under another sun

Matt and Pete's Big Night Out So the day of the Pollard & Kenny Clameur launch. Betty back this morning full of pep, armed with gifts of an unusual beer, and for me a large letter P made of chocolate from her trip to the low countries. After breakfast, Betty and I popped around to Masquerade where I hired a smart grey jacket with tails (although Betty and I assessed several others including gold and red sequined affairs. I was rather drawn to these until I looked at Betty's face). A little later Lorraine and I drove off to collect Mum from the station. Mason still getting over his chesty cough and it was thought best not to brave the ice and long journey. The next few hours given over to preparation, shoe cleaning, shirt ironing, a strategic nap and so on. Off then to the Unitarian Church and rehearsals began. Thank God we had lots of people to help us. Lorraine and as usual helping everything happen. She is so unbelievably supportive of me, it makes me feel very lucky. Bet...

Rehearsals and Radio I had a productive day. Was called up by the BBC and I have been invited on to the local radio on Valentine's day to talk about the album. Nice to feel that some of the promotional effort I have been putting in is paying off. Also worked on poems in a way that didn't disfigure them. Lorraine working from home mostly today, and she had Rosie around tonight and cooked a mid week roast. But she also kindly drove me off to Lancing College, where an amazing floodlit Gothic chapel is visible for miles in the dark. Atmospheric to drive down narrow roads heading for this wonderful structure. The music rehearsal room was next to the chapel, and it was good to meet the boys there again: Tom, Adam, Cem and Glen as well as the choir. The run-throughs a little raw, but we are beginning to get into the zone for the concert. A lift from Glen and all the band plus Adam Swayne went to The Shakespeare's Head for a pleasant and cheeky beer. All feeding my secret fantasy ...

Alarms and sweet music Mark had gone out after work with some friends, including Matt partner of Sarah who Beth works as a nanny for sometimes (and is head of the stage school Beth and Mark attended). Mark and Matt where having a chat at about 3:00am sitting down on the beach where they were randomly attacked by a gang of youths. Mark was picked up and thrown into the sea, and Matt who has had army training was set upon by half a dozen youths kicking him in the face. They arrived at our house at about 3:30 Matt covered in blood. Lorraine and Beth tended to them and put Matt to bed after checking for concussion. Shamefully, I was feeling so rough at 3:30am that I didn’t even get up. In the morning poor Matt's face was very colourful with an entirely closed eye, a broken nose and covered in bruises, and after Sarah came around Mark and Matt went to the police station to give their statements. I lent Matt a pair of shoes as his were covered in blood. Sinks full of soaking blood...

Recording day The morning of the day I became a recording artist sucked: beautiful sun triggering the release of pollen and other miscreant spores into the air making my throat sore. Then I felt like weeping with frustration as my computer, with its spanking new hard drive, failed again. Managed to start it and restore it to an earlier version (i.e. sometime yesterday) and it has been working since then, but I trust it as far as I can throw it, which will next be out of the window. To St Michael and All Angels for 3:30. Dr Simon Scardanelli our engineer already busy with a nest of wires and microphones. Matt seething as the priests told him that we would have to interrupt our recording for them to say prayers, something which nobody had mentioned until we arrived. This being England, we all had a cup of tea first, and there were quite a few nerves flying around, although there was a very supportive atmosphere. Simon really nice guy, who was veru reassuring to me. Adam and Tom assemblin...

Back in the band A wad of cotton wool in my head instead of a brain today, perhaps due to a slight cold. Worked on amends to the atrial fibrillation work, and a bit of time on poems, which are going amazingly well at the moment. In the afternoon going through the score of This concert will fall in love with you and feeling rather nervous about the rehearsal due to the aforementioned brain. Off to Sussex University rehearsal room to meet Matt. Was introduced to Cem Muharrem, who has replaced Ellie as she wasn't available for the recordings, but Cem seems to be an amazing violinist. Adam, Tom and Fingers Capra there too. Felt happy to be back with the gang. A little insight into the life of a musician, and the feelings of camaraderie that can go with it. For me all this is like being in a band for a few weeks, which as so much of my time is spent alone is rather nice. Rather sadly it makes me think of Yes, my favourite rock group, and helps me understand the stuff I've read abo...

