The Talented Mr Ripley Q and A Left to Right: Edana Minghella, Guy Barker, Peter King, Jean Toussaint

I went to two events of the Easter Global Music Foundation Course and Festival. Edana Minghella was hosting a screening of her late brother Anthony’s film The Talented Mr Ripley, followed by a Q & A , as she had previewed for us HERE

What came across was the way film director Anthony Minghella had respected and valued the musicians, thereby making the music a key proponent in the film.

In the next few hours, no fewer than five pianists played. Barry Green was working with young bassist Flo Moore accompanying singers in the kings Place atrium, notably Deborah Brown. Then followed Pete Churchill. Downstairs in Hall One was a piano triple bill featuring Kit Downes, first solo, doffing the cap to American minimalism, and then accompanying cellist Lucy Railton. Then a self-deprecating but hugely melodic Frank Harrison featured with his trio, playing tunes from the NEW ALBUM reviewed for us here by Chris Parker.

Bruce Barth, Jeremy Brown, Stephen Keogh

But the many pianists in the audience seemed to have bagged their left-of-house seats to check out, above all, the playing of Bruce Barth. He rounded off the official programme of a very impressive evening with The Rushing Hour, a paean to the frenetic pace of New York and London life, and then did call-and-response with a receptive, attuned and highly alert audience on Blue Monk.

Global Music Foundation