We had a completely delightful evening with Nathaniel Mander and La Pompadour at the end of last month. The French lady was looking at her finest, Nathaniel’s playing was, as always, exquisite and his introductions to each piece were charming, funny and full of delicious anecdotes.
So good was it all that we have decided to treat you to some rather longer extracts than would normally appear in these posts. So here is Nathaniel, talking first about the spinet, and then about the Bach household and the Anna Magdalena Bach book and finally about having a lesson with the great man himself.
So now for some music. And we start with a little test of how well you know your Bach!
A contemporary of Bach’s was the French composer, François Couperin with whom Bach corresponded….
And finally, to end, a little of Nathaniel’s own music….
And then we had supper! Beef, oyster, anchovy and olive raised pie; Potato, apple, onion, walnut and parsnip raised pie; Butterbean, artichoke and quails’ egg salad; Joan Cromwell’s chicken salad with lemon…..
Such a delightful evening – which totally lived up to expectations and justified the long waiting list for tickets. We are already planning the next one.
However, if you cannot wait to hear more, Nathaniel has just released another delightful Couperin piece, Le Tic-Toc-Choc, on You Tube – this time playing one of Andrew Garlick’s new harpsichords – a glorious instrument, Nat says.
And we would both like to give a shout out to Continuo Connect, the brilliant online listing of early music, and of any music played on period instruments, anywhere in the country. A treasure trove for anyone looking for a concert or a festival to go to, or for anyone looking for musician or group to play at their concert or festival. After the concert Nat and I were puzzling as to where the ten new audience members that we did not recognise had come from – and then we realised that they must have come from the concert’s listing on the CC site. So thank you, Continuo Connect!
Meanwhile…
Our harp, flute and viola Debussy and Archbold concert on March 9th looks as though it too might need a waiting list. Over 60% of the seats are already sold and it is still a month way!
Book now for Sunday 9th March – Hampstead Lane
A feast of Debussy – with a pinch of Archbold. For his slightly unusual trio of harp, viola and flute, harpist Hugh Webb has put together a delightful programme of Debussy interspersed by short pieces by his good friend, the composer Paul Archbold.
£30 to include buffet supper and wine – book here.
And don’t forget…
7th March – 10th April – London Handel Festival
Eighteen different events – full blooded Handel operas, lunchtime chamber concerts, celebrity recitals, another exciting production from the Handel Opera Studio – and of course, the world famous Handel Singing competition.
For all details and to book go here.
Sunday 23rd March – Highgate Society Lunchtime Concert
Pianists Viola Lenzi and Isabella Gori will be combining forces on the Highgate Society piano to play us some four-handed jazz and folk inspired music. Think Gershwin, Greig and Dvořák.
£15 to include a glass of Bucks Fizz – book here.
For future happenings in at Hampstead Lane and elsewhere – see our Upcoming Events page.
Exquisite! Thank you. Both the playing and the explanations! Mr. Mander is a consummate artist.
FIVE STARS. A magical evening hosted by Michelle Berridale Johnson with great elegance and warmth. Nathaniel Mander’s programme provided a precious opportunity to experience a musical varietà as heard in a salon of the mid-18th century. The composers included J.S. Bach, François Couperin and Jacques Duphly, each introduced with learning and wit by Nathaniel whose keyboard artistry is spellbinding. He played his own spinet by the leading contemporary maker Andrew Garlick. This beautiful instrument has remarkable presence before a salon audience, it’s a close replica of the original signed by Parisian maker Jean Claude Goujon and dated 1753.
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed it.