The Magic of Christmas, at Cadogan Hall (Sun 4 Dec 2011)

It has been another busy year for Debbie Wiseman, what with Channel Four’s The Promise, a third series of Land Girls, not to mention a top ten album in the shape of ‘Piano Stories’. My part in the latter has certainly made 2011 a year to remember; it’s always such a pleasure to work with Debbie, so when she called early in the Summer to ask if I’d put some programme notes and a script together for ‘The Magic of Christmas’ at Cadogan Hall, I of course said yes.

The concert, in aid of the brilliant Breast Cancer Campaign, was a sequel of sorts to ‘The Pink Ribbon Gala’ which Debbie presided over in November 2009. Once again Cadogan Hall and the RPO played host to Debbie, who called in support from wonderfully talented artists, and friends, to make music, a little magic and raise vital funds for a very worthy cause.

Smooth Radio’s Simon Bates brought his legendary voice and easy charm to the proceedings, introducing the afternoon’s festive programme. Magic and Sparkle was the order of the day, with Leroy Anderson’s ‘Sleigh Ride’ the perfect opening, followed by the likes of selections from Tchaikovsky’s ‘The Nutcracker’ – including the twinkling ‘Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy’, somehow so suited to the season.

Stories really were the order of the day though and the audience was urged to step back into their childhoods, snuggle down in their seats and listen intently. The first half was dominated then by Oscar Wilde’s ‘The Selfish Giant’, which was read by Cheri Lunghi. It was a captivating performance, helped along beautifully by Debbie’s own original music. The tears of the lady in the row behind me said it all, not to mention the reaction of one small child half way through which put the orchestra of its stroke somewhat…

With part two came another fine actor, Robert Powell, who delivered the deliciously grizzly poem ‘Jim’ by Hilaire Beloc. The poem, about a little boy who leaves his nanny’s care only to be gobbled up by a Lion, was given suitably plucky accompaniment by Debbie and RPO, who performed Benjamin Britten’s ‘Playful Pizzicato’ beneath Powell’s perfectly pitched delivery.

The afternoon also saw a couple of firsts. Debbie herself made her Cadogan Hall debut as a soloist performing a solo piano piece. ‘Isolation’, written for the film The Hide, is the opening track of the ‘Piano Stories’ album and made a great opening to the second half. Though hidden away over to the right of the stage, the pianist’s debut went off really rather well and the piece itself never fails to cast a spell.

Perhaps even more spellbinding was the second ‘premiere’, George Layton’s ‘The Fib’. The story itself is one I remember from school – indeed it cemented my own fear of the football that was to come in ‘big school’ – and it’s a real treasure. Wearing both his actor and writer hats, George himself read to us his tale about a young lad whose embarrassment at a hand-me-down football kit leads to a cracker of a playground fib. George delivered his prose with warmth and humour and Debbie Wiseman and the RPO underscored with an arrangement of music by the composer, largely made up of selections from her score for Tom’s Midnight Garden. It was a good fit and the highlight of the afternoon, made even more special for everyone concerned as the story’s hero, Bobby Charlton, was in the audience. Now ‘Sir’ Bobby, the legendary footballer travelled down from Manchester especially and made it onto the stage to thank George and Debbie and say a few words. Magical.

Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without a song or two and providing the necessary vocals was the velvet-voiced James Loynes, who is certainly one to watch. ‘Nothing Grows on Gold’, an original song by Debbie Wiseman and Don Black, was premiered at ‘The Pink Ribbon Gala’ in 2009 and is a real winner. Don himself flew in from New York to be at the event and hear his song; it would certainly have been worth it as James truly did them proud.

Rounding off the generous concert was the quintessential Christmas song, Irving Berlin’s ‘White Christmas’. James Loynes did the honours once again, helped along (I think) by the audience; a fittingly festive and uplifting end to a very successful event.

I was honoured to be able to play a small part in ‘The Magic of Christmas’ and Debbie and Friends can rest in the knowledge that they pulled off a cracker of a show and through ticket sales, book and CD sales on the day, added much needed funds to Breast Cancer Campaign’s piggy bank.

