Exploring Boston: BPL Summer Concerts

All summer, every Friday lunchtime, the Boston Public Library has hosted free concerts in its Italianate courtyard.

It's just a mile from my apartment, so I bought a bag lunch and walked to today's concert.

The performer was the violinist Akiko Kobayashi, who played selections from Telemann, Prokofiev and Ysaya.

The courtyard is a very pleasant space.



Akiko explained each of her selections, giving a little historical perspective, telling us what she liked most about them, and offering little preview riffs --- "Listen for the section that sounds like a Gregorian chant; it starts this way..." --- to enhance enjoyment of the pieces. She was excellent.



As she played, I took in some details of the courtyard.











The pieces varied greatly in mood and tempo. It was a very nice selection.



I don't know if it was the reflecting pool, the music, or the food smells, but the courtyard attracted dozens of small birds during the performance; they played hide and seek in the plants and architecture.









The performance was warmly received, and she played an encore. Alas, I didn't catch the name.



I also took advantage of being at the BPL to get a new library card. I'd had a student card back when I was in High School in the 4th century BC, but the library is very different now. It'll be fun to become reacquainted.