Day 20: Gilbert & Sullivan, Mikado
Ok, I know, in your book Gilbert and Sullivan doesn’t count
as real music – but I love it! I remember when I was a child we used to go to
the New Theatre in Cardiff every season that D’Oyly Carte were there and saw
at least two productions each time! I have some very fond and vivid memories of
those events!
The CD I listened to was actually a compilation CD, that
included excerpts from some of the other operas as well as from the Mikado.
This was the Pro Arte Orchestra conducted by Sir Malcolm Sargent, and was sung
by some famous singers, my favourite of which was Sir Geraint Evans, playing
Koko. When we saw those wonderful performances at Cardiff, I admit that John Reed was my absolute favourite: He was a master of the comic part. John Reed
died early in 2010 and prompted an article on this blog.
Anyway, I’ve seen the Mikado so many times that I am
virtually word-perfect (but I’ve never sung it on stage), so it was a treat to
sing along to A Wand’ring Minstrel, Here’s a how-de-do, The flowers that bloom
in the Spring, and Tit Willow!
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