Earworms and Queen Victoria Some French work this morning, writing about the joys of hepcat music concerts in Southern France. Anton tormenting today. Trying to get me to download a audiobook by Terry Pratchett called Pyramids, I eventually relented. Also the previous night he had played me a psychobilly version of the Joe 90 children's show, which has been an infuriating earworm all day and I have been wandering about singing it. Fiddling about with my personal site and my other blog which is now called peter kenny the notebook and is going to be 100 times better as a repository of all my adventures in writing. Off in the late afternoon to meet Catherine Pope for a beer in the basketmakers. Really interesting chat with her. We were soon joined by Matt and had an enjoyable few beers which were definitely not in my plans for a leaner skinnier Peter Kenny. Catherine is steadily republishing out-of-print Victorian novels. She is a Victorianist, and an all round very nice and interes...

Making the bed Taking apart a desk and a double bed, carrying them up and down stairs, and dangling pieces over the mezzanine balcony, and then reassembling them with Lorraine and Beth this afternoon. This all curiously quite fun, despite being laborious, with the cats jumping about us while we worked. Then off to meet Matt in the Basketmakers. There we had a general planning session about our next steps, and there is a lot to do. Talking about taking This concert on the road in the first months of next year, and also to record it. This would both be rather smart. Several other new projects to discuss, and some to get started on early. Greatly looking forward to all this new work. But it was nice mainly just to chat, have a few pints and hear more about his pastoral brass band piece, which sounds excellent, and learn the difference between an Oratorio and a Cantata. I really like knowing people who know things I don't, especially Matt. In the evening up to Lorraine's old neigh...

Perking up Pep and manly vigour gradually seeping back today. Went to the gym, for a cautious session listening to my audiobook. Managed to keep cool when new French employee of French client sent back my copy saying she had "improved" it for me. Fiddled with the layout of a Guernsey Double, also a few urgent last minute tweaks to the poems, and some detailed emails back and forth with Richard. We share a determination to make A Guernsey Double be the best it can possibly be. After work met Matt in the Basketmakers for a bite to eat, a few beers and a general wash up meeting. Overall pleased with the reception of This concert. There are many next steps, and a variety of projects on the table: taking This concert on the road with Tacet, writing a new piece for the Rainbow Chorus, and working on an Opera. Oh and we are going to put on another show in October. As ever we seem quite in tune, and both keen to press on. I feel very lucky at the moment!

Sizing up the venue Up fairly early working on stuff and things. Lorraine went off to watch the children's parade, then came back at lunchtime. I was working with Matt, and we put the final touches to the programme notes. Then to the venue with Lorraine. We met Beth who is going to stage manage and be an experienced directorial eye (I have complete confidence in her. She and Mark have been in more productions already at the age of 18 than I have had piping hot dinners). Walked around the Church again, and decided to alter where we are going to place ourselves. Turns out Glen Capra had just been giving a recital in there of piano music in the main part of the church (he is also in the Tacet Ensemble). He said that due to the cavernous acoustics he had to slow down some of the fast parts, so that individual notes could be heard. Our concert is in the older part of the church, with different acoustics. We spoke to Phillip who is director of music, and he has music stands with lights o...

