Ode To Joy

Yesterday was a very special day. Although I spent most of the morning and early afternoon just hanging around my living quarters, I rode the ferry to the city to meet Wyatt at a bookstore adjacent to the Queen Victoria Building. It was a nice venue and it allowed us once again to browse titles and recommend works we had read to one another. Then we went to two pubs in rapid succession. The first a typical downtown watering hole with expensive beers and charging even for the club soda my companion drank. The second was a beautiful dark wood paneled lounge that looked very much like a nineteenth century gentlemen's club, complete with classical paintings on the wall and waiters dressed in livery. That place was only a block from Circular Quay, so when Shelly met us we made our way towards the Opera House for a quick meal before the show. No, they did not have any pies, so I had to have a "Federation Burger," likely named for the unification of this great country. This was my first visit inside the Opera House, and it is truly magnificent. High ceilings with strange modernistic chandeliers, and a raised stage in the center. In due time the orchestra came out and the maestro, Richard Tognettiao, really surprised me when he pulled out a violin and took the part of the lead violinist as well as directing. He would pause every once in a while to point with his bow, but otherwise let the orchestra through three short pieces by simply moving the neck of that violin around. After a brief intermission the concert continued with Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. What rapture! We were sitting in the second row and when the soloist singers came out they stepped around the orchestra and sang right in front of us. It sent chills up my spine, and the chorus blasting out the "Ode To Joy" was absolutely marvelous. I have never heard the Ninth live anywhere, and even lacking a comparison I can assure you that this was likely one of the best renditions anywhere. After it was over I clapped so long that my arms ached, and everyone in the audience was hooting and yelling. They don't allow photographs inside the Opera House but I snuck a couple of shots with the camera discretely in my lap. The photograph today is of Shelly, who sat on one side of me while Wyatt sat on the other. You can see some of the vastness of the concert hall beyond Shelly's shoulder. What a great evening!