Wed 8 Dec – Kate Rusby:

This turned out to be a very pleasant evening: a mixture of traditional South Yorkshire carols with tracks from Kate Rusby's new album - not forgetting the odd solo number from members of her band.

At the beginning she explained that there is a local tradition of going from pub to pub singing carols which were banned from churches during the Victorian period for being too raucous. They don't sound all that raucous in the Twenty-First Century but they were bright and joyous, and made even more so by Kate's gorgeous voice.…

Tue 7 Dec – Philharmonia Orchestra, Håkan Hardenberger:

The concert started with the Philharmonia playing Beethoven but it was Håkan Hardenberger most of us had come to see - those of us who had come that is: it seemed the snow had kept a lot of people at home.

The great man arrived on stage for the second piece, Haydn's Trumpet Concerto (which was strangely disappointing) and then announced (i can't remember whether he did this before or after the Haydn) that he and conductor Andriss Nelson had 'played a little trick' on us: in place of the cancelled…

Tue 7 Dec – A Portrait of H.K. Gruber:

I think some of the people at this 'pre-concert' had gone along for the chance to hear the trumpet virtuoso Håkan Hardenberger play for free and weren't really fans of contemporary Classical music as such. These audience members must have been particularly disappointed when it was announced that Hardenberger wouldn't be appearing after all (to play Gruber's "Exposed Throat") due to "scheduling commitments" and one person at least walked out part way through (though of course it may not have been because he didn't like the music).

Even if you…

Wed 1 Dec – Gjerstad / Parker / Drake:

Unfortunately i had to leave after the first set for fear of being stranded by the snow so i don't know what the second half was like. The first half though was magnificent.

It didn't look so promising at the beginning: reed player Frode Gjerstad had a cough and appeared none too comfortable. He called for a glass of water which was duly brought to the stage, took a gulp and - voilà - all was well again. He started playing and within moments the three of them took off…

Mon 29 Nov – The National, Menomena:

I've seen reviews in which people have been raving about this gig but i agree with the Arts Desk review*: for me this was a night which never really came together.

The support act Menomena were solid but uninspiring and the National seemed oddly nervous, making jokes that no-one (where i was) responded to and only occasionally showing the fire they're surely capable of (for example on "Ada" which was the stand out for me).

Lead singer Matt Berninger was in a decidedly off mood and kept disappearing off stage. I thought…

Fri 26 Nov – Mishaped Pearls:

Got the shock of my life when i arrived - twenty minutes early - for this: the band were already playing. Or so it seemed anyway. Turned out to be a soundcheck. Phew! I could just imagine what my mate M would've said if she'd turned up to find the time had been changed and she'd missed the gig.

As soon it got going it was clear that Mishaped Pearls sound every bit as beautiful live as they do on record. It was wonderful to hear favourites such as Aurora and Amores live.…

Sun 21 Nov – Stéphane Kerecki Trio:

QUESTION: how good were the Stéphane Kerecki Trio?

ANSWER: I don't know; i could barely hear them. The acoustics at the Baltic Restaurant aren't the greatest anyway but that wasn't the main problem. The main problem was the audience noise which was insane. Why bother to go to a gig if you're going to talk through it?

I think the reason can be found in the venue's name: it's a restaurant (and bar), not a jazz club, even if it does try its best to double as one. For those that…

Tue 3 Apr – Mitsuko Uchida, Brentano String Quartet:

Mitsuko Uchida playing mozart concertos, accompanied just by a string quartet. I still remember picking up the schedule of upcoming concerts from the stand at the royal festival hall and seeing this concert in it. I'd been working up to 'trying' classical music for some time and suddenly i knew that the moment had come.

What a night it was! From the first note i was in heaven. Uchida's piano playing, as cool and fluid as water and the quiet warmth of the Brentano String Quartet - they were just…

Thu 10 Feb – Begoña Olavide:

I remember this well as it was the last concert i went to before the 'fog' came down on me: two or three music-less years were to follow. Begoña Olavide played (and on some numbers sang) beautifully. She is a virtuoso of the psaltery (also known in Arabic as the qanun), a string instrument which was important in the music of al-Andalus, as the Moorish kingdom in Spain was known. The psaltery is a string instrument, but one which is played laid down flat and with a pluck.

We sat there…

Sat 20 Nov – Brass Jaw:

First of all, a big thank you to London Buses thanks to whom i missed the first quarter of an hour of the gig. I can always rely on you to be unreliable.

When i did get there i found the group in full flow: the four of them at the centre of a big indoor plaza while their audience sat round its edges. Think amphitheatre and you'll have an idea of what it was like. The acoustics were dire - it was like holding a concert in a swimming pool; and yet…