Concerts in Lockdown

When I lived in Freiburg, I connected with a guitarist who played Zigeuner jazz and taught me how to improvise–never quite like Grappelli, but it made a change from Bach. We would pile into his Citroen 2CV and head across the border to France, to Colmar, where we met up with the Basssist–drinking cheap red wine, playing Django tunes, in his kitchen–local kids sitting in the windows listening. It felt as if I was in a film!

You may have noted Django's two fingers and be astounded by the speed of his runs. He lost them in a fire.

I had a flatmate in London who played this late Beethoven sonata for about five hours a day. Surprisingly, I never tired of it.

Mendelsshon wrote this when he was just sixteen – the age, it seems, of some of these players. The joy of this performance and the way they communicate it is astonishing.

Mozart's Magic Flute Overture, Riccardo Muti & Vienna Philharmonic

Liszt's Les Preludes, conducted by Daniel Barenboim and The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra

Brahms Piano Concerto #2 Alexander Kantarov

Please follow this link for Arthur's special recommendation (which is not available as a Youtube)

Alternative choice: Brahms Piano Concerto No.2 with Emmanuel Axe, piano, conducted by Bernard Haitink with the ECO.