islandhippy

Since my dear wife and robot baby (I taught Olive to walk like a robot and she prefers this to regular walking) are out of town for ten days, I'm enjoying a rare holiday at home. On Tuesday evening I caught the New York Philharmonic at the Esplanade Concert Hall. With new conductor Alan Gilbert at the helm, and Emannuel Ax on piano, the visiting orchestra performed Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4 and Symphony No. 7. The performances were amazing and I was lucky to have a great seat ... I was too late to book a ticket online for this sell-out event so I strolled up to the Esplanade box office an hour before it started and picked up a S$275 ticket for less than half the price from an elderly Frenchman who had been stood up. Hey, I'll be anybody's partner if I get to listen to the NY Philharmonic! The audience responded enthusiastically with a partial standing ovation for both pieces and we were entertained with some encores. I can't wait to take Olive to concerts ... it'll probably be the Wiggles before Beethoven but that's cool. I hope Olive inherits her mother's musical talent and not mine. Sandy plays the piano (apparently) but I don't play anything. Somebody did pass an oboe round at school once but I didn't inhale. I hope Olive chooses the cello, that would make me so happy. Olive on the cello, Sandy on the grand piano, me ... conducting of course!