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| Joshua Bell at the BBC Proms (BBC/Chris Christodoulou) |
I've been away for a while, doing non-musical things and
must admit I've been neglecting you. I hope you’re still out there. Anyway, it’s
been a busy few weeks at the BBC Proms and I've managed to cram 8 visits in so
far. A few of them have been in my capacity as critic (and, as I don’t get
paid, I’m as much a pro as those guys at the Indy on Sundy will soon be). If
you’d like to catch up, I've reviewed Vilde Frang’s excellent Proms chamber recital,
Joshua Bell’s appealing-but-not-entirely-comfortable Tchaikovsky Concerto with the National Youth Orchestra of the United States, and Daniel Hope’s rough and ready (emphasis on the rough) Prokofiev 2nd. There’s also been the
small matter of the Barenboim Ring, of which I will say only this – one of the
greatest musical experiences of my life.
