As it happened, it was the day of the mayhem at Westminster, which we learned about along the way. As far as we could tell this did not directly affect the Victoria line from Vauxhall to Oxford Circus, but the train, the tube and Oxford Circus were all unusually crowded for an early weekday evening. As was All Bar One in Regent Street, so once again no smarties, settling for cake & monkey in the bar in the basement of Wigmore Hall.
The Hall was near but not quite full. Perhaps some of those intending to come had been caught up in the mayhem. But not the Hall Director, as he was sighted meeting and greeting in the basement. Unusually, the colour scheme of the two monumental pots of flowers flanking the stage was not quite right. Usually they are very good, being from a much grander flower shop than we could afford to patronize.
Then while waiting for the off, I had the odd illusion that the central wall painting at the top of the apse over the stage was an eye, with the picture of muses and what-have-you being what the eye could see. Granted, the painting was eye shaped from where we were sitting, but it was all very odd. Never happened before. Not the same as being there, but google will turn up the painting in question on presentation of the search term 'wigmore hall decorations'.
Osborne, in the main, was very good. The Brahms intermezzi, played in reverse order, made an interesting contrast to the sonatas, but I was not convinced that the concert would not have gone better without them. Too much changing of gear for me. Not helped by there only being a short pause between each intermezzo and the sonata with which it was paired, and with our having been instructed not to clap. Not clapping good, but short pause bad.
The Guardian review of an earlier concert had complained a bit of thumping, giving it only three stars, while the review of this one went up to four. For myself, I thought that there was thumping, perhaps the playing of a young man (Osborne being nearly 50) rather than an old man, with, to my taste, there being too much contrast between the quiet bits and the loud bits. Nevertheless, some of the loud bits, particularly in the last sonata, were very good indeed.
Very little feedback from the (eight) microphones on this occasion. At least what I have taken to be feedback in the past.
Afterwards to the Cock & Lion for a couple of beverages. Rather a good pub, more or less in the old style, although it has to be said that they do serve food during the day.
The net result of all of which was that I drank a little more than is usual these days. Then the first cup of tea of the following morning tasted as if the milk was a little off, which BH told me was the result of the substance abuse of the evening before. Something she claims to have logged consistently over the years. I was not too sure, but as it happens I had a few glasses of wine a few days later and the same thing happened that following morning, so perhaps she is right. Another quirk of the same sort is that when a cold is looming, I start to smell fish everywhere - and prompt action can sometimes head the cold off.
PS: I have heard Osborne at least once before, getting on for two years ago. See reference 1.
Reference 1: http://psmv2.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/luko.html.
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