Sounds and Strings

The music played. Bows sweeping across strings. Drums thumping out beats to slow or speed your heart. Lips to mouthpieces, sounds blow forth. Ears ring. Heads bob. Bodies sway. Arms sweep. Welcome, to the orchestra.

Classical music is not just about the sounds and instruments, it is about the people and the place. Sitting down in red velvet chairs, the orchestra clothed in black before you, quiet in the audience, it is still and peaceful. Yet, it is not. Sometimes the music fades away, soft and sweet. Then it roars back up, leaping and tossing, loud and vibrant.

The music tells a story. Songs have titles and purposes, often there are entire tales behind them. I love not knowing these stories, however. I love listening to the music and making my own, forming my own experience, feeling the music, eyes closed and foot gently tapping out the beat. And I love watching … watching the musicians, watching the people around me.

You could easily buy a CD of classical music, import it into your iTunes library, press “play” on the computer, close your eyes, and listen. But it wouldn't be the same. You wouldn't feel the music. You wouldn't see the music. When the story of music roared up at its climax, the battle raging or hero in peril or a suspenseful moment of decision, you wouldn't feel the drum beats or the trumpets blare.

You wouldn't see the arms violently sweeping in perfect sync, bows leaping across the violin, viola, cello, and bass strings. Sitting in the audience, you see the orchestra players. Sometimes their eyes are closed, their bodies gently swaying to the music, immersed in the joy of their craft. Other times the head bob and jerk back and forth, moving with the music that is not only a sound they make with their instruments, but a part of them.

Orchestra is not just about the beautiful music. It is about the sights, sounds, and stories. Close your eyes and feel the music. Let it speak to you with its gentle sounds and growing tempests and resounding crescendos and dramatic endings. Open your eyes and watch the musicians. See them dance with their instruments, see them become part of the music they create. It isn't just music, it isn't just sound.