Two competing productions of Modest Mussorgsky Khovanshchina. on from 22 January 2013 at Opéra Bastille, the other now on at the Met, which was broadcast Saturday on BBC Radio 3. Rather solid performance (Kiril Petrenko) good enough singing, best being Borodina's Marfa. But look at the Paris version - Mikhail Jurowski, and an all-Russian cast (Galouzine, Diadkova) and a very interesting set, not that you should really tell by photos (Richard Hudson, diector Andrei Serban). Gut instincts good.
The clincher is price. Eurostar about £200 return, and only 2 hours from St Pancras. It's practically local. Decent hotels and food, of course and you can bring back fresh bread. I was looking at costs for Edinburgh, for Charpentier and Les Arts Florissants. I'd much rather hear extraordinary performances of unusual music than familiar pieces, however worthily done. (and you can hear the Wagner in Wales). Eleven hours by train for £300, plus hotels etc. No wonder I haven't been back for years. There are people who could live for weeks on that kind of money, which matters to me. Besides, the Paris Mussorgsky may be on French TV and much of Edinburgh will almost certainly be on BBC Radio 3, saving on carbon emissions and conscience. .
The clincher is price. Eurostar about £200 return, and only 2 hours from St Pancras. It's practically local. Decent hotels and food, of course and you can bring back fresh bread. I was looking at costs for Edinburgh, for Charpentier and Les Arts Florissants. I'd much rather hear extraordinary performances of unusual music than familiar pieces, however worthily done. (and you can hear the Wagner in Wales). Eleven hours by train for £300, plus hotels etc. No wonder I haven't been back for years. There are people who could live for weeks on that kind of money, which matters to me. Besides, the Paris Mussorgsky may be on French TV and much of Edinburgh will almost certainly be on BBC Radio 3, saving on carbon emissions and conscience. .
You can get Eurostar return tickets for around £69, and if you choose a Sunday matinée at the Bastille you do not have to pay hotel costs.
ReplyDeleteThanks Joihn, I was comparing Paris most expensive and Edinburgh least expensive which makes the price differential even more shocking !
ReplyDelete