The concert was the icing on the cake this year for Debbie Wiseman, though there’s more to come. The cherry on top? Lost Christmas, which premieres on BBC One on Christmas Eve… Don’t miss it!

If you’d like to know more about Breast Cancer Campaign go to breastcancercampaign.org

Debbie Wiseman’s Piano Stories is available on CD, or to Download, now courtesy of Warner Classics. Go to Amazon.co.uk for more information!

I'm all about Herrmann right now...

Goodness where has the time gone? It’s almost August and I haven’t written a blog for some time. I blame Bernard Herrmann entirely. You see, Mr Herrmann would have been 100 years old on 29 June and with that in mind there has been a flurry of concerts and events taking place to mark the grand occasion. Not least of all a fantastic month long film season at Bristol’s Watershed Media Centre, with whom I worked a little on beefing up their fine festival micro-site -www.watershed.co.uk/herrmann

It seemed all I did throughout May and June was live, breathe and muse on the life and music of Bernard Herrmann, which isn’t a bad thing I suppose. My iPod was – and still is – chock full of the best of Benny. I went to the RPO’s brilliant Film Music Gala, which had a special tribute to BH (that was in fact my last blog entry) and later that month I penned some programme notes for a very special concert at St George’s Bristol, where the Tippett Quartet showcased Herrmann’s captivating ‘Echoes’ String Quartet, alongside a specially commissioned Quartet suite from Psycho. Making the event even more special was the presence of Mrs Norma Herrmann. Having Norma present really added a seal of approval to the concert (a highlight of the Watershed’s festival). I spoke with her a little and she delighted in sharing stories of her time with Benny… ‘He was a terrible pianist…’ being just one of the engrossing anecdotes she came out with.

The event itself was a fine launch as well for my campaign ‘A Blue Plaque for Bernard Herrmann’. Concertgoers at St George’s, Norma Herrmann and the Tippett Quartet themselves were some of the first names to be added in support of having an English Heritage Blue Plaque erected at one of Herrmann’s former London homes.

I’m a couple of weeks away from finally submitting the application document – which I’m assembling with fine assistance from Bernard Herrmann Society scribe Gunether Kogebehn – which will be supported by the petition of names. The list of supporters is still growing and I’m overwhelmed and chuffed to pieces that so many people have gotten in touch to lend their names. This week alone has seen an abundance of support from across the Atlantic with Intrada Records, La La La Land Records, Perseverance Records and Film Score Monthly all adding their stamp to the list. They join the likes of Mark Isham, Debbie Wiseman, Christopher Gunning, Conrad Pope, John Williams, the RPO, the LSO and the Halle Orchestra who have all expressed their support so far. Those are just the big names and there are of course many many of Herrmann’s fans across the world and I thank each and every one of them for supporting the campaign too.

If you’d like to add your name in support then email me now – michael@michaelbeek.co.uk and I’ll add you to the petition. If you’d like more information on the campaign then take a look at my original article here on the Watershed’s Herrmann micro-site: http://www.watershed.co.uk/herrmann/blue-plaque.html

Film Music Gala 2011

A month later than usual and a change of title didn’t stop the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra from laying on another delectable feast of fine film music classics. Their annual film music concert, now known as 'Film Music Gala', is always a popular event, featuring performances of some of the best in blockbusting film music and a sprinkling of new treats.

The packed house at the Royal Albert Hall were in fine mood – possibly thanks to the balmy weather outside – and that mood was lifted further with the RPO’s characteristically sturdy renditions of main themes from Gladiator, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Mission: Impossible, Out of Africa, Jurassic Park, Schindler’s List and Star Wars.