A flyer foray An 8.00pm start on some advert copy for my lovely French clients, which was all done by 1.00pm. Matt called around at lunchtime and we went off for a flyering foray. Once you start looking you realise that there is hardly a square yard of Brighton that isn't already postered, or any ledge in a cafe or pub that doesn't have promotional material piled there. We added to this general marketing noise, Matt taking one side of a lane and me the other and popping into the shops and leaving flyers where we could. We wound up in The Basketmakers where were able to put posters in the toilets, and leave flyers there. It would have been rude not to have had a cheeky pint so we did, sat talking to a retired teacher called John at the bar before going our separate ways. Me popping into The Batty to flyer and poster there too. A quiet night, with little to report. Bastard snails are already after the marigolds I planted yesterday. I swear they can jump. Below an A4 poster the L...

Rehearsal Urgh . Woke up at Lorraine's house after a few hours of sleep. Rehearsal! Home, fed Calliope, showered, stumbled back to Lorraine's place clutching my score. From where we drove to Sussex University for an early This concert rehearsal, this time with musicians and choir together. Unbelievably had a hangover again . A sense of everybody being a bit off the pace today, and I fluffed some lines as we went through, but I put this down to partying but at least Lorraine and Matt were in the same boat. However I was reassured by old hands that it is good to have 'a rehearsal like that'. Even so, when not fiendishly concentrating, I really loved it. Struck by how beautifully Ellie plays violin. Matt has written some gorgeous stuff for her to play, but I'm just amazed at how full of feeling her tone is. Lorraine drove Matt and me back to Brighton, and then Lorraine and I had a chilled afternoon having lunch nearby, before she went home. Spent a quiet evening in w...

Back to Glamoursmith Up to work with some agency amigos today in Glamoursmith. Working on my A Guernsey Double poems on the train. Spent the day working on concepts for a Multiple Sclerosis treatment. Found this site here of radiology art. Home and in the evening ordered some flyers for This concert... and then listened to the midi files that Matt had sent me. For the first time I could hear the compositions for each of the variations. The music is absolutely gorgeous. I can't wait to performed by living and breathing musicians this weekend (as opposed to a computer composition program). Now neurotically worrying about being able to find my cues. Also found time to follow Manchester United's fortunes, and swap texts and calls with Anton. I watched them being knocked out of the Champion's League. After the fell event, no further texts from up the hill as the Nazgul shadow of football depression had fallen. It's a funny old game.

Score! Yippee... Can't describe the feeling of Matt handing me the This concert will fall in love with you score, nicely bound with lots of music and my words in it. Even better we had our first choir rehearsal today in St Michael & All Angels where we'll be performing. Matt took the choir (which includes Lorraine singing alto) through two madrigals which will be in the first half, and then quickly through some of the new material. I've never heard my words sung before, and it was an amazing feeling. This was voice only, with Matt playing a few lines and chords on the piano, but it sounded absolutely gorgeous. I also began to try out my lines in the context of the choir. Felt great to be starting. Mindy came to visit today, with her delightful daughter Lola. Good to see Mindy and meet the five year old Lola for the first time. Naturally we went down to the pier, and wandered among the tuppeny rollers, and high tech one armed bandits. Walked past a man and woman, with th...

Freed up on Friday Suddenly things seems to be happening. Even Lorraine's horrendous house move seems to be suddenly more likely. Another day on the French work, which makes me want get on the next ferry and drift about gormandising and glugging fine wines in welcoming villages. Love this client as the more flowery my prose gets, the more they seem to like it. Also I have been asked to work up at a healthcare agency for a spell next Tuesday for some concepting and copywriting. This all helps to back the slavering wolf from my door, and some way down the Twitten. Naturally rather pleased about this. A quick chat with First Matie who is close to buying a large Ridgeback dog to go with the large Subaru. Also got the pricing through from the printer for A Guernsey Double and talked to Phil about laying it out. Emailing Richard, who has sent his latest batch of poems through. All rather exciting. It is going to be an excellent book. Now forms to fill in for the Guernsey Arts commission...

