Went into the office on Monday only to discover I didn't need to be there so did a bit of work at home the next few days. Went into the office today as I had some paperwork I needed to get renewed which involved phoning various people "on call" in the UK to get the required signatures.
Then left the office at lunchtime but went back into in the evening to meet up with a few colleagues for drinks and to go see the Seattle Symphony. There's a holiday tradition here that the Seattle Symphony do Beethoven's 9th in the run up to New Year, with the special concert being tomorrow night where they time the finale to occur at the stroke of midnight.
It was an enjoyable evening, though the string section was a little undersized. I was particularly amused by the really enthusiastic timpanist who was putting a lot of energy into his performance. Pity his part was very "classical" and repetitious. It did get me thinking though, without meaning to sound racist, that he was the first coloured person I'd ever seen in a professional orchestra. Indeed, including the choir he was the only coloured person on the stage.
To me, Beethoven's 9th will always be a piece that has obvious historical significance, but proves that Romanticism was only starting, and bigger, more powerful works were yet to come.
Happy Hogmanay everyone!
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