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When we were little, my friend Erin attended elocution lessons and I have a distinct memory of the opening line of one of the poems she learnt. "I'm in a terrible huff today" was how it went and that pretty much sums up how I feel today.

I am on call. Sometimes a piece of music doesn't require the full complement of players and, in the strings at least, this means that there is the possibility for time off, working on a rota system. This week, I am first on call, so while I am not technically needed, I can't really do anything in case someone goes off ill and I'm called in.

Although these extra few days off will give me a chance to get Beethoven 9 and Adams' under the fingers for next week (as well as maybe tackling the mountain of ironing I've hidden in my store room), I really like the programme I am missing and am decidedly unimpressed to not be playing. However, it is my turn to have time off on the rota, so here I am. At home. Not playing Beethoven 7 or Shostakovich's Cello Concerto 1.

I've already explained how much I love playing Beethoven 7, but I am also a huge fan of Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No 1.

Being a little bit of a musical ignoramus until my early 20s, it was only when I was at college that I discovered this concerto. It was one of those things that you know you should listen to but never quite get round to, a little bit like reading War And Peace (though decidedly shorter and infinitely more exciting). I sat down in the college library to listen to it one afternoon, when no doubt I should have be practising, and listened to it several times in a row. It blew me away.

It sounds like the best bits from all the Shostakovich symphonies. The high octane first movement is permeated with the motif of Shostakovich's name. The second movement has everything you would expect from a Shostakovich second movement - searing strings, heart wrenching melodic lines, ominous harmonies creeping in. The third movement is an exhilarating race from beginning to end, the music turning corners on a penny, swirling wind lines, lightening speed chromatics in the solo cello.

This weekend is also an opportunity for Newtown and St Asaph audiences to hear cellist play. Originally a Swansea boy, Thomas is fast making a name for himself internationally, both as a concerto soloist and chamber musician.

So... if you're in St Asaph on Saturday or Newtown on Sunday, give my colleagues a wave. I hope they all enjoy themselves very much. If you can't make it to the concert, you can still read about the programme by downloading the programme notes from our website. Also, if anyone recognises the opening line of the Huff poem, I'd love to know who the author is!

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