Virtual Bubble wrap!!! You don't even need to go to the shops. Sometimes I love the internet.
I'd been wanting to see Mutter live since The X introduced me to her second recording of Vivaldi's Four Seasons. The first recording, made with the legendary conductor Karajan, was a technically perfect piece - the work of a dutiful protégé - a bit stuffy and refined. The second recording is something quite different - pared down, vibrant, energetic - you get the sense that this is music played for the love of it, for the fun of it, not to display pure technical skill. It's one of my all-time favourite recordings of the piece.
This is a sort of trailer for the recording: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=5DWAdJKUlxo
So when I saw that she was playing with the London Philharmonic I nearly wept with joy. This lady is classical music royalty and it's not often that you get to see her perform live.
The concert was on Saturday and her performance was incredible. She played Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto and I couldn't take my eyes off her - she was absolutely mesmerising.
Her phrasing is insane, tone is divine, she's lyrical, mischievous, vibrant. In my new policy of not "reviewing" events anymore, I'll just say, find a recording and check it out.
My only complaint (concern?) was that in a packed out auditorium, I must have been one of only a dozen people under 45 in attendance. What is up with that? Why don't more twenty-somethings dig classical music? Didn't your parents force you to go to classical music concerts when you were a kid? Didn't you watch Fantasia?
PS Watch Fantasia - it's insane! In a good way...
I met a guy from New York a few days ago who had just been to Paris for the first time. I asked him what he thought of the city and he said, "it's too flat - where are all the skyscrapers?" What's the point in having cities look the same? Even if Paris has been stuck in a bit of an architectural time warp since the late 70's (there's a reason there aren't any skyscrapers in Paris and it's called the Montparnasse Tower. It's hideousness led to the banning the 1977 of buildings taller than 25m (82ft) in the centre, 37m (121ft)farther out) it ain't anymore.
Take Jacob Macfarlane's new Cité de la Mode et du Design. Built next to the Gare d'Austerlitz on the Seine, there's no way anyone is going to miss this. From the river side, it looks like an electric green Gumby is doing the breaststroke in the Seine (Cf. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gumby_Show). There are so many brilliant conceptual ideas in this building, all amazingly carried off in completion. The Cité houses the most prestigious fashion school in France as well as a new design gallery. But it's not a building for entry badges and students only: cut through it at ground level a wide arcade continues the Seine-side walkway. The strange, undulating green tubes house a network of paths and stairs that wander up and down the building and over the Seine. One of the best bits, however, is where you can't see - on the roof. There's a massive public square covered in decking and planted artificial hills, housing a restaurant, offices, and terraces. The views of the Paris roofscape and the Seine are meant to be fantastic. I can't wait to see it for myself.
Who needs skyscrapers anyway?
This week's show is all about eating locally and I loved the idea of (though not so much the comments about) eating locally for an entire year. I think, as a whole, we take the origin of our food completely for granted. As a veggie, I have to be a tiny bit OCD about food because I've opted to not eat certain things. But being super attentive to where your food comes from instead of what it comes from is quite an interesting and thought provoking proposition.
My first thought was that, there's no way I could do this for a month, let alone a whole year. But having said that, I have lately been thinking about doing some kind of silly experiment. My most recent thought (after listening to another radio programme where pensioners complained about their financial situation) was that it would be interesting to try to live on a state pension (something like £90 a week) for a month.
Any thoughts? Should I try to eat locally or live frugally? Or perhaps complete and utter madness and try both at the same time? I have a feeling I'm going to regret ever having brought this up...
The woman in the top photograph is Yulia Tymoshenko, the Prime Minister of Ukraine (standing next to Vladimir Putin). In complete contrast to female politicians in the States or the UK, she actually looks pretty stylish, if a little bit Heidi meets orthodox iconography.
I haven't read this book yet, but it's one of the best covers I've seen in a long time. The Chrysler building is astonishing. Gorgeous.
What happened to glamour in travel? Was it the collapse of capitalism? The rise of capitalism? The Metro of St Petersburg is absolutely amazing, and I'd rather have visually stunning stations to keep me calm during rush-hour than the piped in classical music at depressing Brixton station. Or maybe there never was any 'glamour' in travel and it was always the cake box 'Catch Me If You Can' Pan Am advertising fantasy of travel that sucked us into believing in this phantom glamorous, golden age of travel.
The horror that is Ryanair!
Much nicer... First class on the Eurostar.
Even Esquire thinks the new St Pancras station is sexy enough for a fashion spread.
Passenger hell at Heathrow Terminal 3.
The new terminal 5 - a glorified box. Yawn!
The new St Pancras - well sexy!
Le Train Bleu, aka the most amazing train station restaurant ever. It's in Paris, mais bien sûr, Gare du Lyon to be precise.
The Gare de Lyon - not as sexy as St Pancras - but still pretty... 
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