Extracts from the score to the ballet “Les Biches” by Francois Poulenc (1923):
Quirky and well-orchestrated, though it does cause me to flash back to the listening component of my A-Level music exam, where over a decade ago I was sitting in a cold sweat at an examination table writing about this very piece.
“Midnight” from the Cinderella Suite by Sergei Prokofiev:
An excellent and dramatic depiction of the clock striking midnight at the ball.
I had the pleasure of seeing the London Symphony Orchestra perform the entire ballet score at their recent BBC Proms concert the other night – as usual, they were on top form, particularly the woodwind section and the excellent and surprising offstage brass ensemble that played from the balcony during one particularly exciting section.
A review of the performance can be found here.
Semi-Partisan Politics 