mirga (and the CBSO) at colston hall…

I went to Colston Hall last night to hear/see the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (you’ll know them better as the CBSO) performing Lili Boulanger’s “D’un Matin de Printemps”, Debussy’s “La Mer” and Mahler’s “Symphony no.1”. Actually, although I’m on Colston Hall’s emailing list and frequently check out their website, I’d completely missed that the CBSO were coming to Bristol… so it was ENTIRELY down to Moira (who spotted it on Twitter) that I ended up buying a ticket.
Let’s face it, the REAL reason for wanting to attend the concert wasn’t so much that it was the CBSO (brilliant though they are) or for the music to be played (although I’m a big Mahler fan and also love Debussy’s “La Mer”)…
It was because Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla was the conductor.
If you’ve never seen her ‘perform’, then you MUST make sure you do so at the earliest possible opportunity. She is simply wonderful.
The only previous time I’d seen her ‘in action’ was in January last year, at the Birmingham Symphony Hall (not long after she’d been appointed Director of the acclaimed CBSO at the ridiculously young age of 29). As you might be able to tell from my blog post of the time (it’s worth reading just for my ‘slightly’ over-the-top review!), I was utterly captivated by her.
Well, yesterday evening (AND six months’ pregnant!)(Mirga, not me), she and the CBSO gave the large and enthusiastic audience a night to remember.
Mirga, undoubtedly, is a true super-star.

I watched/heard the performance from the fourth row of the stalls (and the extreme right, facing the stage). Although this meant that much of the orchestra wasn’t directly visible, it DID provide me with the perfect position from which to watch the conductor perform from her rostrum.

It was a completely intoxicating experience… as a performer, she was mesmerising… and passionate, and powerful, and tender. Utterly enchanting and quite, quite magical.  
She has clearly already forged a formidable relationship with both the orchestra and the audiences.
The orchestra loves her.
She loves the CBSO.
I absolutely love her.
And, after last night, Bristol loves her too.
Photo: Receiving the audience's acclaim at the end of yesterdays concert (yes, she’s definitely pregnant!)