i wish i knew how it would feel to be free

I came to this song by way of Lighthouse family and only later heard the Billy Taylor original. In my university days, it was constantly on my playlist. This Nina Simone version is one of the best so far - I like how she starts quiet and then builds up to this crescendo at the end. If you search for it, there's a live version where she improvises on the piano as well.

This song is such a standout though - whichever version of it. Every so often, a song comes along that perfectly encapsulates some part of the human condition - music mood lyric and talent all coming together.

The lighthouse family version might not be the best out there but because I listened to it so much during my university years, it's the most memory laden one.

Music has been good medicine this week. There have been terrible happenings and I have no words to describe or talk about what's going on in the world except to say that this is a world yearning to be set free.

*

From the liturgy of the hours:

 Save us, Lord, while we are awake; protect us while we sleep; that we may keep watch with Christ and rest with him in peace.

G. Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue, FORTISSIMO FEST 2010

The last few weeks have been filled with work and it's likely to continue for some time. But earlier this week, I ran to the bathroom during the session break and realised that the bathrooms have piped in music from 92.4 FM. I was just washing up when the familiar squeal of the clarinet curled its way into the bathroom and ended up standing there for another two minutes, smiling. Rhapsody in blue is such a favourite - at turns grand and thundering but so full of sly humour at the same time. It's a piece that doesn't take itself too seriously. This rendition on youtube is especially good I think. The clarinet bit I alluded to earlier is at 0:55 and I also liked the pianist's smile - he was listening to the clarinet (at 1:02?) and looked like he was loving it.