The Parkhouse Award Final Concert

It's an honour for being invited to listen to the final concert from The Parkhouse Award at Wigmore Hall, London yesterday. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my friend, an Italy pianist: Mariangela Vacatello.

Beautiful performances

The whole concert was given by three groups of musicians. Paul Monkemeyer (Viola) and Nicholas Rimmer (Piano), Rautio Piano Trio, and Giovanni Gnocchi (Cello) and Mariangella Vacatello (Piano).

I intentionally chose the seat more close to the back but in the middle of the whole Wigmore Hall, as normally I would prefer to sit where I can watch the pianist's miraculous playing.

The sound is absolutely beautiful I must admit, and guess that only classical music can reach such glorious and brilliant sound atmosphere.

When closing your eyes, probably you would even enjoy more to identify which sound is coming from the piano, or the viola, or the cello, or the violin.

And you will just imagine what these little notes are murmuring? What fairytale they're trying to tell to their dear audiences.

It's good fun to practise your ears and trace all the different levels and types of sound, especially listening chamber music concert.

Rautio Piano Trio

I enjoyed all three performances. However, personally I really like the second one, the three perfomers are collabarating extremely well.

I particularly enjoy the melody of their chosen piece. Trio No 3 in C minor, from Johannes Brahms.

The Rautio Piano Trio formed in 2004, and has now drew together three outstanding young musicians from Russia, Britian, and Israel.

Three musicians are the prize-winning graduates from RAM, RCM, and RNCM.

Mariangela and her cellist Giovanni Gnocchi

Italian people's enthusiastic and passionate personality even more explosed when making music. The two distinguished music figures dedicated to audience very different and exotic music.

You can easily felt the passion and enthusiasm from their performances, they're playing with pure heart. And this is what I really like from Mariangela and Giovanni.

I just guess musicians from Mediterranean region tend to express themselves more freely and exaggeratedly. Though some of them I have heard still like the English ones, a bit more conservative.

But particular culture does strongly fertilise its music or other types of art.

Mariangela and Giovanni won the public prize and the two German Musicians, the first perfomance won The Parkhouse Award.

Mistresses

A modern drama series is broadcasting on BBC One currently called Mistresses, which describes four British women's romance conflicts, how they deal with their family life and sex relationships.

Morality doubt

After seeing some of the episodes, I got very confused how on earth these protagonist treat their sex relationships so playful!

When a couple tie a knot, from that point of time, they were tied to be faithful and loyal to each other, and no one has the right to blame as marriage is your own choice. If you want to play the game, you must comply the rule.

I think this is universally accepted morality as well.

I was very much doubt western value on this point, after talking with a former BBC journalist about how I feel, she was laughing at me (in a friendly way), and suggested me just taking it as a drama that is unreal. However, I believe drama, all sorts of art coming from real life.

You never imagine that romance drama will be directed and acted in this way in China. I don't know exactly how about other Asian countries.

But like South Korea, a traditionally man-dominant society, I believe they will be concerned when commissioning such type of series.

From Mistresses to the 13-year-old dad

Another reason makes me confused and worrying is the recent blow of the 13-year-old lad becoming dad, which makes Britain feeling like a fool indeed.

Press and different sorts of media all discuss it and many people condemn it, saying it's the most outrageous, appalling thing in the world they have ever seen.

But don't these Brit ever wonder how these drama will affect people, especially these young teens? They're in a period of growing up and lack of mature judgement.

And if they see these drama (intentionally or whatever), they will just imitate what they see from the screen!

Democratic society

From another point of view, people may say that we are in a democratic society, people are allowed to see different things and express different views.

It's good to show us different approaches of life, then we're going to make up our own mind!

Fashion in London

London, the world's most vibrant metropolis, has always been a popular place for fashion. When walking on the street, you could easily find out stylish Londoners "showing off" their prevailing brands and stunning hairstyle.

Posting some photos above display what strike Londoners attention this year:

Trip to Tate Modern

March, a raining Tuesday, I spent a whole afternoon at Tate Modern to analyse the post-world war painting from The UBS Art Collection combining with the significant Tate works.

My task is to find out who the artist is? What kind of technique she/he applied , what kind of texture he/she used to accomplish the work, and what kind of atmosphere the work creates?

Jane Seymour

A magnificent work I have noticed from an Indian artist Raqib Shaw.

Jane Seymour, a painting depicts the third wife of Henry VIII, what really makes this work interesting is to combine the animal head with human body, which beautifully and delicately brushed by bright colours, such as dark red, yellow,.

The picture is quite scary, because of the animal head, more specifically, it's a fish head with very terrific teeth.

The textures artist applied are quite complicated, it seems having different layers on one painting, he also used fake jewel to decorate Jane's dress.

Busy life

The second painting I have looked carefully is from a French artist, named Jean Dubuffet, the whole painting applied oil on Canvas.

It's really a mess work from far away, but when you see closely, you will find out lots of going on in this work, it describes people's busy life, such as the metropolis London.

Rising sun, commuters rush to work, traffic on the highway, taxi, tubes, bikes all different kinds of transportation you can imagine.

I was wondering how the artist can keep the main characters clear on one hand, and mess around others on the other hand, however in the meantime, the whole piece of work remains as an integrated painting.

White Spring

A work from a Germany artist Ernst Wilhelm Nay - White Spring, it's quite abstract and very arty.

The paint applied oil and used white, yellow, green and black colours, there're many whirlpools in the paint, quite romantic indeed.

More photos from Toy Exhibition

World toys exhibition attracts mordern Londoners

Ancient toys from all around the world exhibite at London's Pollock's toy museum, which attract many young londoners' attention.

The museum displays hundreds of dolls with delicate laces, hilarious looking, and various postures. Their texture and dresses are very stylish, though most of them look quite old.

Apart from dolls, the ancient theatre models, animated toys, strange shaped animals are also kept visitor's eyeballs.

Animated toys

One toy displayed in the exhibition can be considered as the first original animated toy to date.

The toy is made of two layers, the inside layer is composed of different pictures, and the outside layer is a round rollying device, when a person rotates it, people can see through the holes on the outside device to the pictures on the inside layer.

The music boxes are also exhibited in the store, there's a ranging of different tones, even there's some from China.