Author: vinyl1

Solving time: 43 minutes Music: Mozart, Sinfonia Concertante, Grumiaux/Davis/LSO First, let me thank my colleague Russel John for filling in last week. I had a most enjoyable trip, but my access to the internet was … Read more “Times 24557 – Heathcliff again”

Solving time: 30 minutes Music: Sibelius, Violin Concerto Belkin/Ashkenazy/LSO This is the first puzzle I’ve had to blog that I consider somewhat unsatisfactory. For me, the cryptics lacked the precision one expects in a Ximinean … Read more “Times 24539 – In search of the lost cloud”

Solving time: 30 minutes Music: Van Morrison, Astral Weeks Another two-parter. About 15 minutes for most of it, and then 15 minutes for the last three, and I didn’t make it easy for myself either. … Read more “Times 24527 – Stand and Deliver!”

Solving time: 40 minutes Music: Shostakovich, Symphony No. 14, Ormandy/PhilSO Before you laugh too hard at my time, let me point out that it was divided into two parts; 15 minutes for most of the … Read more “Times 24515 – All Thumbs Eve!”

Solving time: 53 minutes Music: Elgar, Enigma Variations, Previn/LSO Some solvers may find this a bit tricky. Very specific general knowledge, and a good vocabulary, will come in most handy. I was slowed down at … Read more “Times 24503 – Where are Muckram Wakes when you need them?”

Solving time:42 minutes Music: Holst, Choral Symphony, Boult/LPO This one started out easily enough, but ended up being tough at the end. The correct spelling of ‘Roentgen’ is absolutely essential for finishing. I had it … Read more “Times 24491 – The answers, but some questions”

Solving time: 39 minutes Music: Strauss, Don Quixote, Karajan/Fournier/BPO I was a bit worried about this one for a while. The bottom was not too difficult, but the top offered a lot of resistance. I … Read more “Times 24479 – Gotcha!”

Solving time: 44 minutes Music: John Field, Noctures/Piano Concerto #2 Parts of this one seemed fairly difficult to me. There are a few clues where the literal is quite subtle – or wildly unfair, if … Read more “Times 24467 – Not in my back yard!”

Solving time: 38 minutes Music: Mahler, Symphony #9, Klemperer/New Philharmonia I felt confident after solving the first few I looked at, only to get a bit bogged down. The top right went in quickly enough, … Read more “Times 24455 – Why was The Citizen angry at Bloom?”

Solving time: 38 minutes Music: Schubert, Wanderer Fantasy, Richter I thought my time was a bit slow for this puzzle, which is only of medium difficulty. Some of the vocabulary repeats recent puzzles, and some … Read more “Times 24443, The secrets of the hoary deep……”