In session

Saturday is music-group day. The guys had already been wonderfully supportive when I told them I wouldn't be able to update our website because of my broken elbow, and that support continued today with several offers to provide a taxi service to today's session. I'd already organised a taxi, but told them they could fight over who'd have the honour to take me back home afterwards.

It was a terrific session! Four times a year, one or two members take control and choose all the day's music in the form of a Concert programme. Tom went solo today with inspired choices – Tchaikovsky's Francesca da Rimini as the first half, followed by Mahler's Fifth Symphony as the second. The Mahler was a knockout: a DVD recording of a live performance from 1972 with Leonard Bernstein conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. Wow! The video direction (by Humphrey Burton, then music producer with the BBC) was superb as  well, of course, as the interpretation and the orchestral playing.

A glass or two or wine and lots of chat, both musical and general, followed when we got our collective breath back. Séamus won the honour of being my taxi driver back home. A great day.

p.s. A special guest joined us today, brought along by Ron, our member who's originally from Germany but is now, as they say, "more Irish than the Irish themselves". His Easter Bunny came in his own little basket, surrounded by a selection of chocolate goodies. He seemed to enjoy the music also, perched on top of our of our host's pieces of sound equipment.