Meeting Mr Coombes Working on French stuff a little this morning, and other bits. Decided this afternoon, as it was bright and sunny, to go for a long walk. Walked for a couple of hours along the coast and back, and felt decidedly good for it. In the evening off to see a processionally staged adaptation of plays by Pinter, with Lorraine and Sam by Beth and Mark's college. Forgotten how bleakly funny Pinter can be. "If you tell me one of our dogs bit this woman without giving his name, I will have that dog shot," made me laugh in an excerpt from Mountain Language . Some of the acting done outside, with Beth flinging herself to the floor with great gusto in moves she choreographed herself. She also ended the show with a long solo song. Very good. After, and as it was Matt's birthday, Lorraine and Sam and I went to meet him in the Brighton Tavern for yet more drinking. He appeared with Linda and we gave him a dinosaur birthday card. Much chatting and we were joined by an...

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...

Blunderbuss communications Got to grips with my Guernsey projects this morning discharging a blunderbuss of email in all directions - the Chief Librarian of the Prilaux Library, to Catriona, the This is Guernsey website, The official Denys Corbet website and so on. Plus Richard of course, and copying Matt as I'd like to take This Concert to Guernsey. A cold rainy day and I walked to The Brunswick at Hove to try to buy two tickets for The Dr Space Toad Experience show this weekend. Dr Spacetoad is Paul, an old friend from my days performing in the Troubadour Cafe. I have recently got in touch with Paul again who now lives in Paris. Annoyingly I turned up at The Brunswick slightly dripping and wearing an unflattering beany hat. The pleasant guys there told me that you can only buy an advance ticket over the Internet. I must have been looking particularly slack jawed as his colleague asked me kindly if I had access to the Internet, and talked me through the web page as if I were som...

Friends and variations Busy day today. Matt came around at noon, shortly after Lorraine and I had emerged, and we had a meeting about This concert will fall in love with you . He also played me through parts of the first five variations. It is incredibly exciting to hear them take shape, and how they interlace and enlarge on the words I've written. Even at this early stage, it is clear just how accomplished he is, and how this work will shine. We also discussed how we were going to promote it, and I've come up with a look and feel Matt's happy with. We were sat on my round table while we were talking and Calliope insisted sitting with her nose an inch away from Matt's pad. From there off to the now-traditional Basketmakers where we met Lorraine, Matty boy and Craig who'd come down from London, and Matt's pal John. A cheery afternoon in the pub, with great gusts of chatting and generally hanging out and catching up. Matty and Craig both looking splendid, and on f...

"You know this is, excuse me, a damn fine cup of coffee. I've had I can't tell you how many cups of coffee in my life, and this...this is one of the best." Perhaps inspired by watching Agent Cooper imbibe coffee with amazed delight (as I watched the first series of Twin Peaks again over the last couple of weeks) I have been taking myself for coffee. In fact my latest short story, Where the beauty is , is mainly set in a cafe. I went to my new coffee house today, the Caffè Nero on Prince Albert Street near the sea. A change of scene is incredibly good for the brain, especially as one under siege where the forces of snow and gloom combined (it was snowing steadily this morning, but by the evening was melting again). However with two damn fine cups of coffee I unleashed a couple of mind maps, and a much-needed session of prioritising my various plans and schemes. After this was done, I felt that the tanker of gloom had suddenly come about, and I was back on course. Home ...

Undeck the halls of boughs and holly For many, today is the The Great Monday of the Year. But I just want to get stuck in again, and feel very grateful to have the opportunity to do so. But first... Spent the day on admin of all kinds: chasing freelance payments (my old agency again ), working through emails, hoovering, and taking down the tree and other fripperies of Christmas, with Calliope diving noisily into the bauble bag. Had a long chat with Matt about This concert will fall in love with you. Both very excited about it. Before the concert I need to start strutting about on stage again. But I feel rusty, and need to get back in the saddle somehow. Had a much needed quiet night sipping Japanese green tea. Very cold, so I sat on the sofa under a blanket (and a strategically placed Calliope) and started watching my all time favourite drama series Twin Peaks again. Poor Laura Palmer, wrapped in plastic.