez – for me, as for so many, one of the very greatest painters in the history of art. The first – devoted to Francisco de Zurbarán (1598-1664), at the National Gallery – is a clear link, since he and … Continue reading Great art in London: Zurbarán and Whistler
I’ve been listening to some very interesting new music recently (more about which soon-ish, I hope), but nothing has been more welcome than a Carla Bley double CD entitled Joyful Noise – a somewhat unexpected treat since the great bandleader, composer, arranger, keyboards player and occasional singer died around two and a half years ago. … Continue reading Joyful indeed: new(?) music from Carla Bley
It was with considerable sadness that I learned of the death, a few days ago, of the great composer, bandleader, pianist and occasional horn-player Mike Westbrook, just weeks after his 90th birthday. Sadly, I never met him (though I exchanged a few emails with him and his wife Kate during the last couple of years), … Continue reading In Memory of a Musical Titan: RIP Mike Westbrook (1936-2026)
These days, each and every year I get to thinking that the state of the world can’t get any worse, then something comes along to prove me wrong. I needn’t give examples here; suffice to say that, for me at least, the arts have become ever more important as a solace and distraction, above and … Continue reading My best movies, music, books, etc of 2025
December again. For some years, I've posted recommendations for recent BluRay/DVD releases, CDs and books that might be of use for anyone wondering what Christmas gifts to buy. (I find choosing presents very difficult, so am myself always open to ideas from friends.) So here we go once more. I hope some of the suggestions … Continue reading Movies, music and books for Christmas – and beyond…
I’ve generally been more admiring of Alan Bennett’s books and his writing for television (particularly the superb Talking Heads monologues) than of the films either adapted from his plays or based, in the case of A Private Function, on an original screenplay. Still, I’ve counted myself a Bennett fan since first encountering him in the … Continue reading Singing of Love and War: Alan Bennett’s The Choral
Many years ago – in the late 1980s or early 90s – my friend Tony Benn (no, not the politician, but a painter with good taste in music) marked my birthday by giving me a then recently released album entitled Arbos. It was my first encounter with the music of the Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, … Continue reading Winds from the East: five fine new musical delights
The recent release of Percolation, a solo album by the Norwegian pianist and composer Christian Wallumrød, was another reminder from this highly imaginative and highly idiosyncratic artist that musical eccentricity – when it’s not some whimsical or contrived mannerism – can be wonderfully refreshing. In Wallumrød’s case, what I mean by eccentricity is an innate … Continue reading But Is It Jazz? The Ever-Surprising Christian Wallumrød
Around three months ago, I wrote about what to me seemed a fairly transformative experience of joining a local choir to sing some music by Brahms. I certainly don’t intend to post a blog after every concert I take part in – this will probably be the last – but in the hope of encouraging … Continue reading Singing Beethoven (or how to have fun)
Frequent readers will probably have registered my admiration for the various musical offerings of saxophonist Trygve Seim and trumpeter Arve Henriksen, so are unlikely to be surprised by my enthusiasm for Arcanum, a newly released quartet album they made with bassist Anders Jormin and percussionist Markku Ounaskari. The four have played together in various configurations … Continue reading But Is It Jazz? Three New Albums
notes and observations by Geoff Andrew 