Friday 3 October 2003

Today is a sort of transitional day from last month's events, into the preparation for what's going to happen in March. I've just made a list of all the things I have to get done, enough to keep me busy for three months I think: booking flights, sending out cheques, sending out concert programmes, publicity material and CDs, fixing, registering the pieces on SADN with the PRS, getting SADN onto our CD shop page (sorry if you've been waiting), and also for the first time in about 10 years doing some organ practice! Two Scottish orchestras have booked me to play the organ in the next week, so today I'm nipping over to the church across the road (organ by Hill Norman and Beard 1931/1972) later to remind my feet of some of the things they used to be able to do. As a student I was a 1st study organist, won prizes and all that, but when I moved back to Scotland I never really stuck with it, partly because there were few good mechanical action instruments to play, and also because I never felt comfortable in the high church culture that goes with being a jobbing organist.  My tenure as Glasgow University's organ scholar in 1987 came to an end soon after I conducted the choir at a Remembrance Day service (surrounded by cadets) wearing a Greenpeace T-shirt that said 'Cut the Crap' in big letters on it.  I went off to play the piano in a theatre company instead. 

And Ben from the SCO rang yesterday to say 'do you mind if we give Emmanuelle Haïm your phone number?' Apparently she's looking for harpsichord 2 in Glyndebourne's touring Theodora - wonder if they'll ask me. And I've been offered what sounds like a wonderful gig in Montreal next June, playing on a concert and recording of early Acadian music with Suzie Le Blanc, David G, and Chris amongst others. I have a diary clash at the moment, but I'm working on it.