WillTravel

There's my one and only chance (well, maybe not) to see Schumann's Manfred on August 21 in Edinburgh during the festival. The only problem is, this will come in the evening after an exhausting two-flight day including an overnight flight, from the west coast, and a very early wakeup time.

http://www.eif.co.uk/E206_Schumann_s_Manfred.php

I've managed to stay awake and alert for theatre in London, but that was with a single nonstop flight. Would you book an event for the first day of your European trip?

If anyone wants to comment on Manfred, please do so too. I'm a Schumann fan, and a Byron fan, but I don't know this piece at all.

yk

Sorry can't comment on the piece.

What time will you arrive in Edinburgh? Will you have time for a power nap?

I personally won't do it unless it's something I'm dying to see, and if I have at least 2 hrs to take a nap.

I have done it a few times. I slept thru an entire play in London, but stayed awake for a concert at Paris Opera Garnier.

Intrepid1

I actually managed to fall asleep while standing up during our first day there private tour of a chateau near Paris last year, and that was after an overnight flight during which I actually DID get some sleep.

But if this is your "only chance" (I don't quite understand the "well, maybe not" part) then I would risk it.

WillTravel

What I meant by "maybe not" is that it's possible that at some point in the future I'll run into another production of Manfred. However, I don't recall hearing of one before.

I'm supposed to arrive in Glasgow airport around 7 AM, but then there is the whole getting to Edinburgh part, and then there's the wait to check-in, so the nap would have to happen pretty late. I've always skipped that on the premise that doing so encourages jetlag, which I've mostly avoided.

travelbunny

Dear Will, a nap is my answer if you have your heart set on the concert. Although naps seem to be an anathema to many posters, they can be very helpful in just this sort of situation. Try to get as much sleep as possible on the plane. After checkin have lunch and then sleep until 2 -3 hrs before your concert. Try to walk there or walk for an hr before..should work IMO.

Intrepid1

I don't care what anybody ELSE says...a nap, even if it is late, is sleep, for however short a period of time. These days I find myself more "jet-lagged" after I get back home!

I would try to take Travelbunny's advice and get as much sleep as possible on the way. I would take something, melatonin, ambien, beandryl, whatever.

Soem say that "Romance died with Schumann"..so go for it, Buddy!

Nikki

Everyone is different, but for me it works very well to take a nap the arrival day and go out at night. I have attended several concerts and plays the night of arriving in Europe and always enjoyed them. The combination of the adrenalin and the time difference makes me more able to appreciate evening activities early in my trip than later on.

That said, I have traveled with some people who found that they had a really hard time staying awake sitting still in a darkened theater the first night.

noe847

I say "go for it"! As everyone has noted, you will need a nap. I have always taken a nap my first day, no more than 1 1/2 hrs. Because you are going to an evening concert, you could sleep for a longer time. You should have time to fit in a good solid nap even with a normal check in time. One thing to consider is arranging early check-in at your lodging. You could possibly pay a half day or even book an additional day so that you could check in right when you hit town. Glasgow is not very far from Edinburgh, so you might get there quicker than you think.

janisj

It will be hard - but you can do it.

Getting from Glasgow won't take all day - and it is possible you room will be ready. Even w/ a 2:00 or 3:00 check in time, I've found my rooms available iby mid-morning maybe 75% of the time.

That doesn't mean your room will be ready - but ther is a good chance. And the concert sin't until 8:00 p.m. so you'll have time for a nap some time.

Now - that could mean getting over the jetlag/time changes might take a day or two longer. But if this is a "must" for you it can be done.

It wouldn't be my choice but for a special event - go for it.

I once had a ticket for Maggie Smith in The Lady in the Van - front row no less - on my arrival day. I had visions of Maggie stopping to yell at the woman sleeping in the front row Well I did nod off a bit in Act 1 but shook myself out of it and by Act 2 I sort of got a second wind and made it through. Worth it for sure - but it would have been much better on another night.

janisj

sorry about all the typos. . . . . .

Michel_Paris

OK, if this is important to you, here is what I would do....it involves sacrifice up front. Starting a week before your trip, start going to bed an hour earlier and getting up an hour earlier...then 2 hrs..then 3 hrs. Part of the shock in getting to a european location is the 5/6 hr adjustment required to your internal clock. Rewind the clock at home, so your first day will be less of a shock. I've done this, and it helps. Of coruse, you must also skip the free movies, meals,etc on the plane and make sleep your priority...
Enjoy the performance!
Mike

obxgirl

If it's a once in a lifetime event I hope you go for it and wish you the best of luck! I know I'd really struggle.

We have a friend who is a professor at the Royal Academy of Music. For years he invited us to stay with him and he always scheduled a concert our first night there. Never made it all the way through a single one of them!

historytraveler

I've done it, but I've nodded off. As suggested take a nap and go for it.

Christina

no, I generally do not plan anything special for the first day because I don't know how I'll feel. I've discovered arrival day naps do not work for me at all, I feel terrible and off schedule for days afterward, so I do try to stay up that day until 9-10 pm (or sometimes later, actually). However, I don't plan anything that will require me to sit for hours listening to something.

I would only do it to hear a performer that was only possible on that day and was someone I really wanted to hear. I would never do it just to hear a particular piece, because that's not special to me, only a performer would make something unique.

YOu can always buy a recording if you want, there are some good ones. For Manfred, try Beecham or Bernstein, perhaps. It could even be better than the performance. Personally, I am not a super fan of that kind of music in general, and am also not overly fond of Schumann's orchestral works. I love his piano music (and play it often, myself) and his chamber music, and think that is where he excelled. So, for me, it wouldn't even be something I'd want to go to normally.

I did hear Ivo Pogorelich play at the Edinburgh festival once, now that was something! I've also gone to London just to hear Martha Argerich at the BBC Proms, more or less -- see, she is one of my favorite pianists and I would go to a concert of hers on the first night, if it were the only time possible. But not just to hear a specific piece.

111op

I don't know "Manfred," but the overture seems to be a staple of orchestral recordings -- and of live performances. I'm sure I've heard it before, but I don't remember what it sounds like. I don't really remember the four Schumann symphonies either.

Is this the only Edinburgh Festival performance you can make? If so, I'd go for it. It'd be interesting to go see what it's like. I've never been.

I'd not worry too much about staying awake. I've slept through concerts even with plenty of sleep. Once this happened with Leon Fleisher and the Ravel Left-Hand Concerto. I was very excited to hear him play, but obviously I wasn't excited enough because I slept through the entire concerto.

I did look at the schedule for the year out of curiosity, and it looks like there's a Bruckner and Beethoven emphasis. Ian Bostridge, Richard Goode and Ivan Moravec will perform. Looks interesting.

WillTravel

There are a few other concert options I'm considering during my stay. I did a bit of research and a full performance of Manfred is pretty rare. On the other hand, maybe there's a reason for that.

I guess I probably won't book this, because the uncertainty of knowing if I had wasted my money would bother me. There is sure to be something I can attend on the spur of the moment at the Fringe, if I want to be up late.