Oh hai

You might be wondering where the title came from.

1. It's catchy.

2. It's accurate.

3. It's 2:30 in the morning.

This blog is about my random life, and everything involved in it. Friends, God, trombone, video games. You name it.

So what's going on, currently? Well I had a nice relaxing day of watching youtube videos. I actually watched a lot of videos on break dancing. Those guys are crazy! Whirling around with their heads inches from the ground, and that's the easy stuff! I've also read a good bit of trombone blogs today. I'm specifically reading Douglas Yeo, bass trombone player for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Jay Friedman, principle player for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. From what I've read so far, the articles seem to be different in fairly drastic ways.

Jay Friedman's site seems to focus a lot on air and resonance. Douglas Yeo's, however, is actually very open about his relationship with God through music. He talks about music has become a spiritual experience to him, and how every piece he plays is glorifying the One who ultimately created it. What an amazing perspective. I'm going to try to keep that in mind.

While we're on the subject of God and music . . .

In just the semester, I've become exponentially more fascinated by music. The more I learn about the never-ending complexities of music, the more I'm awestruck. It honestly baffles me how certain combinations of frequencies can produce sounds that could be anything from pleasing to horrifying. Changing one note in a chord can have a large impact on the quality, and I personally believe the quality of a chord changes what it conveys. I once heard my father say that minor chords always sounded like they were asking a question. My father knows little to nothing about music, yet three notes were all it took to convey an idea to him.

I once heard someone say that music is the shorthand for emotion. I believe there's a lot of truth in that statement, and I would even take that a bit farther. I'd say that music is better at conveying emotions and thoughts than words ever could. Thinking about this brings one particular event to mind.

I went to the see the Alabama Symphony Orchestra perform the Dvorak Symphony No. 9, or "New World" Symphony. This was the one of first full orchestral works that I'd ever paid attention to. When I heard that the ASO was playing it, I decided I'd eat ramen noodles for a week instead of buying groceries. The right decision, I dare say. As the final movement of the symphony began, an excitement I couldn't foresee came upon me. I knew what was coming, and I could hardly wait. As the song reached it's climax, I smiled a genuine, unabashed smile, and found myself filled with awe. My eyes filled with tears as I heard one man's idea brought to life before my very eyes - err . . . ears, I guess. It took nothing more than ink on a page to make my hair stand up on end.

-Chris