Ups and downs
Sorry for the absence of posts. I think I might have run before I could walk with my hand - it's been playing up a bit.
I saw two big events yesterday. One was a huge let down, my initial hope being dashed by a performer who did not come close to matching the early promise, and who was let down by a poor script.
The other was close to a total triumph, looking every bit as good as the hopes placed in the person.
I refer - as if you need me to tell you - to the Berlin Philharmonic Prom and the Sarah Palin speech. And in that order.
The BPO's Brahms was plain awful. The perforrmance under Rattle was lethargic and lacking in any sense of drama or pacing, every bar stretched out for supposed beauty of sound - and a sound which did not have any of the wonderful cultured tone which has, for so long, been the BPO's calling card.
I'm not a Rattle basher, as is fashionable. I think he can be wonderful in the BPO's core repertoire. His Bruckner 7 a couple of years ago lives in my memory and will do for ever. But for some reason his Brahms 3 last night was a waste of time.
I had better hopes for the Shostakovich 10 - surely Rattle's forte. I haven't heard the piece for years - I'm guessing a decade. I've two recordings but have let them sit on my shelves. And after last night, I think they'll stay there. My recollection of the piece was of tense, taught undercurrents with explosions of power. Last night, however, I thought it flabby and overwritten, repetitive and plain dull. The explosions of sound and power I remembered came across last night as just loud noise for the sake of it.
A very, very average concert. Hugely disappointing.
As for Mrs Palin: when I say she hit the ball out of the park I'm not referring to her views (she seems to be a wacko when it comes to creationism, for instance) but her performance made a huge bonus out of her supposed negatives, and her lines about Obama were a bull's eye. I think there are good solid reasons to be pleased about an Obama victory (although many more to be fearful), but to call him vacuous doesn't even come close. He has risen on a surfeit of hot air, good feeling, hostility to the ordained HRC, and a brilliant strategic primary campaign. But Palin punctured all that.
Does it mean she is 'qualified' to be VP? Of course not. But it means she is a dynamic political force to be reckoned with. And what is the necessary qualification anyway, other than election by the people, for the people?
(The best analysis I've seen has been this from Clive Crook.)
Previous
Blogs: Clive Davis | Melanie Phillips | Americano | Coffee House | Trading Floor
Actions: Print this article | Email to a friend | Permalink | Comments (7)
Post this entry to: del.icio.us | Digg | Newsvine | NowPublic | Reddit
Advertisement
Stephen Pollard's Blog Roll
Oliver Kamm
Politics, economics and culture from the master. Unmissable.
Daniel Finkelstein's Times Comment Central
A daily must-read.
Tim Worstall
Lots of interesting nibbles - and a ruthless swatter of economic gibberish.
Marginal Revolution
Tyler Cowen's riveting economic blog.
Harry's Place
Must-read left of centre blog from writers who understand the threat to the West.
Thought Experiments
The peerless Bryan Appleyard's blog.
Opera Chic
An American in Milan, on opera.
Intermezzo
A London-based classical music enthusiast.
Jessica Duchen's classical music blog
Does what it says on the tin.
Samizdata
Libertarian blog, packed every day.
Norm's blog
The thoroughly sensible thoughts of renowned left-wing academic Norman Geras, Professor of Government at Manchester. And cricket, too.
Public Interest
Peter Briffa's inimitable take on The Yazzmonster and other assorted demons.
Reform
The public sector reform group; their website is an invaluable source of data and ideas.
Centre for the New Europe
The leading European public policy think tank.
Latest blog posts
sponsored links
Free Sky Digital Offer - Order Now
Subscribe to Sky from £16 a month. Get free equipment and free broadband - Join Now. Sky HD - be amongst the first to have it - order now.
Free Sky Digital Offer - Order Now
Subscribe to Sky from £16 a month. Get free equipment and free broadband - Join Now. Sky HD - be...
ROME CENTRE
PORTA METRONIA, ROME Standing high on the top of one of the seven hills of Rome- the Coelian- this unique
City Breaks. ROME and PARIS
ROME and PARIS: over 350 holiday rentals apartments listed: visit www.romanreference.com and www.parisreference.com or call +39 0648 903612.
Jewellery. RUFFS (Estd. 1904).
Goldsmiths by Design Welcome to Ruffs! You have found a company of Goldsmiths that specialises in the manufacture, amongst other
Spectator Business | Apollo Magazine
Corporate | Advertising | Privacy | Terms
Spectator, 22 Old Queen Street, London, SW1H 9HP
All Articles and Content Copyright ©2008 by The Spectator | All Rights Reserved
Hereford
September 4th, 2008 2:21pmWow! Read Clive Crook's article. Then I read the comments below. Looks like the left are out in force.
Jenny Whine-Brit
September 4th, 2008 6:07pmYou go walking with your hand you're just asking for trouble.
dearieme
September 4th, 2008 7:01pmShe'd wrestle bears if the bears were man enough.
P.S. would you please drop the sports-commentator trick of referring to the lousy as "average"?
Verity
September 4th, 2008 9:12pmStephen - You have to understand that 'Creationism' is the term given by the toxic left to the Christian and Judaic belief that there is a diety and he created the world. They thus diminish the two great belief systems that are the pillars of our Western civilisation.
Governor (not Mrs) Palin believes in God and believes he created the world.
She has stated many times that she doesn't think the belief that God created the world should be taught in public schools, unless there is a groundswell for it. She is perfectly happy for evolution to be taught.
She is more "qualified" to be the VP than is bloviator, operator and long-term trough-feeder Joe Biden, God-forbid. She is the chief executive of a giant state that is unimaginably rich. She enjoys an 80% approval record among the voters.
As Rudy Guiliani said, at the end of her first day as Mayor of Wasilla, she already had more executive experience than Barack Obama. At the end of the second day, she had 200% more.
Obama's already blown out of the water and won't recover from this, and I am sorry to read your provincial little judgements and misunderstandings. Have you ever been to Alaska? Somewhere like Anchorage is so dynamic you almost get blown away by the energy. The people are well-dressed, perfectly normal Americans who live in a very cold climate. You never feel for one split second that you are somewhere weird and other-placely. It feels like America.
Governor Palin is from a small town, and her views echo the views of small town Americans across the entire country. This is the backbone of America.
And how could you not be in awe of a state governor who sold off the governor's jet, which she judged a waste of taxpayer dollars, on eBay?
Chris
September 4th, 2008 11:21pmI'm sure you're right about the BPO, but your comments on the divine Sarah are like a 'Guardian' editorial from the days when the 'Graun' couldn't see a hand without seeing three other hands to be on. Obama - vacuous nincompoop. Palin - stunning. Who picked her? McCain. End of story.
Windsor Tripehound
September 5th, 2008 10:29amA great deal is being written about Sarah Palin, mostly by desperate and badly shaken leftie trolls.
I'm surprised no one's picked up on the reference in her speech to Harry S. Truman. "The Missouri Plowboy" was also dismissed as a small town hick, had to follow in the footsteps of a patrician, outstanding president, but is now regarded as being among the top 10 Presidents of the USA.
Maybe lightning will stike twice?
Snorri Godhi
September 5th, 2008 6:09pmThe first time I heard Sarah Palin speak, one week ago, I realized that she has the makings of an Iron Lady (with the added bonus of a sense of humor, and little chance of inflating a huge housing bubble).
But the most important thing to me is that she had the right priorities as Governor: rooting out corruption, cutting public spending, and developing energy resources. I might well disagree with her on every "social" issue, for all what I know; but I'd rather vote for her than for anybody who has social issues as the top priority.