BWV 596 has made me remember accidnetally meeting a guy twice in my life

These days, sets of CDs for classic music are often at sacrifice sales. I have found a box set of 15CDs, the whole organ works by Bach, which were played by Marie Claire Alan, a renowned organist in the latter half or the 20th century. I was not an eager listener for organ music but still remembered of her name. It cost only 20 or 30USD. No choice, I have ordered it in the internet. 

When I got it and played one of them, it sounded a bit harsh in the high range of audio to me. It sounded like too much exaggeration in the high range. I have given up listening the others and left it on a shelf among the other CDs I won't listen to. 

In a few months, I thought I would try it again before I abandon them completely. 

Randomely taking one of the set, I started listening to it. The high range did not hurt my ears so much as before. Has my hearing ability detelorated? The polyphony flew out like an ancient Gothic architechture. Such polyphony, especially the style of fugue, always fascinates me. I have been wondering what attracts me so much in the polyphonic music. I have written about it before. Not proven musicologically, I believe, it might be related with the structure of consciousness. Consciousness is functionally like multiple layers. The structure of fugue may reflect how consciousness works in us. The multiple layered structures won't help stimulating my mind.

That CD contained several pieces of organ work. All of sudden, it started lighter touch of music. Sure it was like moving from deep woods in Germany to the sunny coast in Italy. It was BWV596 as the brochure said, which had been arranged from a famous concerto grosso OP3-11 of Vivaldi. I knew Bach used to arrange some Vivaldi's works. It was, however, still a big surprise to hear that piece in a totally unexpected manner. It has brought me back to my med school orchestra days.

When I could play cello at the level for ensemble in 2 or 3 years after starting it, I organized a small ensemble and played small pieces before patients etc at hospitals or other related facilities. I have written bringing the famous aria "Er Barme Dich, mein Gott" from Matthew's Passion to the facility my father used to work at in another post. It was an activity of such an ensemble. It was a big fun for me to play such pieces with small number of friends.

With this concerto grosso, we played at the inpatient ward of the Dept. of Psyhiatry of our university hospital. It was around Christmas. If I remember it right, in addition to this piece, we have played the famous Pastral of Christmas Concerto by Corelli. In a not big room for day acitivity use for the inpatients, some 10 or 12 players stood side by side. Packed in like canned sardines. The piece is a concerto for two violins and a cello. I was playing that solo cello. I am not sure I could take that part for myself. But I was not more serious at it than anything else. Luckily or unluckily, we have not recorded that performance and no means to confirm how we played it. Pleasantly enough, we have got a big applause when we finished it. Everything is only in my memory.

Finishing the performance, we started putting up things like music stand. At that moment, a guy aged around 40 years came to me with smile. He has introduced himself to me and said he had loved classic music so much. It was only for a minute or two long conversation. I don't know why but that scene was firmly left in my memory. 

In a few years, having graduated my mother school, I have started serving residency at a medical school hospital in this area. Soon after getting used to training as a resident, I joined the small orchestra in the school. It had only a dozen of members. Most of them were male students at the school. At the school festival in fall, we have played something, I can't recall, before audience. That same guy I met at the performance at my mother school has again come to see me when everything was over. He told me he had moved to the hospital as an inpatient. The professor and the main staff of the Psychiatry Dept. were from my mother school. Maybe, he has moved there with his doctor in charge. He told he was glad to see me again. It was again a meeting for brief time. It was still so impressive. 

Candidly, I had a feeling of embarrassment seeing him again there. I was not only so surprised to see him after that interval but also felt vague pain in my mind. Why wasn't he in my position? What has destined us to meet in this manner at quite different positions? Of course, there is no answer to these questions. I realized there were things I could not understand in my life. What has he felt at our encounter? How has he lived after that? He should be around 80 years or older if he is still alive. We ran across twice in a unexpected coincidence. But we may not meet again any longer and would end our journey of life without knowing of the questions I held as above.

 

Unfortunately, this is not Alain's performance. It is much more modern. Brisk tempo and model of a polyphonic world of Bach. I am not good at organ music. But I believe it is an authentic performance.

I have started writing up this post several days ago. But I was hesitating to finish it. It sure sounds like an old man's talk of old private memory. Is it worth publishing it here?, that was the question. My wife used to work as a resident as well at the Dept. of the Psychiatry at the medical school where I met him for the 2nd time. I asked about him to her. She answered no. Nothing she could recall. Without telling this story here, the fact we had accidentally met twice through the music would be lost in eternity, even though it was only a trivial occurence. If I would publish it here, the memory might be lost in a few years. It is still worth writing it down here, I believe.