Every Music Kitchen concert is profound in some way for how the
music, the artists’ performance and the clients’ sensibilities
intersect. But today was one of those concerts that took my breath away
time and time again. I was so happy to have as special guest, Jon
Deak, bassist, composer, member of the New York Philharmonic and founder
of their Very Young Composer Program. It was through Beata’s
invitation for me to perform for that program this year and our
opportunity to reconnect on the topic of composition that she was a
natural fit for the “Forgotten Voices” project.
This was a brand-new venue for us; facilitated by Urban Pathways,
Cluster House is a building of efficiency apartments- transitional
housing from those who have recently left shelters. So, as we arrived,
it was a yet undiscovered mystery what would unfold here. The room
where we were to play was a nice, tiled room on the ground floor and as I
was the first to arrive, I took my violin out to play a bit while a
young maintenance employee was setting up the room with his back turned
to me. As soon as I started playing, he stopped what he was doing and
came over for a closer look. “How do you do that? What are you
pressing on?” I explained a bit of how a violin works while he looked
on in amazement. “What music is that, Beethoven? I said, “No, Florence
Price, but we’ll be playing Beethoven soon.”
This activities room was right in front of the elevators, but
unfortunately behind double glass doors. And at this venue, the only way
the administration felt they could manage the photos was to require the
photo release in order to enter. l worried that we might not be
accessible enough, both physically and now logistically. I definitely
didn’t want to exclude people over photos. But it’s very important that
clients be comfortable around the taking of images and if it has to be
done this way here, I understand.
I began with my usual introduction- My mind is always performing a
million calculations at once while I am speaking and playing for Music
Kitchen concerts, feeling the waters, evaluating reactions, gauging what
to play, do or say next, being welcoming and approachable... It’s a
wonder that I can put two sentences and two notes together at all! Even
as observers of Music Kitchen concerts frequently tell me what a
powerful way I have with the entire presentation, I sometimes have the
sense in the moment that neither the notes nor the sentences always come
out in the more polished way I would deliver them in other settings.
But then sometimes, as later on in today’s performance, this setting and
the responses to our performance draws more special magic out of us
than any other place in time, even 5 minutes before!
I gave them a bit of what to listen for in the Beethoven Trio-
mainly Beethoven’s temperamental, brooding nature as evidenced by the C
minor mood, peppered by demonstrative and insistent piles of Sforzatos.
A woman on the left side of the room, one of our concert early birds
who had requested the Moonlight, had clearly had enough experience with
Beethoven to have a strong opinion in advance, “Oh, he was crazy,” she
said with conviction. I chuckled, “Let’s see where he takes us!” At
the end of the movement, we received easy and abundant applause. When I
asked them if they could hear what I was talking about before, many
pairs of eyes stared back at me, crickets could be heard chirping, but
nary a human voice here in this room dared speak. I asked the ensemble
to reprise a 4-bar section with particularly demonstrative chord
progression, in full forte, but punctuated by leading silences in
between. After that I turned to our audience once again. Finally, a
voice up front ventured to say something. Not quite understanding her
understated utterance, I asked for clarification, “Dramatic or
traumatic?” “Well, both,” she said. “Yes!” I chimed in. Then someone
also nearby in the front row felt emboldened. “Can you play the Mozart
Sonata #9?” I said I didn’t know that one off the top of my head, but
that we have more Beethoven. From the back row a man, decked out in red
t-shirt and locks or braids inside a large, red Caribbean-style
stocking cap offered, “Elise?” “Yes, fur Elise, that is another work of
Beethoven,” and I played a few bars of that iconic opening melody. He
then added, “Well, it’s an important African-American hol… celebration
today. Maybe you could play something for that?” “Juneteenth!” I said
excitedly. Without skipping a beat, I quickly offered, “Everything
we’re playing here today is a celebration of Juneteenth, because without
it, we wouldn’t be here!” I heard a flood of Amen-like affirmations
sound all over the room.
The most amazing opening, like a beautiful sunlit lotus flower in
full awareness of itself, began after we played the Beethoven’s stately
and monumental slow movement. Before we started, I invited our audience
to listen for Beethoven’s poignant use of silence. And with that we
and our audience settled in. Now knowing what to expect, those silences
calmed the already super attentive audience to a total stillness. No
one was tempted to clap in the several somewhat false endings. When we
completed it, a woman in the front row rolled her eyes back, fell
against the back of the chair and released a contented and demonstrative
sigh, “That was…wow!” And then from there things began to fly. A
Muslim woman covered in a headscarf walked in with gentle smile on her
face, her beautiful brown eyes wide with joy and eagerness to be part of
whatever was happening here. A man in the back said, “Sitting here
listening to you all play, I’ve written a poem. Can I read it before I
have to leave?” Yes, of course, we encouraged. He then proceeded to
blow our minds with what he had written, delivered with beautifully
accented rhyming couplets:
Strings serenading the soul
Telling stories that was never told
Flights of sensations that endure
The bitter melodies so calm and pure
Rhythms that evolve into a masterpiece
A sweet but sensual treat
Characters that entice the spirit
There are no words but I understand the lyrics
Three articles of art sent from up above
That stand on a foundation built with love
Emotional outposts to the very last ounce
Le concerto la..? of Cluster House
MHUKUMU
We gushed and swooned over the talent of this man and of this
moment. We asked if he could stay a bit longer because we believe the
next piece will be of particular interest. After taking a picture with
me and his beautiful poem, he went back to his seat. I then introduced
“Forgotten Voices,” soprano Allison Charney, and Beata Moon’s song “At
Peace.” Allison gave a beautiful introduction of the song, illuminating
Beata’s background in the Presbyterian church, where her father is a
minister, as a definite influence of the work. And with that, I
lamented that the same woman with head covering quickly left the room,
without ever hearing a note.
