Music...

On nights like tonight, I find myself wondering how people hear music. That's not as obvious a question as the average smartass would imagine (...through yer dang ears, woman!!) Perhaps it's the way it's phrased... I should ask... how does music affect people?

I've just watched the Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds concert from Radio City, recorded almost a year ago in NY. While I was sick, I watched a great movie, "August Rush". I think that these two presentations in combination reminded me once again what a personally powerful force music can be, but I wonder how many people think that, really.

My father, for example... I love him dearly, but we simply do NOT hear music in the same way. For him, it is a background...something to fill the silence, or cover the noise of the car's engine. Perhaps, on special occasions, a vehicle for conveying a particular feeling or emotion... but more to make someone else happy, not because he himself is deeply moved. In rare instances, perhaps... but not as a general rule.

Others I know enjoy music very much... they love a good beat, enjoy movin', singing or playing in the groove... have that "special song" that reminds them of someone... they have definite opinions on what they do and do NOT like.

Some have a natural talent for playing it... interpreting it... or even hearing the layers in it, I suppose. But I've even seen those with a tremendous talent for it seem jaded or uninterested... it becomes something mechanical instead of moving.

And here I sit, completely awed by those like Dave Matthews, Tim Reynolds, Peter Gabriel, James Taylor, Michael Hedges, Davy Spillane... and vocalists like Sarah Brightman, Josh Groban, and even though I don't like to watch her sing, the voice of Celine Dion is an amazing instrument... whether they are classical musicians, rock, jazz or blues artists.. the style isn't important as much as their ability to tell that story... evoke emotion...

Whether instrumental or vocal, I find myself enthralled... I hear the textures... can almost see them moving through the air, and can certainly feel the phrases brush over my skin as I listen... sometimes find my soul laid bare, my heart split open or my joy overflowing... I want to lay my head back and open my mouth to capture every nuance, as if I were a thirst-starved desert wanderer feeling the season's first raindrops hit my upturned face... it can be a purely divine reaction... or a deeply carnal one... or somewhere in between - the invocation of nature's grandeur, of renewed life, purpose or spirit... then I feel the tears roll down my cheeks... and I wonder... does everyone hear it like this?