He adds that the college is also looking to establish a body of knowledge in the growing field of refurbishment management, to become a recognised international centre of excellence and to raise the intellectual profile of refurbishment in the construction industry.Open to surveyors, architects and project and contract managers, it is specifically designed to suit people who are already in work. Rather than concentrate too heavily on the architecture aspect, this last module features a focus on the history of buildings, in order to encourage students to think creatively about how old buildings may be converted for modern use. The architecture, design and planning school set up the MSc in Refurbishment two years ago with the help of funding from the Wates Foundation, established by the company of that name.In keeping with the institution's aims of providing a practical qualification, the course, which is seen as unique, is divided into three areas: management, including marketing and construction economics; contracts; and buildings themselves. Young Leif Ove Andsnes played Rachmaninov's Third Piano Concerto with the kind of natural brilliance that can be so wounding to frustrated amateur pianists twice his age.. As is demonstrated by the excitement over this week's unveiling of Sir Norman Foster's plans for a London Millennium Tower, public attention to the construction world centres on new buildings.

In fact, though, converting old buildings accounts for a greater share of construction companies' spending. And while there is no shortage of courses for budding Sir Normans, many in the industry perceive a lack of training in this less glamorous field. In an effort to respond to this situation, University College London's highly regarded Bartlett Graduate School has launched a part-time post- graduate course in the subject. The orchestra gave a thrilling account of the Respighi, brashly pictorial, solo trumpet ringing out from the back of the hall. The Takemitsu, a kind of Japanese L'Apres-midi d'un faune, wove a very different magic with its echoes of Delius and Messiaen emerging from a veil of silence. Though one of the less friendly ghosts of tradition, it's a spectre that every symphonist must face.Takemitsu's Star-Isle and Respighi's Pines of Rome were an excellent choice of companion pieces as examples of non-symphonic composition. A quiet interlude of tolling bells and sinking sounds for piccolo and basses surely told of some personal experience translated into music.