Why silence is the most important sound.

Silence. Until we hear it, we don't realize how loud the world around us really can be. Once you experience true silence for the first time, however, you realize something that you never have before.

The first time I realized that I was hearing the total absence of sound, I immediately realized that something special was happening. I was actually startled by it, to the point that I was wishing for something to make even a miniscule noise to break the eeriness.

Then it hit me. Silence is the most important sound we have. It is the benchmark upon which all other sounds are matched. And it is defiantly true to say that if there was no silence, there would be no music.

Music is simple the organized, creative interruption of silence. That is my theory of silence. Music without silence becomes boring, monotonous, lifeless. The next time you listen to a piece of music, think about all of the silence that really is present. And the next time you become bored with a piece of music, see how much silence there is (or isn't).

An example. The great jazz musicians use silence as a backbone in their solos. Think of how Miles Davis uses a select few notes to convey a message that many musicians who use many many notes cannot. It all comes down to how the notes relate to one another in silence. If there is never a break between notes, between phrases, music easily falls into sterile combinations of notes and rhythms, patterns of robotic tone production.

Ben Folds.

I know that I may be writing ancient history for some of you, but believe it or not there are still those who have not heard of Ben Folds.

For anyone into good, wholesome music, Ben Folds is a must. He is edgy, but still has great messages and AWESOME music. He was one of the favorites at Interlochen, especially amongst the piano majors. He actually played there once, but got banned after dropping a few f-bombs on stage.

Here's his song, "Philosophy," played somewhere in the UK. Ignore the annoying guy at the beginning. This stuff is great. Other links below.

•Ben Folds - Trusted
•Ben Folds - Landed
•Ben Folds - One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces (GREAT)

Tell me what you think.

Steinway's great. Is it really the best, though?

I fully realize that I am taking the risk of being shot at by many. Don't get my wrong. I'm not anti-Steinway. I just think there are other options.

So it comes down to this. When I was at Interlochen, many of the piano majors were diehard 'Steinway-heads'. I don't blame them. Steinway is a great piano, it plays superbly, and it has an amazing touch and element of control.

But there was a smaller group, including me (most of the time), who thought that there were other pianos that were at least par to Steinway. For different reasons, many other less-known pianos are superior to Steinway for their own respective reasons. The main one? Cost in relation to instrument quality.

For instance, a favorite of ours was Baldwin. Nice Baldwins (not the crappy older ones) have an excellent touch, firm tone, good control, and are truly awesome instruments. They feel different than most Steinways, but in a good way.

Mason & Hamlin was also another favorite. Mason & Hamlin has a pretty light touch usually, and has a lighter, yet equally rich, tone. Their keyboards are shaped slightly differently, which can make practicing on one inconvenient, but the instruments themselves are excellent for performance.

Bösendorfer. Amazing. Light touch, bright tone, gives shivers to play one.

Kawai was not on our favorite list, however. They are just too damn heavy. Forget practicing for three hours without pain. They gave us all sore wrists and tendinitis.

The bottom line: Steinway is an amazing piano for its quality, durability, and overall consistency throughout its entire line of pianos. I love Steinway very much for those reasons. However, if you are adventurous, there are many other excellent, even superior instruments out there. You just have to play them all and pick a favorite.

Either way, bring your checkbook.

Update. Allow me to make an edit. The point I am trying to make is that a piano is a piano regardless of the name on the fallboard. Love a piano because it plays like you want it to, not because of a name. I LOVE STEINWAYS. But I love other pianos too.

Shostakovich: fast and furious?

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975), Russian composer, wrote much of his music under the forced political influence of Stalin's communist reign, and is considered by some to be the quintessential 20th century Russian composer. His music is generally characterized by most as fast, energetic, and at times chaotic. His works often use a combination of unusual time signatures combined with unique chord progressions to produce what is known as 'Shostakovich's music'. Many even argue that 'Shosti' is best known for his fast music.

While Shostakovich did write much intense, energized music, he also had a more contemplative quiet side that many overlook. I enjoy these works as much if not more than what most classify as 'Shosti' music. I was very pleased, therefore, to find a piece that didn't follow this typical classification of his music. It is the second movement of his second piano concerto.

It is unlike any other second movement of any other concerto that I have ever heard. It is slow, starting with an introduction by the strings in C minor. This theme sounds like cold winter, frozen and desolate. It then leads into the piano's main theme in C Major, which is more nostalgic and happy, yet it has taints of sadness as well. After much development and a few more themes, the piece ends by dying away, back in C minor.

The entire piece is like a cold, barren winter, covered in snow. It is beautiful, very haunting, and is without doubt one of my favorite pieces of music ever composed. Some call it 'grim'; however, I find that there is very little 'grimness' about the piece, at least not in terms of foreboding or anxiety. It seems to be a sad reminder of the past.

To really appreciate the piece, you have to listen to it. Here is a link to a YouTube performance. Please feel free to leave a comment on your reaction to the piece.

I assure you, it will put an end to the stereotype of Shosti's music being only loud, fast, and manic. It will show you the more mysterious, yet genius side of this great composer.

Music Stress Update...

I am a little bit nervous about the concerto competition. I have exactly one week to perfect the piece, and that's a feat that is going to require a lot of practice. Not like I am not willing, I am just a little exhausted and the prospect of having to practice four hours a day is not so entertaining. At least not right now.

I have also decided not to audition for Millie. I sat down and realized that there was no way in hell that, given the time that I have to work with, I would be able to get through my junior year without killing myself due to stress. It is something that I would have really liked to have done, and I am disappointed that I can't, but my personal well-being is more important that being in the production.

That's pretty much it. Woot.

Welcome. Again.

This is my "return" blog I am mainly going to talk about music, but I may divert into other interesting or relevant topics. I hope you find this site enjoyable and to good use.

Happy surfing! (again)