Silk

Friday a week ago I made a long city walk with Tristan, a maths teacher at the French school in Tashkent.

Koen: "What's up for tonight?"

Tristan: "Oh, not much.." (said with an air of mathematical absent-mindedness).

It therefore came as a pleasant surprise that we were actually on our way to the conservatorium where the National Symphonic Orchestra of Uzbekistan performed together with the French violinist Frédéric Pélassy. They gave the audience a fantastic impression of Ravel's Tzigane and Lalo's Spanish Symphony.

Pelassy's encore - a whirlwind of a violin solo of - gives you a taste:

(My own knowledge of classical music is far to limited to have recognised it, but someone told me afterwards that this piece is a capriccio of Puccini. I admit, also the jargon word 'capriccio' was new to me.)