Saturday 13 July 2013

Worbey and Farrell



Perhaps Ida is a bit young for concert-going, but she seemed enthusiastic, so off we went this morning to the Parabola Arts Centre. Worbey and Farrell play piano four hands, with a camera to display their dexterity on a big screen above: when eventually they came on stage - a ten-minute delay must seem an age for a 5-year-old - they quickly showed how clever they are, and the wide range of styles they can deploy. The trouble was, the novelty soon wore thin, and I sensed a restlessness beside me. So we didn't stick it to the end of the 75 minutes.

Coming out into the bright sunlight that filled the Parabola's Gallery we bumped into Mary Paterson. Despite her years, she had, she told us, much enjoyed The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, performed the previous weekend, with illustrations. I wish we had been at that, rather than the rather too blokey "comedy piano duo".

2 comments:

Unknown said...

What a ridiculous, ignorant and rude comment. Maybe you were mistaken to have taken a 5 year old to a comedy concert clearly advertised as suitable for children over 14! However, my 10 and 12 year olds absolutely loved it and purchased their DVD to show their friends. We were blown away with the virtuosity and showmanship as well as their clever and witty banter and quite frankly, the amazing performance. We loved it so much that infact my family and I are travelling up the Edinburgh Fringe to seem them perform again! Yes, it started 5 minutes late, but the show was sold out and we had to wait for everybody to be accommodated. Had your child behaved, or had you stayed, you would have been as appreciative and as overwhelmed as we were. Maybe you should consider training your child to behave properly in a concert situation, or just stick to bland and dumbed down productions such as the young persons guide.

Martin Davis said...

My post mentions the performers' cleverness and versatility, which is undeniable. But chacun à son goût: as a seasoned concertgoer, I found it boring after half an hour, so I wasn't surprised Ida (who behaved perfectly) felt the same. The show was not sold out: we bought our tickets on the door, and there were empty ones alongside us. If you wish to criticise a blog post of mine in future, Judith, by all means do so, but without the abuse please.