Contented

Last night, Nathan and I sat up til late, listening to the mastered versions of the Requiem. That's it. The creativity on this project is over. There's nothing more to do. In all honesty, I was scared to listen. I've been slowly falling out of love with the music of late, on account of it coming out of my blessed ears. I'd furthermore convinced myself that the process of mastering wouldn't change the listening experience a great deal. I was wrong. Before the end of the second movement, I was hooked, and was weeping copiously by the time Maddy Prior's solo was over in the third. So many emotions started buzzing around my body; great relief, sadness, joy, gratitude to PK and Norscq for doing such an extraordinary job.  I went to bed a happy man and woke up, for the first time in ages, with a spring in my step. 

Today's been another one of those days which is crammed to the rafters with things needing to be done. 

I was up and on the road before 9, heading down to Gospel Oak to pick up the car from Kwik Fit where it was serviced and MOT'd - very reasonably as it happens.  

I then took myself to Angel to buy, for the first time ever, an expensive item of clothing; a black waistcoat with glorious lapels, which I saw in the window of a boutique on Camden Passage. I decided to treat myself to it for the Requiem premier, and went in expecting to need one to be made specially in my size, which I worried wouldn't be ready in time. 

I asked the woman in the shop about it and she looked at me for a few moments before saying; "you should try the one on in the window." I did so.  It fitted like a glove. 

"It's a one off," she said, "and the man who made it very sadly died last Monday. This was his shop, and his great love. When he arrived with the black waistcoat, I thought he was mad. All of our waistcoats are made from colourful Nigerian fabrics, but he told me to put it in the window. 'Someone will want this', he said." 

And that someone was me. 

I explained that I was buying it for the premier of a requiem and told her about the project as her eyes filled with tears. 

This afternoon I went to a meeting of the Musician Union's writers' committee, of which I'm a member. Fiona is as well. We were elected simultaneously. It was great fun to have her there, and we sat in a corner with a film music composer called Tim, lobbying for the MU to pull itself into the 21st Century! 

Home to Highgate to format more scores for the live premier, send emails and tick off more points on a seemingly endless list of things to do. 

No rest for the wicked... But this wicked man is growing more content by the second. 

By contrast, 350 years ago, Pepys was feeling rather melancholy. His workmen were being lazy. His house was in a mess. His neighbours were complaining. He was missing his wife and to cap it all, he was trying to teach himself how to do the accounts... Something he found rather difficult.