The Old Violinist and The Old Dog
July 31, 2013 at 12:58 am (Poetry) (Alberni and Burrard, Antonio Vivaldi, Baroque music, Burrard and Alberni, Celebration of Light, Classical music, English Bay Fireworks display, Festival of Light, Honda Celebration of Light, Honda Festival of Light, literature, old dog, old musicians, old violinist, old violinist and old dog, poem, poetry, Robson Street, Thurlow Street, Vancouver British Columbia, Vancouver Fireworks Festival, Vivaldi)
I first saw them a few nights ago
They were on the corner of Burrard and Alberni
as I rode by on the bus..
The dog lay with his head on the sidewalk
in peaceful contemplation
his eyes closed.
The old violinist was vigourously
playing his violin.
What melody he played I do not know
for the bus windows were closed.
An old hippy walked by
shaking his head
as if to say,
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks
or an old musician new music.
The music he played was obviously
pre-Woodstock
I figured.
Then last night as I walked up Robson Street
half-way up between Thurlow and Burrard
I saw them-
the old violinist
and the old dog.
The dog once again
his head on the sidewalk
in peaceful contemplation.
I approached
and the melody touched my ears
like the softest velvet.
Never have I heard
Vivaldi’s Four Seasons played
so beautifully.
As a child,
my parents often took me to numerous symphony concerts.
I have listened to Vivaldi on radio and TV
and Galaxy satellite
and never have the beautiful Four Seasons
sounded so beautiful.
Vancouverites may not know it
but the streets of Vancouver are truly blessed
as a master violinist sends his melodies
into the air
before the Festival of Lights Fireworks
light up the night sky.
-A poem written by Christopher
Sunday night
July 28th 2013
the night after the
1st round of fireworks
in the Vancouver Fireworks Festival
Honda Celebration of Light
Vancouver, British Columbia.
Ode To Classical Music: A Poem
July 11, 2016 at 4:23 pm (Commentary, Culture, Music, Poetry) (CBC Radio 2, CBC Radio Canada, Classical music, poem, Radio 2, Radio-Canada, The Great Classical Composers)
Ode To Classical Music: A Poem
With my cable TV subscription cancelled
and listening to the Baroque Music Channel now gone
I’ve been forced to turn to the radio
and more specifically CBC Radio 2
and the French language Radio-Canada to listen to music that relaxes and calms my soul
CBC Radio 2 and Radio-Canada play a great deal of Classical music and Jazz- the only 2 styles of music that seem to do that these days
relax and calm my soul
Some pieces of contemporary pop music do do that but most don’t
Listening to CBC Radio 2 Commentary on the background and inspiration of the great Classical composers I now realize how much the influence of nature played a part in composing their music
The sound of waterfalls, the babblings of brooks, the meanderings of quiet streams, the flight of the bumblebee, the chirping of birds and the wings of the lark as it ascends
how these sounds they tried to recapture in their melodies
That explains why classical music is so beautiful
I never knew that about the classics until I heard this commentary
This also probably explains why I don’t listen to so much contemporary music these days
So much contemporary music expresses the anguish and torment of the human soul
That is I suppose why we listen
So many of us in anguish and torment ourselves
we can relate to the anguish and torment of the singer and the song
but while this listening gives us a sense of kinship and the feeling we’re not alone
Ultimately such listening does not bring healing
Only more anguish and torment
What we need is healing
And so that is why ultimately I find healing in most Classical music
The sound of waterfalls, the flowers opening their petals and saying hello to the sun, the reflections of moonlight doing their silent dances on the tranquil waters of a lake, the song of the nightingale
all transcribed into musical melody
by the great classical composers
Nature’s healing powers transferred to musical instruments and then on wings of notes and melody transfused into the human soul
-A poem written by Christopher
Monday July 11th 2016
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