The Victorian Galleries of the National Portrait Gallery resounded to a sing-off of “Pack Up Your Troubles” and “Tipperary”. I really relished the back-drop of busts:
(If you want to see detail, click on the image)
Jolly fun. We performed German trenches songs to pin-dropping silence and attentive faces, and then everyone clapped in time to the saucy French march of the chorus to “Madelon”. Mr. Redman was his usual dapper self. This was, for him, the third of four gigs that day. For me it was only the third of three.
My goodness it was hot.
We have several interesting things coming up: A re-enactment at the Salisbury Hotel on Green Lanes of the first peace demonstration on August the 5th, 1914, the day after War was declared. And an Edwardian ‘late’ at the Horniman museum, and of course Buxton, Branscombe and Deal festivals. Just hit the ol’ “Gigs” link at the top of this page!
In the meantime, if you’re interested in the Victorian and Edwardian phenomenon in ribbons, lace and chiffon that was the Gaiety Girl, do buy the current copy of the Chap magazine! I’ve written another article for that esteemed – or infamous – organ.
The 101 concerts in Canada were an absolute whirl of fascination and exhaustion: waking up at 5am to get the 5:45 Langdale bus, the 6:15 Horseshoe Bay ferry, the 7:10 Vancouver bus and Skytrain out to Abbotsford, Mission, Delta, Coquitlam, Ladner, Chilliwack and other outlying areas for 10am, 1:45 and 3pm concerts, back at 8:30 in the evening. 
I met a man who worked for Howard Hughes; a Chinese nonogenarian who led a band in the thirties that toured Brunei, London, Singapore, Buenos Aires; a Caribbean-born man who played bongos in an ensemble that was all the rage in 1940s Quebec; a tattooed lady who had played 2nd violin for the Vancouver Philharmonic in the 1950s; and so many other wonderful people. Yet more inspiration to write, which I am doing, like anything. Any gaps in the “Forthcoming Gigs” link are filled with writing.
Some interesting gigs when I got back to London in April: Singing at a vintage dining experience for London Vintage Kitchens, in this case 1913 Paris. Guests were dressed in 1913 finery while I sang and Julio Schwarz Andrade played ragtime piano. 
We did a rip-snorting version of My Blue Heaven, in French. A little bit after 1913 but nobody seemed to mind too much. B&W photos by Hanson Leatherby.
And, on the subject of writing, do hie thee to the nearest good newsagent’s and get a copy of the June/July “Chap” magazine! Stocklists are HERE. Or else just order one from their site. I highly recommend back-issues, what an array of them, but the June/July one features an article I wrote on the subject of sheet music. And also, if you go to theChap.org, you can hear a track that Matt Redman arranged, and played, using classical guitar, acoustic bass guitar, steel-string guitar (with slide), 12-string guitar, mandoline, ukulele, and bouzouki! All at the same time! And I sing. 
We recorded it especially for the article, interpreting my first-ever piece of sheet music without hearing any other versions, in the true spirit of sheet-music explorations: get it from the paper, and not from the record! If you like it, do leave a comment in the comments box!
I must get back to Monteverdi now. After spending a childhood in thrall to the Nadia Boulanger recordings of Zefiro Torna and Chiome d’oro sung by Paul Derenne and Hughes Cuenod, I get a chance to sing them with lovely lovely Emily Atkinson and wonderful musicians this Sunday in the Lovekyn Chapel!
