Friday, May 25, 2012

Top 100 - Moonlight Sonata, Beethoven # 84



Song by Michelle

Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata is my choice - it has always been my favourite piece of music, because it's deceptively simple but incredibly complex at the same time.  When I was young(er) I wanted to learn the piano just so I could play it for myself.  Mum and Dad found a second hand piano and installed it in the living room.  I signed up for piano lessons and trekked over the St Lucia hills with my heavy school bag to learn to make these sounds.  The teacher was draconian, and refused to let me play Beethoven until I was competent.  I played for about 2 years, dreadful discordant modern piano, until I finally realised that my teacher would never consider that I was competent enough for Beethoven!  I quit the lessons the next week, and found my great-aunt's old music book, which was falling apart - I had never dared to touch it before this epiphany.  I spent the next three months committing the music to heart, and finally played the Moonlight.  And then I played it again, just because I could!  When I left home, I had to leave the piano too :-) so I've forgotten most of the notes - I can still remember the first page, but no further - my fingers fumble with it now.  My eldest daughter had piano lessons a couple of years ago - she learnt it as a present for me, and plays it to cheer me up.  I know I can hear it any time - we have it on CD, on tape and on record, and I'm sure it's available on downloads too - but it's never the same as when you hear it played live.  It brings back one of my earliest efforts, and reminds me that sometimes all the learning in the world won't get you where you need to go.

Artwork by Karin




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