We soon leaned into the opening of the song, with many melodic
fragments passed around the trio highlighting moments of the text,
finishing the choral-like work and Barber Adagio-reminiscent moments
with the plagal “Amen” cadence. A man in front began to speak, at first
stilted with emotion, then flowing in a steady crescendo of thoughts,
“That gives me comfort and peace- It makes me want to do something good
with my life- It makes me realize I’ve never really done anything good
with my life; I’m 64 years old and I ruined so much of my life with
alcohol. But hearing this, it makes me re-evaluate; now it makes me
think, I want it to be different. I’ve been sober for 41 days and
because of this I can turn that around from now… One day at a time.”
Our guest, Jon, couldn’t believe what he was hearing, visibly moved by
the testimonial. A staff member jumped in to encourage the client, and
us, “Music is very therapeutic- that’s why they’re here!”
He continued, “Some people wouldn’t take the time to come here but
you are here and making this music. I’ve never heard anything like this
before… I’ve never heard anything like this before. I feel like I was
born again through this music, right here, right now.” We were stunned
and listened to his testimony with care. Alexis quickly offered to the
man and the audience as a whole that we are also changed because of you
and your reception of our performance, that we cannot do it without you
and that your listening is such a gift.”
More people in the audience offered triumphantly, “I’ve written a
poem!” We listened to each one of the three with awe- The last one used
imagery of being transported on angel’s wings. Though many wonderful
things happen, nothing like this has ever occurred in a Music Kitchen
concert. I asked my colleagues, “Should we play it again, or…” I
didn’t even get to complete the sentence before there was a chorus of
cheers of “Play it again!!” So we knew what we had to do! And here’s
where even more magic emanated from us, now inspired, released and
multiplied by these listeners in this unique way at this unique moment
in time, where even five minutes ago it would not have been possible.
At the conclusion of the second playing, a woman on the left side
of the room now felt moved to give us her testimony as well. “I don’t
want to put pressure on your performance and what you’re doing here
today, but…I didn’t want to come here, but I’m so glad I did-I feel so
much better. This music and being here with you all, I just feel so
much better.” So many poems and testimonials, Jon eventually went to
get a notebook to take notes on the amazing things being said all around
the room in response to today’s performance.
Then a few questions. People wanted to know where we’re from. The
earlier man who gave the first powerful testimony was fixated on
Allison’s voice, “How do you get that voice? I don’t think I could do
that. How do you get that voice??” The same man in red mentioned
cartoons and that was an opening to one of my favorite connections to
audiences. “Perhaps you know an old friend of mine,” I said, “Bugs
Bunny?” Everyone laughed as they said yes indeed. I then went on to
play the famous music from famous scenes, asking them to remember what
the action was at the time. They did so without skipping a beat- “Bugs
Bunny is working on Elmer Fudd’s head” and a woman in the front row who
had previously been so understated, now said confidently- “Rossini
Barber of Seville.” I was floored. Then I next played the ride of the
Valkyries theme that was repurposed into a song, which they began
singing right away, “Kill the wabbit, kill the wabbit!” We share good
belly laughs all around. I told them that the Lutheran Church, plus a
concert like this, plus Warner Brothers cartoons are the reason I am a
violinist today. And synchronistically, in light of our special guest, I
just had a chance to reconnect with those memories a few weeks ago in
attendance at the New York Philharmonic’s “Bugs Bunny at the Symphony”
program.
I didn’t know if we should leave it at that, here in this peaceful
place, or continue with Beethoven. I ventured a guess, and it turned
out to be the right one. “So we are going to play one last movement of
Beethoven….” Before I could even finish the thought, the exuberance of
one of our listeners was released like the central shoot of a fountain,
“I knew you were going to play more of that Beethoven!!” “Is that ok?’”
I asked. “YES!” she said, I LOVE it!”
Since this performance was already pushing to an hour and 15
minutes and so much had already been said, we assembled for our group
photo. As the group was dispersing, one of our front row listeners
who made so many astute classical observances, came over to kiss me on
the cheek, then going to do the same with Alexis. Though it’s not
typically how we receive well-wishers, it was clear he was just really
touched by our performance. As I said before, each performance and
interaction offers profound and unique gifts to audience and artists
alike, but this is one that powerfully illustrates Music Kitchen’s
indelible impact, certainly on me.
Following the performance, I’m proud
that Jon Deak was equally moved. He said to me, “You made me cry
nonstop. You’re so solid, so effective and so welcoming at this-
obviously you’re a pro. This absolutely made my day, made my day- and
my day was already pretty good. It’s really smart, this “Forgotten
Voices” project- I mean, really caring, but a very, very smart thing to
do.” The arts at the highest level with diversity and inclusion, smart
indeed-
Following are the notes from the listeners:
Strings serenading the soul
Telling stories that was never told
Flights of sensations that endure(?)
The bitter melodies so calm and pure
Rhythms that evolve into a masterpiece
A sweet but sensual treat
Characters that entice the spirit
There are no words but I understand the lyrics
Three articles of art sent from up above
That stand on a foundation built with love
Emotional outposts to the very last ounce
Le concerto la..? of Cluster House
MHUKUMU
The reason of being here of the reason of being here of not being here to put no pressure on. Thank you for coming.
(Poem #2)
Thank you for your rich blessings
From your violin straight from Jesus wings
A voice that angels here reaching
My heart touching my mind &
Makes me lose all self control
Mekes love an object not a mere subject
Makes us really feel at peace Thank you
A. Fernandez 6.19.19