Those crowd-pleasers aside – though Clio Gould’s performance of Williams’ Schindler’s List was top-notch, not to mention the always hair-raising Jurassic Park – the highlights for me came from other programme selections…

It is of course Bernard Herrmann’s centenary year, indeed his big 100 is on 29 June, and as such film and film music fans are being treated to all kinds of tributes and celebrations the world over. Last night was no exception as the RPO performed music from four of the esteemed composer’s greatest film scores; his first, Citizen Kane; his last, Taxi Driver and his two biggest Hitchcock classics: Vertigo and Psycho. Hearing Herrmann’s music live is always a thrill for me and as always the selection from Taxi Driver raised hairs and blood-pressure with its violent throws and delicious Saxophone lines. Psycho was afforded the usual giggles when it came to ‘The Murder’, not least of all because conductor Paul Bateman, baton clenched in his fist, ‘stabbed’ the orchestra through the cue… inspired. The tribute to Herrmann was made all the more special by the presence of his widow Norma, who waved and gave a hearty thumbs-up from her seat in the stalls.

The event is always blessed with special guest conductors and this year was no exception as in the first half we were treated to two suites of music by the great John Scott, who was on hand to direct the orchestra. On paper the selections may not have inspired too much excitement from the layman, but the performances of music from Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan and The Final Countdown proved to be some of the biggest and most exciting of the entire evening. It was a special moment for Bristol-born Scott who recorded the latter score with the orchestra at CTS-Wembley back in 1980, so it was something of a reunion and the band did him proud. When briefly interviewed by presenter Tommy Pearson about his music and the influence of Bernard Herrmann on composers in general, Scott was enthusiastic and went on to make something of a faux-pas as he exclaimed he was always impressed and blown away by Herrmann’s music for Hitchcock’s Rope… The film was of course some seven years before Herrmann and Hitchcock first worked together (on The Trouble With Harry) and what little music was in the film was by the uncredited David Buttolph. Of course only a complete film music nut and Herrmann aficionado like myself would croak and sputter at such a mistake and it likely went over the heads of the majority of the gathered mass.

Part Two saw the RPO joined by one of its very special friends and ‘Film Music Gala’ regular, Debbie Wiseman. Debbie is a popular figure at the event and she always has something new up her sleeve (whether she has any or not, in this case it was a sleeveless, off the shoulder number) and for her 2011 stint she brought with her a new concert arrangement of her gloriously perky 1999 score for Tom’s Midnight Garden and the premiere of music from The Promise, which she scored this year for Peter Kosminsky and Channel 4. It goes without saying both pieces went down well, the latter fizzing with high drama…

So another RPO Film Music Frenzy (perhaps next year’s title?) ticked off the calendar and a highly enjoyable evening, as ever. It’s just smashing to see so many people beaming with delight as classics of the silver screen play out and not just us mere mortals. I spotted an Oscar-winner in the crowd, not to mention Christopher Gunning, and Hi De Hi's Su Pollard! It takes all sorts it seems.

Till next time!


With thanks to Doran Harding, Royal Albert Hall and Debbie Wiseman.

The Pink Ribbon Gala

Not only is Debbie Wiseman a wonderfully talented film composer, she also has a big heart and a generous spirit. All of the above were on display last night at London’s Cadogan Hall, where Debbie put on a very fine show, and all for charity.

The Pink Ribbon Gala was organised by the composer to help raise awareness and vital funds for Breast Cancer Campaign, one of the UK’s leading Breast Cancer charities. With more than a little help from her friends – namely the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, broadcasting legend Simon Bates, and a handful of stars from stage and screen – Debbie presided over a lovely concert programme of accessible classical music, not to mention a good many of her own works for the screen. The theme was certainly words and music, with specially selected pieces by poets such as Oscar Wilde, T.S. Eliot and Hilaire Beloc read to music from Wilde, Tom & Viv and a portion of the composer’s beautiful accompaniment for ‘The Nightingale and the Rose’ (as composed for the grammy nominated album of Oscar Wilde Fairy Tales).

