Gershwin at the Phil

We were well entertained at the Liverpool Phil tonight.
Clark Rundell introduced an evening of Gershwin music. David was disappointed when he saw the orchestra, he was expecting Jazz, but as soon as the first chord from Strike up the band, he said "I didn't expect that" It was very good.  After two pieces they were joined by the pianist Stefano Bollani, who then rounded the first half off with some improvisations.
The piano had a mellow tone, and the first two solos were quite mellow. The last two had a brighter melody in the right hand with the left hand accompanying. He played a joke at the end, as we saw some of the humour we saw more of later.
After the break there was music from Porgy & Bess, which was great. There were some familiar tunes, and some beautiful lush sounds in places, and some faster parts. There were some false endings, big grand moments that seemed like a finale but were not.
Then came Rhapsody in Blue, played with improvisations, as it was by Gershwin.  It is a truly great piece, with dramatic variations of pace and volume.  How the orchestra coped with the variations of timing was amazing.  A few of us were on our feet with applause at the end.
They played an encore, piano and orchestra, and Stefano was following a score. I am not sure that he was playing from the score at all, but it all part of the entertainment. He kept playing as the orchestra walked off, and proceeded to entertain us with a variety of tunes, including a Beatles number

Weekend at Grange

We went to Grange-over-Sands to see the Prom Art last weekend.  Every last Sunday of the month in the summer, people come and set up their tables and gazebos to sell their crafts. There was jewellery, cushions, glass ornaments, clocks, pictures. It was good to see the wares, and to talk to the people.   Ann's craft group are hoping to take part in it next month, so we took note of how people set out their stalls, and how they coped with the strong winds.

After some lunch we walked around the town and the ornamental park and admired the ducks before going to the Hazelmere Cafe for some Assam tea and a very gooey cake going b y the name of "The Beesting"

Ducklings by the lake

I bought a pair of trainers at a shop called Lancasters, and got them muddy straight away by walking out on the grass beyond the promenade.  After checking in at the B&B we drove up to Bowness on the Witherslack road, a very windy and isolated road running through beautiful woodland underneath Whitbarrow scar.  The day had brightened into a bright evening and it was very beautiful driving through the countryside.
Bowness turned out to be wall to wall bars restaurants and bistros - we might as well stayed in Liverpool. We drove on up to The Queen's Head in Troutbeck, and being very full of lunch and afternoon tea, we shared a main meal and cheese and biscuits, which did us very well.
The next day I enjoyed a full Cumbrian breakfast at Corner Beech House, with home made raspberry jam, before setting off for our visit to Holker Hall.  As we left Grange we drove down the Beech Hut gallery, where Ann bought a necklace made with coloured felt balls. We enjoyed a nice lunch at Holker Hall and bought some plants from their shop, and Wensleydale cheese from their food hall.
For all it being a bank holiday, the roads were not too crowded, and we were back home in less than two hours. We drove back through Grange, and the road into Grange from the West really does have some beautiful views across to Arnside, Silverdale, and Morecambe bay.  A great way to spend a bank holiday weekend.