Unfinished Symphony

Spring has sprung. Domesticated day of gym, pancakes, cycling & dance classes with the girls (not simultaneously - a new craze!) and then took Naomi to a concert. My colleague Sam belongs to the Beijing International Chamber Orchestra, an amateur but quality group of western and Chinese musicians, founded by a formidable Russian woman with peroxide hair, 6-inch heels and a baton that could do some damage. They perform four pairs of concerts a year, usually at the German School's theatre, which was packed.

The concert began with Mozart's Concerto for Harp and Flute (an unusual but pleasing combination), with Sam playing the latter, superby I should add. Apparently it's the only piece of music Mozart ever wrote with a harp in it. An hour and a half of classical music is a test for any child and Naomi fidgeted and squirmed but silently so. She was relieved that Schubert never finshed his "Symphony No.8", so only had two movements.