Paris - Basel - Den Haag - Budapest
Wrapping up a month of touring around Europe!
4 cities, 7 concerts. A kaleidoscope of different musical experiences, people experiences, challenges, risks, courage, resilience, joy, fire, light, warmth, magic, growth. Repeating the trust in what we love, what we do, what we chose to continue doing again and again, with infinite wonder and gratitude.
The smallest ripples matter. It’s all about opening hearts and listening. But what kind of listening? What is the art of listening? It’s profoundly complex. Increasingly difficult in our world to practice kind, humble, loving listening free from biases and prejudices. But that is a worthwhile challenge to face.
“We need to not only see each other, but hear each other first.
To listen to someone’s story without prejudice is a challenge, but a challenge we can all embrace with more attention, awareness, noticing.
To not only listen, but also HEAR without assuming we know anything about an individual in the context of a larger history, of stereotypes, labels, preconceptions, of our own live experiences. That’s the practice of humility and kindness.”
More intense and personal reflections here in my journal.
For now, a brief recap:
Paris
1/17 Piano Trio Concert “Le Toit des Arts”
Laurentiu Stoian, violin
Jeremy Genet, cello
Tong Wang, piano
Featuring works by Beethoven, Chopin, Dvorak
1/24 Duo Laurentiu-Tong Concert “Salon Musical La Felice”
Laurentiu Stoian, violin
Tong Wang, piano
Featuring works by Mozart, Fauré, Dvorak, Gershwin
Basel (Arlesheim/Oberwil)
2/1 Piano Recital “Us” Arlesheim with guest violinist Laurentiu Stoian
Tong Wang, piano
Featuring works by Esmail, Scherzinger, Wang, Say, and Fauré
[pause]
Fauré Violin Sonata No.1 in A Major
Laurentiu Stoian, violin
Tong Wang, piano
2/3 Duo Laurentiu-Tong Oberwil House Concert
Laurentiu Stoian, violin
Tong Wang, piano
Featuring works by Mozart, Fauré, Dvorak, Gershwin
Den Haag
2/11 Duo Incarnadine House Concert
Leah Plave, cello
Tong Wang, piano
Featuring works by Janacek, Ho, Say, and Kapustin
2/11 Duo Incarnadine “Podium Vocale”
Leah Plave, cello
Tong Wang, piano
Featuring works by Janacek, Ho, Say, and Kapustin.
Budapest
2/19 2/1 Piano Recital “Us” Arlesheim with guest violinist Olah Vilmos
Tong Wang, piano
Featuring works by Esmail, Scherzinger, Wang, Say, and Fauré
[pause]
Brahms Violin Sonata No.2 in A Major
Olah Vilmos, violin
Tong Wang, piano
Each of these concerts have been meaningful in their unique ways. There have been moments of celebration and joy, of cynicism or disillusionment, of vulnerability, courage, acceptance, challenges in confidence, integrity, finding ‘truth’. And I’m grateful and blessed to say I have been honouring my own promise to trust each of those moments for what they are. Most importantly, again and again I remember, it’s about the people. Or one person. Just opening or touching our heart is more than worthwhile. And I have felt the truth in the real relationships I’ve found, built, nurtured, continue to nurture and appreciate. Old and new. Thank you.
Sparking fires everywhere.
Sincerely yours,
Dr. Cute (levelilng up from Azntinkerbell?)
“small but dangerous”
“In each moment of existence we have the potential to raise sparks. Our opportunities to raise sparks are boundless. The choices we make for our activities, the interactions we have with our family, friends, neighbours, even strangers, the way we spend our leisure time, the books we read, the television we watch, the way we relate to food, everything in daily life presents sparks locked in husks awaiting release.” - David A. Cooper
