The Network of Musical Minds

My experience in this class has been truly memorable.  I was impressed by my creative, innovative and intelligent colleagues as well as inspired by my enthusiastic, passionate professor on a weekly basis.  I began to experience the class as a living, breathing representation of the current state of the Classical music world.  Classical music is alive today and there is passion running through its veins in the form of shared anticipation with regard to upcoming concerts, a swarm of constantly festering musical thought and most importantly a deep love for the personal behind the music. Among the many gifts that the class had to offer, the most profound was a simple reminder that although the Classical world may be a micro-cosmos, it is a world lined with honesty and integrity and filled densely with the best of each of its members.

It had been a while since I felt such a profound sense of community.  The last time I was so inspired was when I chose to go into music.  I was a high school student and on Saturdays, I was a preparatory student at Mannes, The New School for Music. In addition to lessons in piano, theory, and solfege, all students met in Senior choir at the end of the day.  Our director, Matthew Brady, was brilliantly creative and his love for music spread throughout the room like a powdered potion.  Before concerts, one of us would always speak about how much the music and the members meant.  Sometimes we said a prayer, sometimes we listened to a Tibetan singing bowl, sometimes we had moments of silence, sometimes we read poems.  The concerts were spiritual experiences for many of us.  Afterwards, we always went out to dinner to share food and memories. 

Future of Classical Music has given me the tools to form that community wherever I go for the rest of my life.  We must constantly remind ourselves that the element that makes music so powerful is the personal element.  We must make an effort to connect to that network of musical minds in order to stay on top of what's relevant, inspire each other, support each other, and perhaps most importantly play for each other.  We should all continue to write for a blog and read each others posts.  We should continue to share information about our upcoming recitals and attend those of our colleagues.  We should never become complacent; always play something new, write something new, and try something new. Perhaps . . . we could sacrifice just one hour every week from our busy schedules, to sit at a single table together, and talk about the world.