Artur Rubenstein, Bo Diddley, and Villa-Lobos

by csnowden on June 2nd, 2008

If The Good Musician were to travel due north from Budapest, she would cross the Polish border and explore Warsaw, birthplace of Anton Rubenstein. I was privileged to hear him in a 1963 concert, a high school graduation gift from my parents.

Actually, I was thinking of Bo Diddley, saying a fond farewell to an icon of my pre-teen and teen years. His music always made me get up and dance.

Somehow that led me to Rubenstein, and my night at the concert. He did a Beethoven concerto, several fiery Latin composers, one of my faves, Heitor Villa-Lobos, and a set of solo pieces as well.

The music alone was overwhelming, add to that a posh venue, Cattleman’s dinner pre-concert, and you’d think that was heaven on earth. As wonderful as it was, what stands out most, in that full to the brim evening, was the unfolding drama of a woman who sat several rows down and to our left. We were in the balcony, of course, and so I had an excellent view of this woman reading scores while he played.

She was obviously knowledgeable about music, and I found myself watching her as actively as I was Rubenstein. She was one with the music–her aura was fed by it, and I marveled at her total involvement. This is known as flow.

As the concert went on, the woman became so entranced with the sound, she unconsciously ceased to follow the score, clasped it to her breast, and positively glowed. This was my first encounter with the metaphysics of music–that flow. This woman, having no idea I was watching her, totally blissed out. Pretty heavy for a modest sixteen year-old preacher’s daughter.

I believe Rubenstein is credited with the axiom, “If I don’t practice for one day, I notice it. If I don’t practice for two days, my wife notices. If I don’t practice for three days, my audience notices.” Music is pretty cool, whether you’re making it or engaging by listening.

Image details: Heitor Villa-Lobos served by picapp.com