When I was a wee little child, maybe 10-ish, my parents told me they had a surprise for me. Right now I can't remember if it was for my birthday, or just something they decided to do. They got me to sit down and put some stuff in my ears, and told me to wait a bit...

And then, music came out. But music like I had never heard.

It was the first time I heard a CD player. They bought me the player and a collection of 20 disks of classical music. I was learning to play back then, and wasn't very familiar with it, but it was such an awakening: the clarity of the sound, the way the instruments could all be located in space, the dynamic range, from the smallest brush of a string to the booming brass or heavy tympanis... Not to mention, there was so much complexity: dozens of instruments doing different things, all in harmony, all creating a wholesome, glorious, beautiful whole...

I remember spending entire evenings listening to music, discovering a new composer, or enjoying a recent favourite. As time went on, my tastes developed. I'm not especially fond of most opera, and find large, symphonic works often too much. Counterpoint or chamber works I love, however.

It made such an impression on me, and it was all a combination of what then was new technology, and the choice of the music itself, making for an experience that shaped me to this day.

#childhood #music ##classical #memories

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A memory of walking in Middelburg, five years ago today.

#photography #Netherlands #memories #sunset #travel #Middelburg #photo