Launching a blog and the art of listening

         Why blog? What do I blog about?  The thought of recording my ideas, feelings, opinions intimidates and overwhelms me. Where do I start and who would be interested in reading what I think? The answer to the former is this is where I start, and the latter, perhaps the same friends I would be talking with or perhaps no one at all. I express my ideas in front of classrooms on a nearly daily basis. True, those ideas are mostly based on music literature from centuries ago but I constantly try to help my students connect that with the present. And maybe I can do that here too.
             Well, here goes nothing. I'll start with one of my favorite topics: listening and concentrating. A student asked me once how I can experience joy or wonder at all by listening to the same Haydn symphony countless times over a period of years or a lifetime. My answer was simple, there is a significant difference between hearing that symphony and listening to it. We all experience listening constantly, even in our sleep we are hearing sounds, why else are we woken by a thunderstorm? That Haydn symphony has thousands of notes in it and I have heard every one of them. But it is only when I am able to achieve a state of concentration that I actually listen to them. And that's something that will take the rest of my life to accomplish.
          In the meanwhile, I will enjoy hearing those notes again and again. How much else is there in life that we have experienced on a superficial level but have yet to fully appreciate? Think of beautiful scenes in nature, a great film or book, or even a good joke. How much better the world will be when we take the time to concentrate and practice the art of listening. WRT