Stockhausen week - part 1

G is away touring with her choirs for 2 weeks - Prague, Vienna & Poland - so to keep me out of mischief I signed up for an extra Stockhausen gig happening at Birmingham University. I figured it would be a warm up to the big Stockhausen opera on Thursday

I missed the morning's lectures which seemed a bit full on - but caught one after lunch - felt like being at a sci-fi convention with an expert/author - guy from Radio 3 was interviewing a Stockhausen expert from the states. Next was the concert.

These were electronic and earlyish works
Gesang der Ju"nglinge - electronic sampled boy's choir - amazing in quad sound
Kontakte - electronics + piano & percussion - great to see this live with soloists and again the sound whizzing around you was great.
then
Klavierstuck X - was OK - could take or leave - a bit of a full-on assault on a piano - but interesting to hear in the contect of electronic music programme because similar musical/sound ideas were being carried out acoustically
Telemusic - electronic - OK but my ears were getting a little tired by then.

Good for the soul all round - was able to see where the opera was to be put on to make getting there easier on the mind for Thursday.
Had a nice chat with electronic prof Jonty Harrison - and a nice guy who was a guitarist who worked with Stockhausen in the 70s.