The Beauty of Music

What would the world be without music? Sad. Very sad. I mean, think about it... Ask yourself how often you listen to music. Think about all the times you’ve been sitting there and a tune will pop up in your head. Music is literally everywhere when you think about it. If something could link all humans together, it would be music. It doesn’t matter the genre or how the music is made, but just that there is music. Whether it’s just a few beats on your lap or an instrument, it is all music in some form.

The appreciation of music in New Orleans is higher than I have ever seen it. I think the people are so friendly down in New Orleans because they have a common interest between them. I can only imagine how local strangers start conversations. I feel like they either start it due to food or music. I had the opportunity to visit Frenchmen Street to listen to the music. I had the time of my life sitting back to appreciate the music coming from the musicians. It was something I have never experienced before. To be honest, I never really had an appreciation for jazz music until this trip. My friend had played the trumpet and I have tried to play. Guys, it is not easy… at all. I’m just going to stick to my flute and piccolo. When you’re listening to the musicians and they hit those high notes on the trumpet, it is not easy. The amount of force that goes into the instrument is tremendous. It takes years of practice to master that. I just went speechless when I saw locals get up there out on Frenchmen Street and improvise next to the band to match what they were playing. It was so cool!

The city spoke to me through music. Since I have a musical background, I understand the hard work that goes into it. It goes to show me that the street performers might only have music, but that’s because they never gave up on it. New Orleans survived Hurricane Katrina. They survived one of the most horrible natural disasters to hit the United States. They took something that completely shattered them and picked up the pieces and put them back together again. Sure, some parts of New Orleans will never be the same, but this isn’t the first disaster to stop them. I thought about back to when the church burned and part of the other buildings burned. This didn’t stop the residents before. They picked those pieces up and rebuilt their empire. It is all a really beautiful disaster.

When I think about those street performers, I think about what they must have went through to be where they are today. I vividly remember this one man who had a beat up trumpet. I think about what he had to go through to get that instrument. The best part is it is a beat up trumpet, yet he still plays the most beautiful rhythms with it. When an instrument is beat up like that, it makes them harder to play. I have seen that firsthand so I know. Another thing is an instrument should be cleaned regularly, but I know there's are not. When they are cleaned it gets rid of the bacteria in the instrument, but with their financial situation, they most likely can't. Another fun fact is that if the instrument is not clean, it can make it harder to play as well. 

An average non-musical person will just go "oh that's pretty" or something like that. I don't do that though. I mean sure I say the music is beautiful, but I go deeper than that. It's natural to just go beneath that and realize how difficult the music actually is. I stop and look closely at their instrument. Is it beat up? Is it a typical instrument? I remember the first night we were in New Orleans I saw this banjo looking instrument with all these things coming out of it. It was definitely the weirdest instrument I have ever seen in my life.

As the musicians perform, I listen for the vibrato in the instrument. If you're not familiar, vibrato is the pulsing you will hear on a long note. As you walk through the streets listening to the music, I challenge you to listen for the vibrato. When you recognize the music, I want you to realize playing vibrato is a special talent in itself. It is very challenging and not everyone can do it. It takes lots and lots of practice. The man I listened to for a while had such a unique vibrato that I couldn't stop listening to. He made it just flow naturally. 

The thing about the music that the musician's play is it tells a story. As I said earlier, some of these musicians do this for a living. They make a living off of tips. When the musicians play their instruments, I feel like they are playing everything that makes them broken and into such a beautiful song. They are not just hoping you put money in for tips, but rather playing you these alluring tunes to give you something. When they're playing, they don't say you cannot record them or anything like that. In fact, they ask you take a picture with them and they'll smile the brightest smile as if nothing's wrong. Due to the age of the man playing the instrument, he was around for Hurricane Katrina. After briefly speaking to the man, he talked about how Hurricane Katrina tried to break the city, but it failed. He said "it (Hurricane Katrina) might've taken my home and belongings, but it didn't touch my instrument. I took this with me into the dome and we had a hell of a time. It was horrible, don't get me wrong, but we don't let anything take us from our music." When the man told me that, I realized they have this appreciation for music that will never die. New Orleans is the home of music, and no one can take that away from them.