The Music of Josef Suk

It's interesting how an appreciation of one thing can open up a whole new avenue of exploration.
Take The Minister of Chance. It's an audio drama, available free, which I came across first because my Young Man picked up one of their business cards at an SF convention, and which I listened to because it's a sort of spin off from Doctor Who. With a great cast, including Jenny Agutter and Paul Darrow.
The music is beautiful, and because the series was being made on a small budget, they were using music that is no longer in copyright.
Which led me to the new avenue of exploration, and to the work of Josef Suk, who wrote the beautiful theme music used in Minister of Chance. I've just got hold of a CD of his work, performed by the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. The music I had heard as part of Minister of Chance was actually part of a longer suite called Fairy Tale, and has the title 'Runa's curse and how it was overcome by true love'. I've just been listening to it in its original context, and it's a beautiful piece of music. It was originally based on an Eastern European fairy tale - so it wasn't too much of a departure from the original intentions for it to be used for a science fantasy story.
I'd never heard of Josef Suk before, but he was Czech - in fact one of the major composers of the Romantic Czech school. According to the sleeve notes of the CD, he studied at the Prague Conservatory under Dvorak (at least I'd heard of him! And I like his music) and he spent 41 years as the second violinist of the Czech Quartet, while also composing. He retired in 1933. He also taught composition, like his mentor Dvorak, at the Prague Conservatory.
So I've learned something about what sort of classical music I like - after all, it's such a vast field! And now I can go looking for more Czech and Romantic works with the expectation that I will probably like them. And it's all thanks to an SF series.

Enjoying Witch Prime Beer

I've been supporting the makers of The Minister of Chance audio play (available on iTunes) in their efforts to make the series into a film. One of the ways they are raising money is to ask for sponsorship from local firms in Cheshire, where they will be doing the filming - there is already a 10 minute Prologue, filmed at the beautiful Little Moreton Hall. One of the firms sponsoring the film is Woodlands Brewery, and they have brewed a special beer in honour of one of the characters in the Minister of Chance - the wicked Witch Prime, ruler of the technologically advanced but superstitious country of Sezuan, which invades scientific but less technological Tanto, where most of the action takes place. In the audio play, the Witch Prime is played with gusto by Sylvester McCoy.
So I sent off for some of the beer.
I had hoped it would come before I went to London for LonCon, so I could share a bottle with my Young Man, but it didn't arrive. It hadn't arrived by the time I came back, either, so I sent a slightly concerned email to the brewery. When they got back to me, they told me that the beer had got broken in transit, and the courier hadn't told them - so a new case was on the way, along with an extra case to make up for any inconvenience!
I am now awash with beer!
Fortunately, it is very nice beer, light and hoppy, and made with pure Cheshire spring water and magic, as the label says.
Believe! As the Witch Prime himself says (or maybe "Keep Calm and Drink More Woodlands Beer").

The King's Arrow

Here's a picture from the prologue of The Minister of Chance, where the King of Tanto is practicing archery at his country retreat, which is actually Little Moreton Hall in Cheshire.
The production team are trying to raise quite a modest sum of money to make a full film of the audio drama that is already available online (which is brilliantly written, and full of great actors) and to do this they are selling some of the props on ebay.
And I got one of the King's arrows!
I think this will make a very fine addition to my re-enactment quiver!

The Minister of Chance at BritSciFi Con

It's always nice to come across a kindred spirit, and at Stuart's Blog (mrstu.blogspot.co.uk) I came across a fellow member of the crowd which has been funding the Minister of Chance on its journey from audio series to film. He met some of the stars, including Paul McGann, at BritSciFi at the beginning of March, and blogged about it, and the Prologue film.

The Minister of Chance

My Young Man gave me a business card. On one side there was a picture of a hooded man and a white haired girl, and the words: "Julian Wadham The Minister of Chance Lauren Crace"
On the other side it said:
Jenny Agutter, Jed Brophy, Paul Darrow, Philip Glenister, Tamsin Greig, Sylvester McCoy, Paul McGann - download all episodes absolutely free from iTunes or minister of chance.com"

He said it was a sci-fi/fantasy series, done as radio. It's sort of a spin off of a Doctor Who adventure called Death Comes to Time - but this version gives the Minister a universe of his own.
And - really, how could I not at least give it a go? - it's got two Doctors, and Avon, and Gene Hunt in it!!!

So I tried the prologue, in which Paul McGann plays a pleasant and genial ambassador - right up until the moment that he becomes totally ruthless.... I was hooked.

Then the Minister becomes involved, and gets himself a Companion in the form of Kitty, an argumentative young lady who is involved in the resistance movement against the Ambassador, who has taken over the country. The Ambassador's people are hunting down scientists - their leader back home, played by Sylvester McCoy, is called the Witch Prime, which gives some idea of their views on science - and Jenny Agutter is fantastic as the Professor in hiding.
All the actors are brilliant, and the script is intelligent and witty and keeps you guessing about who the villain of the piece really is - is it The Horseman (dangerous and deadly)? Or the Ambassador/Governor (clever and ruthless)? The Witch Prime? Lord Rathen, the general who is sent by the Witch Prime to keep an eye on the Ambassador? And why has the Minister involved himself in this (from his point of view) petty little war anyway? And just what is his relationship to Kitty, whose origins are shrouded in mystery?

I'm not going to give any spoilers - I'm just going to say listen to the episodes!

The whole thing was crowd funded, and now they're trying to raise money to turn it into a film. They're going to be making it in Cheshire, which they are renaming "Chanceshire" - the landscape is what they had in mind when they were describing Tanto, the country in which most of the action takes place.