The RPO were in fine fettle as ever, at home certainly on their own stage, and with images projected overhead, they accompanied Cheri Lunghi – reading Eliot’s ‘Five Finger Exercises’, Timothy West – who read Wilde’s gorgeous ‘Serenade for Music’, George Layton – in charge of the aforementioned ‘Nightingale and the Rose’, and the ever-brilliant Prunella Scales – reading Beloc’s grizzly ditty ‘Jim’, about a small boy who lets go of his Nanny’s hand only to be eaten by a hungry Lion.


The texts were well chosen and worked really very well against the music – both were given time to breathe, which was a blessing and while they were all marvellous, the highlight was surely ‘Jim’, set against Benjamin Britten’s ‘Simple Symphony: Playful Pizzicato’ There were instances of music without words, with the show opening to the tune of Bach’s sobering ‘Air on a G-String’, while Debbie’s own suite from ITV’s My Uncle Silas perked things up in the second half. Selections by Borodin and Holst – the former’s gorgeous ‘Nocturne’ from his second string quartet and the latter’s always-frolicsome ‘Finale’ from his ‘St. Paul’s Suite’ – were well received during the first half, with the latter putting a spring in our steps on the way to the bar!

You can always rely on Debbie Wiseman to have something new up her sleeve and this occasion was no exception. For the last few years she has been working with Oscar-winning lyricist Don Black on a new musical called Feather Boy. Originally staged with an all child cast a couple of years ago as part of the Shell Connections series on London’s South Bank, the pair have revisited the idea – based on Nicky Singer's award-winning children’s book – and have filled it out and readied it for the West End stage. It’s certainly been a labour of love and I know that Debbie was very pleased to be able to unveil one of the centrepiece songs from the new show. ‘Nothing Grows On Gold’, performed by the delightful Mary Carewe, proved itself to be a classic showstopper with some real wind beneath its wings. The show itself is set to debut officially in 2010…

The evening fluttered by it seemed and the room was filled with a lot of spirit and good will. Ending the show with an encore of ‘Wilde West’ from Wilde, Debbie had us clapping along, with a handful of unashamed yokels offering the off ‘Yee Haw’ to boot. It was a jolly end to a very pleasant evening of music and words and I think it was without doubt a big success for Breast Cancer Campaign. Well done to all involved for putting on a marvellous show.


If you’d like to find out more about the work that Breast Cancer Campaign do, or if you’d like to make a donation then please visit www.breastcancercampaign.org/.

Rolling out the Classics - Filmharmonic 2009

There is one permanent entry in my diary year after year that I always look forward to and can never bring myself to miss – Filmharmonic. I go along to the Albert Hall knowing fully what to expect – indeed this is my fifth year – as the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra take to the stage to perform some of cinema’s greatest film themes. Before you open the programme you know you’re going to see the words Gladiator, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Mission: Impossible, Superman, Witness and Pirates of the Caribbean. These days you know you won’t see Rocky in the programme, but you know full well that Bill Conti’s rousing fanfare and theme will provide the encore piece. Does any of this matter? I used to think so, but I’ve come to embrace the annual dusting off of the classic film music repertoire. Why? Because it’s just so damned good.

There’s no doubt either that the performance won’t be up to scratch and this year it was largely agreed that the RPO excelled themselves with what I considered a really punchy performance. A few pieces in the past have come across somewhat lacklustre, tired even, but this year they were each performed with a lot of flair and power, particularly Williams’ glorious theme from Jurassic Park (though they still use the score with the wrong note at the start!), the obligatory Superman and Goodwin’s downright brilliant theme from Where Eagles Dare.

A highlight moment for me always comes with the guest conductors and while the producers rarely stray far from their usual contact list, it’s always a nice opportunity to a) see a composer conduct their own music, and b) hear something you haven’t heard live before. Last night saw David Arnold take to the stage at the Albert Hall for the first time in a few years. David would be the first to agree he isn’t really a conductor, but he kept the ensemble together – using a red pencil I might add – and appeared to thoroughly enjoy conducting his perky waltz from The Stepford Wives, an orchestral rendering of ‘You Know My Name’ from Casino Royale and the cue ‘A Night at the Opera’ from Quantum of Solace. While the former Bond snippet was obviously barnstorming, the real highlight for me was the latter dramatic cue and although it didn’t end with much fanfare, it was a riveting addition.

