Just a quick update. It's just been confirmed that I'll be performing the Caprices as part of a lunch time series in Farnham later this year.
This will be part of the Music at Lunchtime series held at Farnham United Reformed Church, South Street, Farnham, Surrey. For a map showing directions please click here.
As this concert will be after my trip to Paris and the recording it'll be interesting to see how the whole programme has "bedded" down. The first time I played the whole set was earlier this year in April - it now seems so very long ago! It's been enjoyable keeping on coming back to the repertoire. Bursts of activity and bursts of performances of the pieces then something completely different for a while. For example currently I'm focussing on Schumann for a project in October (just before I go to France) and it feels a bit like weight-lifting. I'm using a beautiful Uhlmann instrument, an original rotary horn from the 19th century. It feels a bit "tight" at the moment ie it feels difficult to get the air through but I've got a bit of time this week to hopefully get to know it better.
A truly exciting aspect of the project is that I'm going to have a lot more time to focus on one thing. If I include yesterday in the space of seven days I'll be playing four horns (modern Alexander 103, Raoux hand horn, Webb/Halstead baroque horn and Uhlmann rotary horn) and one of them (the Raoux) will be needed at three pitches (415, 430 and 440). There is always a certain amount of "faff" associated with all this - even if it's only making sure you've got the right horn, in the right case, in the right place with the right bits! So an extended period of more or less focussing on one instrument and one type of repertoire really is quite a luxury.