Oh what now? Our first, and maybe our last, concert.. not the fat lady singing – yet.

What now indeed. Our fool of a Prime Minister tells us that  ‘we are now seeing a second wave’ without actually saying what he is going to do about it. Added to which, ‘Queen Dido of Carnage’ said that ‘the increased demand [for testing] could not have been predicted’. Yes she did, honest, now, in September, when schools/colleges started again, and people have been ordered by the Government to return to their desks… Lord knows what will become of us all. But still, in the teeth of impending doom, Battleaxe and Philosopher actually went to a real live concert on Saturday night.

The masked concert-goers…

If you want to read something really funny, I recommend this piece by Marina Hyde, published in the Guardian yesterday. I’d give a lot to be able to write as well as her. I just love this:

‘Do you remember Ye Olde Operation Moonshotte, an ancient promise by the elders of this government to test 10 million people a day? My apologies for the leading question. There are absent-minded goldfish who remember that figure, given it was announced by Boris Johnson’s government barely three seconds ago. The only representative of the animal, vegetable and possibly mineral kingdoms who doesn’t remember it is the prime minister himself, who on Wednesday told a committee asking him about it: “I don’t recognise the figure you have just given.” Like me, you probably feel grateful to be governed by a guy whose approach to unwanted questions is basically, “New phone, who dis?” ‘

So, what was the concert? It was the first live (socially distanced) performance in the Hastings Philharmonic’s 2020/21 season – and, at this rate, likely to be the last. It was held in the vast Christ Church St Leonards, where Battleaxe has been for previous concerts.  We judged that any stray Covid virus would most likely fly up to the high vaulted roof and be wafted away by the odour of sanctity, and we were very pleased and excited to actually go to a live performance.

Now, there’s a thought. On Friday evening we had drinks with our neighbours, and agreed that religious leaders had been backward in coming forward during this pandemic. Particularly the Pope. Catholic France, Spain etc are going downhill again, Latin America is utterly ravaged by the virus, yet we have heard little from His Holiness.  I remember him complaining about Haghia Sophia in Istanbul being turned into a mosque, and then denouncing gossip. He called the Devil ‘the great gossiper’. Hmmn, Battleaxe loves gossip… but nothing about the pandemic.  In this country, we have heard bits from the ArchBish of Canterbury, but anything from the others? Given that we have such a leadership vacuum at the moment, it feels like time for religious leaders to step up.

Anyway, back to the concert.  There were three performers – the multiply talented Marcio Da Silvo, who had shaved his beard off and was this time performing in his incarnation as a baritone singer, Francis Rayner on piano, and Susan Rayner on oboe.. (are they related?).  The concert was sold out, but the audience, clearly, was very small, about 80-90 of us, the seats were well spaced out and allocated for each person and  we had been assured that the venue was ‘Covid-Secure’.

Lots of space…

Now, don’t get me wrong, Battleaxe and Philosopher do not suffer from undue Covid-anxiety. We go out and about quite possibly more than our peers, but we are sensible. Sadly, neither of us felt that comfortable in the venue.  Sure, it is very big, but the outside door was shut. Right behind us there was a party of four, two of whom were not wearing masks. I turned round and tried to give an unmasked woman a dirty look – difficult when half your face is obscured.  She had a mask round her neck but was not wearing it. Battleaxe has challenged non-maskers before, with dire results. As I didn’t want to get into the predictable  ‘f*** you’, ‘no, f*** you’ discussion  at a concert in a church, I kept my mouth shut.  So, she just smirked at me and when the interval started she started singing yes singing…  In front of us we had a group that although they wore masks, kept on leaning across the social distance to shout to their friends in other seats. Then, beside them, a woman who stretched her mask to the end of its elastic and held it away from her face for most of the performance.

So – a word to the organisers. It is really lovely to be able to go to a live performance and  I really want those concerts to carry on, but they need to be safe! I know Marcio reads these blogs sometimes… In future, please tell those attending the concerts that all must wear a mask, and must keep their masks on when inside the venue, unless they can show a valid reason for exemption. People without masks will not be admitted, and asked to leave if they do not wear their masks during the performance. People should respect social distance and not put others at risk by shouting across the space or wandering about to greet others.  It sounds a bit fierce, but it needs to be done.

Music-wise? We found it a tiny bit difficult to concentrate. I found that I was scarcely breathing at all in case I inhaled a whiff of noxious miasma, and so gave myself a headache. Marcio started off with some Fauré songs, then piano, more Fauré and Debussy – OK except that the piano sounded a bit clangy, then Marcio again singing settings of Shakespeare songs by Finzi ‘Let us Garlands Bring’ – very good.

Marcio prepares to do his thing…

I  regret to say we left at the interval. It wasn’t that we were not enjoying the concert, but it just didn’t feel totally OK.

When I said above that it may be the last concert, I didn’t mean that the thing was a Covid hot-spot – I hope.  We will try and go to another… not put off that easily. I meant that we are likely to be in some sort of lockdown again.  Couldn’t you just spit tacks?

Let’s end on a different note. We went for a walk this morning and there were loads of these butterflies… Speckled Woods. They must all have emerged together. I was worried because there are no flowers for them, but apparently they don’t drink from flowers but feed on sticky substances left on leaves by aphids. Who knew.

Speckled Wood butterfly.

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