You can sometimes see the true nature of something when it is diametrically opposed to something elseI’m often amused when I see a pompous building sporting pillars with the two scrolls of the Ionic style, because those curves were originally just a way for sophisticated Athenians to avoid the ornate goats’ horns beloved of the Greek villages.But the villagers may have had a point, because pairing off the grand and its opposite can be beautiful. Recently there was a noisy and delightful session of trad jazz as played in New Orleans inside the impressive and sternly classical Athenaeum Club. The jazz was excellent and performed not by hairy teenagers but by serious – well, fairly serious – middle-aged gentlemen: the Nevada Street Four. Would it have sounded even better in a smoky cellar or in New Orleans Preservation Hall? Possibly not. Continue reading...
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