Chapter One Sample
1. LEARNING AGAIN
I’ve decided to write a piece of music. The music is going to be the result of the experiences, the thoughts and the feelings that I have as I write this book. Maybe when you have read it, you’ll want to listen to the music as well.
The music hasn’t been written yet, so as I tap these words on my keyboard, I have no idea what it will be like or how it will sound. I have some ideas, but then who knows what they will turn into as I go along this musical journey. The idea that I have is to create a piece of music based on alchemy, the seemingly impossible process of making gold out of the most unlikely substances. I am going to find out how alchemy works and make gold with music. Everything that has happened to me will go into that music, so this is the story of how it comes into being.
First, let me explain what’s happening right now. It's Saturday morning and I’m on my way to rehearse with my orchestra. The orchestra meets every week and I’m the orchestra leader which means that I sit right at the front under the nose of our conductor. I’m a competent violinist and although I don’t make a living entirely from music, it’s a major part of my life. If I were a full-time professional, music-making probably wouldn’t be half as enjoyable. It’s a short drive for me through the winding lanes of countryside from my home town to the rehearsal in a village hall, about three miles away. Even this journey to the rehearsal venue is part of the experience and while I travel there I think about the music we are going to play.
As I pull into the car park at the hall, it’s already filling up with the other musicians, some of whom have become close friends over the years. We all share a common love of our music and come together to learn and play under our conductor’s baton. Some players are fairly new to the game; others are reaching the end of their lives both musically and physically; some are proficient. Some are struggling to improve. The sum total is, however, unique. To be a cog in a musical machine is nothing short of a spiritually uplifting experience and it doesn’t matter if it’s the local orchestra making music or the Berlin Philharmonic, the experience is a wonder. The rehearsal starts in the same way every week. We tune up and wait for the conductor's baton to begin its upbeat swing then it falls to mark the first beat of the music. We are poised, ready, music open on our stands; it begins...
I’ve decided to write a piece of music. The music is going to be the result of the experiences, the thoughts and the feelings that I have as I write this book. Maybe when you have read it, you’ll want to listen to the music as well.
The music hasn’t been written yet, so as I tap these words on my keyboard, I have no idea what it will be like or how it will sound. I have some ideas, but then who knows what they will turn into as I go along this musical journey. The idea that I have is to create a piece of music based on alchemy, the seemingly impossible process of making gold out of the most unlikely substances. I am going to find out how alchemy works and make gold with music. Everything that has happened to me will go into that music, so this is the story of how it comes into being.
First, let me explain what’s happening right now. It's Saturday morning and I’m on my way to rehearse with my orchestra. The orchestra meets every week and I’m the orchestra leader which means that I sit right at the front under the nose of our conductor. I’m a competent violinist and although I don’t make a living entirely from music, it’s a major part of my life. If I were a full-time professional, music-making probably wouldn’t be half as enjoyable. It’s a short drive for me through the winding lanes of countryside from my home town to the rehearsal in a village hall, about three miles away. Even this journey to the rehearsal venue is part of the experience and while I travel there I think about the music we are going to play.
As I pull into the car park at the hall, it’s already filling up with the other musicians, some of whom have become close friends over the years. We all share a common love of our music and come together to learn and play under our conductor’s baton. Some players are fairly new to the game; others are reaching the end of their lives both musically and physically; some are proficient. Some are struggling to improve. The sum total is, however, unique. To be a cog in a musical machine is nothing short of a spiritually uplifting experience and it doesn’t matter if it’s the local orchestra making music or the Berlin Philharmonic, the experience is a wonder. The rehearsal starts in the same way every week. We tune up and wait for the conductor's baton to begin its upbeat swing then it falls to mark the first beat of the music. We are poised, ready, music open on our stands; it begins...
