MKMMA Week 19 — Concentration & “Dream”

Our theme for the Sit, the meditation, this week is Concentration:

become so absorbed in the object of your thought that you are conscious of nothing else…

For years, when people asked me if I meditate, I would reply that my 60 to 90 minutes of piano practice first thing every morning just has to suffice. I must say, by that description of concentration, my playing is indeed a meditation.

For most people nowadays, music is an electronic, background phenomenon. Having music around is as easy as pushing a button. Most people have no idea the depth of focus required to play it yourself!

My piano students are continually surprised and challenged by the depth of concentration required to produce even a simple song. And mastering a new technique requiring independence of the two hands is WAY harder than patting your head and rubbing your tummy… until it’s not.

I’ve been studying and practice Tony’s piece, “Dream” for well over a year. I will continue to refine it, but at last I have a recording I burned to a CD and mailed to him. He’s 99 years old now, and his strength, sight and hearing are fading. He has been very eager to hear his music recorded, though.

Anatoly Adaman, “Tony”, grew up in Russia, attended Moscow Conservatory, was a German prisoner of war, lived in Venezuela, now resides in Ontario, Canada. He was a master cellist in his time, a piano technician, a composer of music in quite a variety of styles, a music teacher…

Here is my recording of “Dream”, recorded in the time honored tradition of “done is better than perfect”. Dream byAnatoly Adaman