British Film and TV stalwart Debbie Wiseman is a permanent and very welcome fixture at Filmharmonic and she can always be counted on to bring her latest score pages – and a rowdy posse – with her. This year saw her lead the orchestra through a suite from Lesbian Vampire Killers - her most recent film score – preceded by a selection from Tom & Viv – her first. It was a nice touch making those career bookend selections and the former certainly went down well, with members of the film’s team – including director Phil Claydon – offering no end of support from their seats in the Grand Tier. I told Debbie I would make some noise after the suite, but it really wasn’t needed with them in the room! While the film itself has suffered very mixed reviews, there’s no doubt that the music is a triumph. The composer and director make a good team and I’m fairly certain it won’t be the last we’ll see and hear of them together.


As usual a few additional nuggets littered the programme, with a rendering of Ray Parker Jr’s Ghostbusters title song leaving me slightly red-faced in the first half. While it featured very colourful orchestration and some great brass, it was all just a bit embarrassing frankly… I’ll never condone orchestral versions of songs. It really was something weird, and it didn’t sound good, particularly when it came to the point where people would normally shout ‘Ghostbusters!’ – that was left to the brass… oh dear.

What should have been embarrassing at the end of the first half was a selection of American TV Themes and while you’d be right in thinking it’s a bit of a stretch for a film music concert, it actually ended up being one of the best bits of the night. Opening with Bill Conti’s brilliantly applied themes for Dynasty and Cagney & Lacey (which was rightly met with a very big cheer and applause come the end), the ensemble presented Mike Post’s dramatic opener for LA Law, before ending with Jerrold Immel’s infectious Western-tinged theme for Dallas. I was a fan of TV Themes long before I discovered film music – okay, I was about 10 – and these four themes always scored highly for me. I do believe Conti’s Cagney & Lacey is a contender for ‘Best TV theme Ever’, and it was a giddy childlike pleasure to see and hear it played by a full orchestra.

So you see there’s always something to get excited about at Filmharmonic, even if you think you know what to expect. The hall was very full as it always is and when our affable host Tommy Pearson – who did a fine job as usual – asked if anyone hadn’t been before, I was surprised to hear a great many voices shout out. That’s a wonderful thing and indeed another reason why the RPO roll out the classics annually, because there’s always someone who is yet to experience the power of live orchestral music, and live film music at that. More of the same next year – May 14th 2010! Don’t miss it.


You can experience the delights of the Filmharmonic repertoire on a newly packaged triple CD set, available from the shop at www.rpo.co.uk. Visit www.royalalberthall.com for information about the RPO’s next film music concert – ‘The Best of Bond’ – which takes place on Friday 13th November.

With thanks to Doran Harding, Debbie Wiseman and all at the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

o2 D2... or how I survived Star Wars: A Musical Journey

The Star Wars cash cow was coaxed – quite easily to be fair – onto the stage of London’s vast o2 Arena this weekend as Lucasfilm premiered the live spectacle that is Star Wars: A Musical Journey. The poor thing is 32 years old – in fact it’s probably a different cow, the original was served up in the commissary at Skywalker Ranch a long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away?). Age, and freshness, aside, Star Wars draws the crowds like nobody’s business and nobody does business like George Lucas. With two shows this weekend and a tour of Europe and the US to follow, the money will indeed keep on rolling in. It also means the music of John Williams will be ringing out from stages for a long time to come, which is a great thing.

