Reviews

'As always, it was sheer pleasure to observe Robin Hill's remarkable fluent technique: everything looks easy when he plays it.' Colin Cooper- Classical Guitar Magazine ----- 'Wonderful for their (Hill & Wiltschinsky) precision, touch and clarity of sound... refined virtuosity, the achievement of a long interpretive process.' Il Giornale D'Italia (Rome) ----- 'I loved your CD and thought your technique and performance were fabulous...' Rick Wakeman

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

Navigating Naples and the Tale of the Mandolin

Robin has now joined Cunard's Queen Victoria and is currently in Naples.
Fortunately he didn't arrive there yesterday, as the police seem to have been rather busy, '100 Arrested in Naples'.

He is also, once again, a man on a mission.
If you remember, back in the summer, there was an ongoing saga connected to a mandolin.
It started with, 'Sorrento a Mandolin and a Music Box', where Robin spotted a beautiful mandolin but came home with a music box.

By June we had, 'The Mystery of the Mandolin', in which the entire family temporarily became detectives worthy of the best overt operation in recent times.

Swiftly followed by, 'Captain Corelli Causes Chaos', where I had a crash course in the life and works of Hummel, Guiliani and Mozart.

Then finally, 'Guitarists and Their B****y Nails', when Robin proved his purchase a worthy investment as it kept him amused for days whilst resting his battle worn nails.

Well, although the mandolin was found in Sorrento, it was originally made in Naples.
So today Robin is attempting to find the home/studio of the maker, Nicola Spoto.
We have the address, you may have read a tweet yesterday in which I mentioned shining a torch inside the mandolin, to make a record of it...

He allowed himself an hour or so to achieve this goal, as his first concert is tomorrow.
No matter how interested he is in the history of the mandolin, he's more interested in giving a well rehearsed concert on Wednesday.

Well, it was an eventful hour.
The taxi took Robin straight to the right road which was in a fascinating and vibrant area of Naples.
However, most frustratingly, Robin found every house except the one he was looking for.
No matter how many he times he went up and down the narrow street, lined with the most impressive houses, number 34 was never found.
Number 33 and number 35 were discovered, but not number 34.
The mystery of the mandolin is set to continue.

But if the BBC need a reporter, from the scene of the city police station, he's right outside.

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