Sound & Silence
An Unusual Musical History
By Andrea on November 05, 2012 / Leave a commentI’ve composted an entire musical career. All the classical piano training I received as a child, the master classes as an adult performer, the Royal Conservatory teaching practices seemed far behind me, part of another lifetime… or at least that’s what I thought. Then a year ago, after the last round of renovations as …
Singing our Way Home
By Andrea on June 08, 2011 / 6 Comments(Published in the Vaughan Citizen, June 12th) In my last column, I explored the idea of coming home to ourselves through silence. In this one, I want to consider our home as a vast, singing world. Here’s the big picture. Scientists have recorded the sound of the earth, a low fluctuating hum. Even lower tones …
Coming Home through Silence
By Andrea on May 25, 2011 / 8 Comments(Published in the Vaughan Citizen, May 29th) On May 4th, Jian Ghomeshi started his morning radio show recounting the hectic events of the previous weekend — Canadian election results, Stanley cup games, Osama bin Laden’s death, and the highly-anticipated Royal Wedding. Jian said, after this very intense time, let’s all just breathe together, and chill… …
Song is Not a Luxury
By Andrea on March 11, 2011 / 3 CommentsYou must meet the outer world with your inner world or existence will crush you. Mark Nepo; the Exquisite Risk Lately, I have been contemplating the power of song as I prepare for the monthly sound circles, Mark’s words resonate so deeply with my own knowing — that Song is not a luxury. …
Silence – a Hit Single?
By Andrea on December 12, 2010 / 2 CommentsJohn Cage’s famous composition of 4 1/2 minutes of pure silence, Cage Against the Machine, is on the list for the coveted top-selling single in Britain this Christmas. 4’33” is performed by 40 musicians in what the producers called an ‘incredible atmosphere in the studio.’ Not even available for download or radio play yet …
