bribe by Kirsten Svuure
On Saturday I went with four people to the Beggars Fair in Romsey. It was atrocious. The music, the company, everything. A social day which I did not enjoy. Yesterday I played crazy golf with six others. It was okay. Everything that happens makes me realise I like my own company more and more. I love people. But it's so hard to find the tolerable ones. Sometimes it's like none exist. So today I went off alone to London - the Wigmore Hall for (I think) the final Monday lunchtime concert of the summer.
I booked my ticket yonks ago - a front row seat as usual. As the succeeding weeks passed the hall filled up behind me with sold seats. And yet, when today's concert began the hall was about a quarter full, if that. The obvious thing had happened - most people this morning had decided that it was too hot to go into central London.
Not only did I have Wigmore Hall to myself - I had all of London to myself - London was very quiet. As for the concert - I don't mind lieder - it's not my favourite type of music - and I don't care about the words - the YouTube broadcast shows that I am just about the only person in the Hall who isn't reading the words in the programme. That would be too much like being at school.
For me it's just the atmosphere of the music. It's what I imagine characters in a Chekov play would be hearing and playing and singing - not that I've ever really "got" Chekov either. As ever, at the end there is that awkwardness over whether to push for an encore etc etc etc - I do find it very embarrassing. I hate it. Mind you, I hate encores. I've never been to a gig/concert/whatever where I've wanted one, or where one has been deserved. And whose reward is it ? - not the audience, who are busting for the loo or worrying about the parking fee running out. Or, in my case, just plain bloody bored out their mind. Every concert should only last half as long as it does.
And even if that came true, it would still need to be halved again, and again. Until zilch. That's what it'll be like when I am Queen Of The Universe. But no, I enjoyed it all really. Tomorrow I had planned to walk to - probably - Salisbury on my own. But not in this heat. I'll make ten more albums instead. A lovely home-y day. On Friday there's a fish fair in Lymington, and my most recent ex-girlfriend and I will be going. So that's a social day. But that'll be fine. She is about the only person left who I really hit it off with. We really should get married and all that stuff, but I don't like encores.
Recorded this evening. Photo from the train leaving central London this afternoon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdMTytGy__o
