How refreshing and touching it is … to hear just a song about sourdough bread. About the market day. About a farm barn, about the lakes of Ontario. About a sailor boy. How absolutely sweet and heartwarming and deep that is equally to just bring us closer to the simple joys and reflections and views on life. It doesn’t always have to be life and death and transcendent philosophical psychological abstract pondering.
I couldn’t stop smiling.
The magical sense of connection that was created, the intimacy of that contact and those lyrics and stories, being so up close to those facial expressions, the acoustics of the bass and guitar and violin resonating, the personal anecdotes, the comfy couch and pillows and fluffy blankets, the laughter and joy. The realness of everything being shared.
Much food for thought.
The first day I arrived back at Orford, I was practicing the second movement of this sonata late in the evening, exhausted by all the challenges that have been overwhelming me these past few weeks, and suddenly I began to feel myself tearing up ... which happens often when I’m working on in incredible music like this. But this time, as I went on repeating that section where the main theme returns, I just allowed the raw emotions to take over, and soon I was crying uncontrollably. It felt almost indulgent, to just let myself weep like that as I kept playing. At a certain point, my fingers came to a standstill, but I still couldn’t stop the tears, so I just sat there in the silence, sobbing until I drained out all those emotions.
Read MoreIt’s not about being perfect. It’s that we are real, sincere, spontaneous. Take risks and commit to our beliefs, take confidence in our ideas and embrace our strengths and limitations. Find joy and excitement in the unknown, unexpected, unpredictable.
Read MoreI love that the music we study is so in-depth and powerful and endless in insight and possibilities that everytime we come back to them we discover new perspectives and gems and details - this new enlightened, renewed fascination with the same notes we’ve been repeating and perfecting for so many tireless hours. There’s always more, more to find, more to improv, more to do justice for. And it’s so worth it. We grow and change and mature with our music, and I love experiencing and becoming aware of that constantly developing relationship.
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