As part of Arcana’s 10th birthday celebrations, we invited our readers to contribute with some of their ‘watershed’ musical moments from the last 10 years.
Regular contributor John Earls writes:
A Short Diary consists of seven short piano pieces composed by Sebastian Rochford in memory of his father, the poet and academic Gerard Rochford, who died in 2019. An eighth piece was composed by his father. It is a profound and moving expression of loss. Rochford’s drumming combines beautifully with Kit Downes‘ piano playing.
When I heard it my own father had a few months before been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease (I am still a co-carer for him). This has been both an uplifting and consoling collection for me.
In January 2024 I saw Rochford and Downes perform the album at Kings Place, London and wrote about it for Arcana here
John Earls is Director of Research at Unite the Union. He posts on Bluesky and tweets / updates his ‘X’ content at @john_earls
You can listen to the album on Tidal below:
Published post no.2,434 – Wednesday 6 February 2025
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