I agree with my friend Carlos that Henri Vieuxtemps is a vastly under-rated composer, having just spent an enjoyable evening re-hearing his second and third string quartets (Maurice Raskin Quartet). Music that is well written, well conceived and with memorable themes. It was Vieuxtemps' misfortune never to write a Big Hit (unlike Bruch with his G minor violin concerto, or Holst with The Planets). He also suffers from not having written anything for piano players, unlike Schumann, Chopin, Debussy or Liszt whose music has been taken up over a century and a half by horde upon horde of piano players. For Vieuxtemps, you need a violin (or viola). This makes him a minority composer. However, I do like these two string quartets, plus the 4th and 5th violin concertos (including one other ... the second? I forget). His music for viola is highly memorable, especially on the CD played by Pierre Lénert. He also wrote many remarkable short pieces for the violin (though we could do without his American pot-boilers).

Second evening of my latest remarkable Thai Seafood Tom Yum. Benefited from a kilo of clams along with the mussels, the squid and the langoustines. Enough left for one evening's full meal. The Livarot cheese is, however, now finished. RIP.