"Without music, life would be a mistake" - Nietzsche
When you grow up in a city where your senses mature before you do, it is inevitable that music becomes an inseparable part of your existence. It is as important as having good hygiene, high IQ, as necessary as a delicious plate of spaghetti bolognese and as arousing as a night between the sheets. When the notes hit you, the lyrics grab you, it can transform your mood from good to bad, bad to good and everything in between. It would be an understatement to say that I can't imagine my life without music.
The soundtrack of my life started when as a child we spent summers on a tiny island with no cars, no tall buildings - just homes overlooking the bluest of waters, day-long beach and night-long soccer, marbles and hide and seek. I was surrounded by Italians, Greeks, Armenians, Turks and Franco-Armeniennens (those that lived in France but vacationed on the island). My ears soaked up words in languages that I didn't speak but I could hum to the music. "Crest Ecrit Dans Le Ciel," "Tombe la Neige," "Laschantemi Cantare," were on repeat. For a long time, I thought Toto Cotugno was a long lost cousin. The upbeat foreign beats always alternated with melancholic Turkish songs that could move you to shake your hips or move you to tears in equal speed.
I heard a song called "O Salonikios" or in English, "The Man from Salonika." I was captivated. The beats, the rhythm was so familiar - had I been Greek in another life? Was I getting in touch with my ancestors? I stood still while memories flooded back of white plates being broken (horrifying for a child by the way) on a dance floor, people laughing, dancing, drinking. It was THE song from all the beach parties. It was like I ran into a long lost friend with whom I could reminisce about the good old days (of being an 8 year old ). Growing up with good music isn't unique but having a connection to your past, present and future through music is the very fabric of life (at least for me).
For me and I'm certain for many, music is the only way to travel through time. Revisit old memories, replay and recreate - take them one step further. What could have been? Recall the goosebumps and the tears - even pain and sorrow. All this probably explains why when I'm in a city all by myself and have time to walk the streets, get lost in the hustle and bustle of life, I listen to a carefully curated list of songs on repeat. It may sound obsessive compulsive (likely is) but there is something about that repetition that let's you take note of moments differently. The reflection of the sun looks brighter, the pavements feel a little uneven, the flags fly a little slower. The wind brushes your cheek softer. The rain assaults you with more wit. You start to walk the city with the same rhythm as the songs. You get lost in your thoughts sitting at a cafe and watching the world speed by. You really see people - the angry, the aloof. You notice a smile, a smirk. You stare, unabashedly. Honks slowly melt to be faint melodies. Overjoyed tourists blend to be part of the landscape. Every sidewalk, alleyway, roundabout leads you to the next crescendo. You pull memories from your past, your present and paint an ugly/beautiful picture of the future. You start to see the bigger picture - how life imitates music. Perpetual movement - chaos, motion. You work through emotions like the highs and lows of each key.
And, most importantly, what you realize is that a good piece of music relies on great timing. Dare I say - perfect timing. When you hear the notes, chimes, melodies flow into each other, that's not a coincidence. They aren't thrown together thoughtlessly. There is no "wishful thinking" in music. It is intentional. It is built, layer by layer, lyric by lyric, to lead you to a feeling, to tell you a story, to capture imaginations BUT done in a way to make you think it magically came together. It has to feel carefree and spontaneous. Kinda like life - all about choices and perfect timing.... don't you think?
Enjoy the music....
S
I heard a song called "O Salonikios" or in English, "The Man from Salonika." I was captivated. The beats, the rhythm was so familiar - had I been Greek in another life? Was I getting in touch with my ancestors? I stood still while memories flooded back of white plates being broken (horrifying for a child by the way) on a dance floor, people laughing, dancing, drinking. It was THE song from all the beach parties. It was like I ran into a long lost friend with whom I could reminisce about the good old days (of being an 8 year old ). Growing up with good music isn't unique but having a connection to your past, present and future through music is the very fabric of life (at least for me).
For me and I'm certain for many, music is the only way to travel through time. Revisit old memories, replay and recreate - take them one step further. What could have been? Recall the goosebumps and the tears - even pain and sorrow. All this probably explains why when I'm in a city all by myself and have time to walk the streets, get lost in the hustle and bustle of life, I listen to a carefully curated list of songs on repeat. It may sound obsessive compulsive (likely is) but there is something about that repetition that let's you take note of moments differently. The reflection of the sun looks brighter, the pavements feel a little uneven, the flags fly a little slower. The wind brushes your cheek softer. The rain assaults you with more wit. You start to walk the city with the same rhythm as the songs. You get lost in your thoughts sitting at a cafe and watching the world speed by. You really see people - the angry, the aloof. You notice a smile, a smirk. You stare, unabashedly. Honks slowly melt to be faint melodies. Overjoyed tourists blend to be part of the landscape. Every sidewalk, alleyway, roundabout leads you to the next crescendo. You pull memories from your past, your present and paint an ugly/beautiful picture of the future. You start to see the bigger picture - how life imitates music. Perpetual movement - chaos, motion. You work through emotions like the highs and lows of each key.
And, most importantly, what you realize is that a good piece of music relies on great timing. Dare I say - perfect timing. When you hear the notes, chimes, melodies flow into each other, that's not a coincidence. They aren't thrown together thoughtlessly. There is no "wishful thinking" in music. It is intentional. It is built, layer by layer, lyric by lyric, to lead you to a feeling, to tell you a story, to capture imaginations BUT done in a way to make you think it magically came together. It has to feel carefree and spontaneous. Kinda like life - all about choices and perfect timing.... don't you think?
Enjoy the music....
S
No comments:
Post a Comment