under another sun

A beautiful hot day. The crowds surging down from the station to the beach like urban lemmings. Worked on The New Idea this morning, as Lorraine worked on the next desk on preparation for her school interview. Then I took myself off to the gym. Working out for quite some time, and trying to lose the fat suit which has stealthily crept back onto me. Feeling an odd sense of frustration at the moment. I am working hard on the The New Idea, but having to dispel a fresh wave of pessimism every day before I start work. Once I get going things are progressing well, and I believe in the project, but for months I have felt as if I have been driving with the handbrake on and any progress is incredibly hard won. Going to the gym is the healthiest way of getting rid of that feeling. Other than having a few drinks. As Lorraine was working tonight, I went to see my pals in the Tacet Ensemble play in Hove, conducted by Matt. A really good evening's entertainment, with pieces by lots of m...

This concert will fall in love with you The first night -- sorry the world premiere -- tonight. Off to the gym this morning, and a long steadying chat with Richard. This followed by some sustained faffing before Lorraine and Beth pulled up at the end of the Twitten, and I loaded my stuff into their car. Then setting up the venue, moving the piano, chairs, Tom and Adam assembling their marimba and vibraphone, people dressing up. Beth and Mark being invaluable fixing clothes and stands and microphones for me. Lorraine as usual seeming to be key to organising everything. The only thing downside was that the venue was cold. We hadn't bargained for the chilliest May temperatures in years. Tonight was always going to be the quiet night in terms of attendance, so there were only a little over thirty people. Was pleased to see Mark (who I've known since I was 11) and his wife Carol. Also pleasantly surprised to see Alex and Jen from next door, and Cath who snapped some of the shots be...

Portly Prince To Specsavers to get my reading glasses bent back into shape, after I sat on about a year ago. Can't believe it has taken me so long. Put into a fury today by a person unknown, who parked their rucksack in my front garden crushing loads of plants. I hurled it venemously down the Twitten, and when I returned from Specsavers it was gone. To the costume shop again, where I met Beth who helped me, with the excellent Jessica, sort out some remarkable purple and black clothes for the concert. A 100 year old black silk top hat with purple filly band, black tails, purple waistcoat, some species of purple frilly cravat, pointed shoes, and a cummerbund. Suave, like a large portly version of Prince. Then Beth and I off to Sussex University for the final rehearsal with the Tacet Ensemble and the choir. All went fairly well, I think. Though I was not using a microphone, which I will do at the concert, so was always at the top of my voice, which meant I lost some of the colouring....

Crossing the Rubicon Lorraine I decided this morning, is actually some species of angel. I crawled out of bed, and she fed me tea, a bacon buttie, pills and orange juice till I could function again. We drove to my place where we picked up Matt and headed off to a rehearsal room in Sussex University. Today my Rubicon was to be crossed. The first rehearsals with members of the Tacet Ensemble. My secret horror was that I would miss all the cues in the music, and look like a chump. However the rehearsal went better than I dared hope. Amazing to see proper musicians at work. They just sat down and played, and instantly the piece was alive. Ellie was on violin, Thomas on marimba, Adam on vibraphone, and Glen on piano, and they made the sonorous sound that hung in the air in what I can only describe as a magical way. I was happy with how I performed too and the words and music seem to fit one another perfectly, and I found most of my cues. Matt had always said that we'd know pretty quickl...

Warts an' all Busy day today. Off in the morning to take a long look at St Michael and All Angels church, which has some beautiful glasswork including examples by William Morris and Burne-Jones. Two ladies were on hand to talk to about the Church, and lend me a pair of binoculars to peer up at the glass. I mentioned that Matt and my concert would be on there, and so fell into lots of conversations, and said hello to one of the curates. A lovely place. Then back to my place where Matt arrived, and we had a brief discussion about our This concert will fall in love with you project and I fed him some bean jar. He was amusingly disapproving of the state of my study, mentioning tidy minds and so on. Then off to the now traditional Basketmakers, where Sam and Lorraine had met. Found them with Lorraine tucking into a big pint of porter. We had a lovely afternoon shooting the breeze there. Matt mentioned, as an aside, that he thought our next project would be an opera and that we would ge...