You might think I’m being cynical - I’m really not; I actually have great affection for Star Wars and lapped up every possible scrap of merchandise I could afford for almost ten years. The one thing I always looked forward to though was the CDs – indeed the music of Star Wars was an early factor in my appreciation of film music. I remember saving my pocket money for months (!) so that I could purchase the ‘Special Edition’ soundtracks in 1997 (though I still mourn the loss of ‘Lapti Nek’ and the original ‘Ewok Celebration’ from Return of the Jedi). As the millennium came and went, three brand new scores had been composed and released (to varying degrees of appreciation) and with that the circle was complete; a journey had been taken by John Williams and we’ve been enjoying it ever since. Compilation albums have come and gone – though let’s try and forget ‘The Corellian Edition’ shall we? – but with Star Wars: A Musical Journey, the story of Anakin Skywalker’s colossal fall from grace and ultimate redemption is told the right way... musically speaking at least.

The stage, shrouded by a large curtain finally came to life – later than anticipated – and the members of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra drew our attention with the classic opener of many a Star Wars adventure, the Twentieth Century Fox Fanfare. And so our ‘journey’ began, with our narrator for the evening, Anthony Daniels, guiding us through with his trademark voice and an unashamedly hammy delivery. There was no denying this was a serious, dramatic affair. That said, he was a fine storyteller and the crowd went wild with every reference to his alter-ego (helped along at one point with a gold waistcoat and a brief droid-like walk across the stage).

If you bought the original soundtrack album for Revenge of the Sith you will remember the bonus DVD. Also titled Star Wars: A Musical Journey, it featured Ian McDiarmid sitting in front of the empty stage at Abbey Road Studios where he re-told the story of the saga. This live show is essentially the same concept, though expanded a little (and only a little). In fact Daniels’ script was almost McDiarmid’s word-for-word and the accompanying footage – impressively projected on an enormous screen above the orchestra – differed really very little, though it was perhaps more inclusive of imagery from the original trilogy and more finely edited. I thought then, in 2005, that the piece would make a good live concert and it does lend itself very nicely to a staged setting. The union of words, images and glorious live music always works well and there was a touch of magic about the whole affair – but only a touch.

Musically it was a bit of a surprise as the majority of the pieces accompanying the story were the usual concert renderings of the major character themes and set-pieces. A big thing was made of the fact that Williams had himself arranged his six scores into a two hour suite. It would appear the composer had little to do, save for editing down ‘Luke and Leia’ and putting together a kind of ‘Entr’acte’ for the opening of the second half, consisting of the ever-thrilling cue ‘Carbon Freeze’ from The Empire Strikes Back. That said, there were many highlights including the wonderful concert version of ‘The Flag Parade’, a barnstorming presentation of ‘The Forest Battle’, the always-moving ‘Light of the Force’ and an absolutely brilliant, note-perfect rendition of ‘The Cantina Band’. Further highlights were found in ‘The Asteroid Field’, which wasn’t the concert version but the original cue from the film featuring some fantastic blasts of Vader’s theme and the sweep of Solo and Leia’s love theme toward the end.

Get to the point Michael… Okay, if anything it was a bit too much; the music – whilst performed admirably well by the RPO – was of course mic’d and the resulting sound bellowed and reverberated around the cavernous venue, as did Daniel’s voice. The distant hoots and shouts – and believe me in a space like that they were distant – gave the whole thing the feel of a football game. The emotion of the story itself, not to mention the many nuances found in Williams’ fine themes were somehow lost in the vastness. I’ve often felt there is something awfully lifeless about an arena, which is ironic given that this particular one was full of thousands of people shrieking and many wielding Lightsabers. Intimate this was not, and a concept such as this deserves that I think.

So all in all it was something of a Rebel Assault on the senses and it has taken me a day or so to contemplate the experience – perhaps evident in my writing… Whatever I think though, there’s no denying the size and power of this rather affable bovine and while there were many ironies and contradictions evident at the o2 Arena this weekend, one moment stands out for me: As I walked around the arena before the concert I found myself behind a small family. A very small boy, waving his toy Lightsaber like a conductor’s baton, hummed very loudly – and passionately - ‘The Imperial March’ note for note… That’s the power of this music, and the power of Star Wars… I do believe both will live forever.

With thanks to Lucy Ellison at AEG Europe and David Cox at The Outside Organisation.