text: The overall approach to the storytelling is charming and endlessly imaginative, mixing acrobatics for the flying sequences, puppetry for the creatures in Neverland, inventive object manipulation to change time and place, and musical numbers to break up the story. There’s a real sense of spectacle, but none of the tricks are hidden - Cookson and her team want us to marvel at the mechanics of the theatre, and for young audiences, I imagine the "how they did it" would be just as exciting as "what they’re doing".
  That said, ‘Peter Pan’ does suffer from the worst tendencies of devised work, often dragging out moments for far too long and overstaying its welcome. Much of the comedy and rhythm gets swallowed by the dead weight that holds the production down, especially with the songs that only occasionally work and are often far too slow to keep the story moving along. At three hours (when intermission is included), it’s just way too long, and while the second act is much stronger and more engaging than the first, it still tested my attention span. This may have to do with the NT Live capture of the production though, which is one of the weaker we’ve seen. Like the recent presentation of ‘Salomé’, there’s too much on the stage to capture effectively, losing some of the spectacle. The cast is also not effectively mic’d, so we lose around two thirds of what’s being said or sung. This is most problematic with the songs, with many of the lyrics being lost or unintelligible. Of course seeing it live in the theatre would have been preferable, but other NT Live presentations have been able to capture the essence of the experience. In this instance though, that has been less successful.
  Even so, there’s so much to be charmed by with The Companies’ ‘Peter Pan’. Magic, adventure and entertainment are paramount, and it does the tricky balancing act of appealing to both children and adults. The run time might be excessive and the more bloated moments might fall flat, but at least you have an intermission to go grab a choc top and give yourself a sugar hit for the second act. At the very least, it lets you get swept up in the magic of Barrie’s story and in the inventiveness that theatre can create.
  
  Music education is evolving rapidly. Artistic and scientific developments have broadened our view of musicality. Does the traditional repertoire on tonal music still have any relevance in this context? Of course it does!
  Recent musicological research has shed new light on the way musicians from the baroque era to the nineteenth century acquired their skills. As a result, fascinating correlations between baroque partimento practice and the lead sheet approach common in jazz and pop music have emerged.
  Tonal tools is an inspirational book and app (Android, iOs) that blends old and current approaches. Nine ''components'' serve as keys for a more aural, creative and tangible approach to tonal music form the very start. Tonal tools is applicable to any tonal idiom and spans the baroque, classical, romantic, jazz and pop repertoire by means of common improvisational and compositional principles.
  Don''t expect a straightforward method; interweave Tonal Tools with your usual didactics according to your own pace and needs. Expect a better integration of muscial understanding and skill from your pupils, a more reliable memory and better sight-reading ability, not to mention a broadened muscial imagination, enhanced expressiveness and a joy for playing tonal music.
  As a valuable extension to keyboard teachers'' existing professional expertise, Tonal Tools opens new artistic and (auto)didactic perspectives.
  CONNECT, Musica''s educational series for music schools and conservatories, builds bridges between the past and present, practice and theory, creativity and skill. It translates proven but sometimes forgotten expertise into a contemporary approach. An artistic view of muscial development is central; the series deals with current artistic and educational needs and offers original, consistent and workable solutions.
  Lieven Strobbe teaches the organ and creative keyboard at LUCA school of Arts in Leuven and the Flemisch Part-time Music Edcuation Academies (DKO) in Ekeren and Wilrijk.
  
  Audience members cheer for a gymnast as he competes in the rings event during an international meet in Tokyo on Nov 8. Photo: AP