Lazy Luddite Log

11.9.06

Rachmaninov Vespers

In this entry on the date it was posted I wrote (moreorless) the following:

The Monash University Choral Society (MonUCS) is performing Russian choral works including the amazing Vespers by Rachmaninov on this Saturday at BMW Edge (silly name awesome venue) in Federation Square. More info just ask me. Come one come all. It is awesome truly it is.

And truth be told we were pretty impressive but the conditions in which we performed were far from perfect. Federation Square is a busy complex with several different venues in it and it seems that nobody has overall management of the whole. As a result we had to compete with a raucous party with pumping music (conflicting reports say it was alternately recorded music or live band) in the venue next door which was separated from us only by a wall of glass and steel frame that was far from soundproof. Another way of looking at this is to say that the party next door had to cope with a fifty-strong group of singers performing in a totally different tempo from their chosen music.

Anyway by the second half some hasty negotiations had been made with the venue(s) and harmony was restored. But it does make one wonder. Is there anybody running Federation Square who is even aware of what different events and functions that are booked in there? Or is the whole thing a mess of contractors and sub-contractors with nobody having any sense of the complex whole?

Anyway it was a satisfying performance followed by an after-party remininscent of the party scene from Breakfast At Tiffany’s (wall-to-wall mingling guests in a tiny apartment).

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2 Comments:

  • harmony was restored
    Pun intended?

    Anyway it was a satisfying performance
    I was far from satified. The humiliation and disappointment from the disastrous first half hung around me for days; so at the end of the concert (even though I thought we sang well) I felt quite flat. Even a week later, I felt like we hadn't even performed the Vespers yet - I still had all this built up frustrated energy (that for me usually gets released during a performance).

    Nice of you to put a positive spin on it, and sorry to be such a 'pooper' about it, but I was far from satisfied.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, At 04 October, 2006  

  • Pun intended by the time I had in fact hit the 'publish' button.

    I think you are more the musician than I and have a stronger sense of the importance of a professional standard of performance.

    It was a pity which is why I do criticise the lack of coordination across related venues. However I think we compensated well for those circumstances which is all you can ever do.

    By Blogger Dan, At 06 October, 2006  

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