Bristol Beacon
Bristol is a city I have only become familiar with in the last four years, with my first visit being in September 2021. I've since been back a few times, and I never pass up on an opportunity to return. The word 'bohemian' often comes up, and I totally agree. I love the contemporary Brisolian in-your-face multi-culturalism, and take satisfaction in knowing that those 'controversial philanthropist' shithouses, like Edward Colston, would turn in their graves if they could see this peaceful and happily-mixed city today.
And it's the Bristol Beacon, formerly known as Colston Hall, that hosts tonight's Prom. When I'm in town I always like to see a show if there's something on, and in the past I've visited the Bristol Old Vic and The Bristol Hippodrome. But, alas, not yet the Bristol Beacon. So I don't know much about the venue itself. I have a look online at some interior pictures, and it reminds me of The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, or even our own Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool.
In my ignorance, for some reason I thought the Paraorchestra was something to do with parachutes. I think it's because there's an annual hot air balloon parade in Bristol, isn't there? But no, the Paraorchestra is in fact an orchestra formed of members with disabilities. I didn't know such a thing existed, but why shouldn't it?
Tonight it is a duo called The Breath, and they're being accompanied by the Paraorchestra, led by Charles Hazelwood.
The music starts and, to me, it sounds folky. With a name like The Breath, that now makes sense. It's like an EPIC folk music. Hard to put my finger on it, but a bit like singing around a campfire, on a large scale. There's some interesting instrumentation. Is that a low Irish tin whistle? And I think I hear some uillean pipes? I think it's Ríoghnach Connolly (that makes sense), who talks during a break in the music, and she's both witty and human. She mentions Belgian colonial hand-chopping when talking about the song Antwerp, and I note that as a shrewdly overserved quip.
Some of the inflections remind me of the music of Jose Gonzales, and I'm a fan of his. [One of the best concerts I ever saw was him at the Royal Festival Hall, backed by the String Theory orchestra, in
2017].
A Prom that offers me something new is always welcome, and I see that The Breath have a gig coming up at the Davenham Players theatre in Northwich, on Thursday 25th September. It's about a 25 mins drive away from my house, so I may well pop along to that.
Image: Pixabay.com
