The five CDs issued by Cembal d'Amour featuring David Nadien are an essential purchase for any lover of violin playing. For once, the sleeve design's "The Legendary Violinist" is pretty accurate. The latest CD has Nadien in the Beethoven violin concerto in 1952, and the Mendelssohn violin concerto in 1975. As with all Nadien recordings, these are amateur recordings made during concerts, though the sound is surprisingly good, given the sources. The Beethoven comes over as a concerto for violin, orchestra and coughers and is a somewhat conventional 1952 reading, with the G minor section in the first movement converted into an andante. For about the first time in my life, I have found someone who takes the andante movement of the Mendelssohn concerto too fast for my taste; most violinists now play it un poco adagio, but with Nadien it's allegretto and sounds rushed. What counts, however, is Nadien's playing. Whether Nadien be playing the Mendelssohn too quickly, or Pop Goes the Weasel too slowly, he is always a pleasure to listen to.

Usual two kilos of mussels this weekend, in addition to 300 gms of scallops and a duck which I am about to spit roast and consume with a green salad and a bottle of St Emilion.