Songs for the betrayed world

Last night I was privelidged to play with the life and death orchestra, playing the piano for a disturbing and moving performance of “Songs for the betrayed world”.  We were performing in the University of Essex which is in Colchester.  I have to say that Universities have changed so much since I was at Royal Holloway nearly 20 years ago.  The campus was reminiscent of a town, with a veritable high street of shops and eateries.  Admittedly the food in the American Diner was as poor as you would expect, but the very fact it existed at all was enough to impress me!

The concert went very well with around 80 people in the audience, including some holocaust survivors.  The performance is based around writings from survivors from Auschwitz and Dachau and other camps, set to music composed by Bill Smith.  The style is fairly minimalist but the words add a huge sense of pathos and depth to the work.  The writings are so frank and revealing, devoid of flowery language and tired metaphor, instead speaking plainly about death and life.  I think the line that sticks with me most is during “The Argument”, when the protagonist of the story answers the phrase “Love conquers everything”, with the line, “NO, death conquers everything.”

I was delighted to have an extensive solo, “Klara’s escape” in the middle of the show.  It has been a long while since I have played the piano on it’s own, without having some comedians or other musicians to support.  I hope it is something I can continue to develop.

The other members of the orchestra were extremely professional, and it was a joy to rehearse with real musicians who could pick things up quickly and concentrate on the musical aspects of the performance.  We only had two rehearsals before the gig so there was no time for the kind of flabby rehearsals that used to annoy me so much with orchestras and bands.

If there is a video forthcoming of the concert, I will update!