Rather late post!

Hi everyone. I realise that it’s over a week since my last post – apologies for that – so here I am ready to keep you up to date with what I’m doing and what’s on my mind. It’s 7 weeks now since Robin and I have been in lockdown. All rehearsals and concerts were cancelled that week – w/b 16 March. We had a friend round to lunch on Tuesday 17th, and since then communication has been by phone, email and blog alone, although we do see neighbours to chat to sometimes.

We have a delicatessen Hudsons just down the road which was taken over in the last year by Katya, and she’s done a fantastic job of expanding her range, so everyday she has loads of fresh veg and fruit – like an old fashioned grocer! And whenever there was talk of supermarkets running out of eggs or flour, she’s always had plenty. We really don’t mind in these circumstances paying a bit more for food from her, and I hope that when things get back to the new normal, her current customers (including us) will continue to shop with her. Our butcher (Deans in Grove Road) is also doing great business, and he reckons he is doing 5 times the amount of his normal business. So let’s hear it for the local shops!

Now I’m sure you want to know how my Dahlias are getting on, so here’s a photo I’ve just taken this morning.



You can still see my bizarre wire netting over the bed – but it seems to be keeping the slugs away, so I’m opening it up around the dahlias, and will obviously aim to remove it completely when they are stronger and perhaps less attractive to those nasty creatures. You’ll notice one clematis which flowered on 1 May.

And here’s a couple more photos of the garden showing some lovely spring flowers out, and our little pond – can you spot the two goldfish? They are two years old, and we’ve not fed them once – they seem to survive on natural growth in the pond.

In the first few weeks of lockdown I was very fortunate in being able to practice the organ each day at a church just round the corner from where we live. Unfortunately the Church of England in their wisdom decided around Easter time that it wasn’t safe for priests and organists to even go into church so my practice had to stop. I don’t have an organ at home, so I’ve been playing the piano a lot more.

Here is a piece of Mozart for you. K 399 is an incomplete suite for keyboard, and below is me playing the Allemande from that suite, recorded just minutes ago! I’ve just looked up the complete (incomplete) suite, which consists of an Overture in C major (which I also play on the organ), then this Allemande in C minor; a Courante and just 5 and a bit bars of a Sarabande.

As many of you know, I’m an organist more than a pianist, so it’s with some trepidation that I expose myself on the piano (other than accompanying of course), so please forgive my inadequacies. Have a lovely week and I look forward to updating you again soon. Nick

7 Comments

  1. Lovely, Nick – both the garden and the Mozart! Thank you.

  2. garden glorious, musical entertainment equally so, many thanks

  3. Thank you Nick, loved the pictures of your garden and the beautiful piece of Mozart, Sue

  4. Lovely music and your garden is beautiful. I hope you will let us know how they look later in the summer!
    Thank you also for your daily exercise blog. You have inspired me to go back to my piano!

  5. Thank you Nick. I have just enjoyed listening to the Mozart whilst drinking a cup of tea and looking at the lovely pics of your garden. I am amazed that you are not able to go into the church to play the organ. What a shame for it to be sitting there idle. They obviously consider you to be a very dangerous person!
    Take care,
    Liz

  6. Hello Nick, Lovely to hear the Mozart piece – I also listened on Youtube to a couple of versions – one by Kristian Bezuidenhout – with a beautiful painting by Jacques Louis David 1788 of scientist and collaborator Antoine Laurent and Marie Anne Lavoisier -they were pioneers in chemistry researching oxygen and combustion. (I’m going to stop there as I am definitely not a scientist) . The other was Eileen Joyce. I am slowly going through the Hanon exercises and a lot more scales than I’ve ever played in my life and trying my best at Haydn Sonata III Eb Major. Also Gershwin Prelude No 2 (I have to break up some of the wide stretch chords) Is it possible to buy the score of the Allemande or must it be the whole thing?
    John and I bought some flapjack from Hudsons during the lunch break of the lovely Bach Motet: Jesu Meine Freude — another world.
    very best wishes and thanks for all the musical tips!
    Sian

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