After a silence of some weeks in this blog, it is time to catch up with the many things that have been happening over the summer. When I last wrote we were off to the Kammermusik Summer Workshop in Santa Fe. This was a great week in beautiful New Mexico, playing Mozart Quartets and other works, teaching and coaching, conducting Brahms’ A major Serenade and exploring old and new chamber music works. Thanks to Will Buss and Janet Yaker Murray (Keith Bowen did not make this workshop but was very much instrumental in the planning of it), Kammermusik is an extremely well organised week characterised by high levels of commitment and mutual appreciation of the work going on. A good development this year was the daily concert in the late-afternoon in which everyone shared what they had been working on. The result was much focussing of minds, a high workload and excellent productivity.

Jane and I enjoyed working with colleague coaches Stephen Redfield, Crawford Best and Douglas Dunston and with the many fine players on the course. A post-Kammermusik highlight was  being guided up nearby Lake Peak by Crawford Best – a thrilling walk to over 12,000 feet with stunning views of New Mexico and beyond from the top. Two days in Taos completed our trip – unforgettable!

 

 

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