Hi
everyone!
Do you
ever notice those moments when the rhythm of your surroundings matches up with
the rhythm of what’s going through your headphones or speakers? That happened
to me again this morning. I was navigating piles of snowy slush like an ace Arctic
explorer with Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de
Florence (Op. 70) pumping through my headphones when I realized the
flashing lights in front of me were in sync with the Allegro Moderato movement. Reminds me of the time a couple of weeks
ago we were sitting in the office listening to the sounds of construction
coming through the window matching up with the rhythm of CYSO Concert Orchestra
rehearsing Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique.
That gave “march to the scaffold” a whole new dimension.
Have you
had moments like these? What was your favorite?
Rhythm,
of course, is the first kind of music we “hear” by way of our heartbeat. In
fact, it has been suggested that back in the day (like in the Renaissance or
Baroque) tempos were slower and tied to our physical rhythms: our heartbeat,
walking pace, etc. (rather than artificially imposed by a metronome)
Interesting, right?
Evelyn Glennie is a percussionist who happens to have severely impaired hearing. So,
in order to “listen” she actually “feels” the sound through the vibrations of
the rhythms. Much like how we hear the vibration of the heart beating, she
“hears” the music through feeling the vibrations through her hands, arms, and
feet – her whole body. “Use your body as a resonating chamber.”
Musicians,
how would that affect the way you practice?
Audience
members, how would you listen differently with that in mind?
Curious
to know more? Check out this video with Glennie lecturing on “How to Listen.”
Kathryn