A fascinating one, this. For some of us, Michael Nyman provided a sort of entry point into the world of modern classical music, thanks to his scores for those inscrutable Peter Greenaway films through the ‘80s and early ‘90s. Nyman was never an ascetic minimalist, mind, and as his career progressed towards stuff like the soundtrack to “The Piano”, a fairly ravishing romantic style came to the fore, too. I saw his band play a few times what must be nearly two decades ago now, and was always struck by the vigour and playfulness which he brought to classical music through pieces like that demented theme from “A Zed And Two Noughts”, or the Purcell reboot of “The Draughtsman’s Contract”. There was a classical discipline there, certainly, but also a certain intangible spirit that could grab the attention of a tentatively adventurous indie student, too. Seeing Nyman perform in the Music & Film Arena at Latitude, then, will be something of a rare treat. Apparently, he’ll be playing solo, showcasing some short films (hopefully including the one about his obsession with QPR), and giving a talk about his music; he first found acclaim, if memory serves, as a groundbreaking classical music critic. Latitude harbours many esoteric pleasures, but this session looks like a real highlight. See you down the front. . .
A fascinating one, this. For some of us, Michael Nyman provided a sort of entry point into the world of modern classical music, thanks to his scores for those inscrutable Peter Greenaway films through the ‘80s and early ‘90s.
Nyman was never an ascetic minimalist, mind, and as his career progressed towards stuff like the soundtrack to “The Piano”, a fairly ravishing romantic style came to the fore, too. I saw his band play a few times what must be nearly two decades ago now, and was always struck by the vigour and playfulness which he brought to classical music through pieces like that demented theme from “A Zed And Two Noughts”, or the Purcell reboot of “The Draughtsman’s Contract”. There was a classical discipline there, certainly, but also a certain intangible spirit that could grab the attention of a tentatively adventurous indie student, too.
Seeing Nyman perform in the Music & Film Arena at Latitude, then, will be something of a rare treat. Apparently, he’ll be playing solo, showcasing some short films (hopefully including the one about his obsession with QPR), and giving a talk about his music; he first found acclaim, if memory serves, as a groundbreaking classical music critic. Latitude harbours many esoteric pleasures, but this session looks like a real highlight. See you down the front. . .
