Not the Journey We Expected to Make
Leon Fleisher: The Journey
Perhaps there are some people who plot out their lives methodically and hit every goal, every stopping point along the way: a secure childhood, formation of real interests and reputation during high school, academic success in college and perhaps graduate school, career, marriage and family, then a retirement filled with the pleasures of travel and grandchildren, though not necessarily in that order.
Then there's what the rest of us experience as real life: a series of stops and starts, disappointments, undeclared war with our failing bodies, and occasionally the intervention of historic and cataclysmic events. You didn't plan on being drafted, or receiving that diagnosis at age 35, or seeing all that you have built systematically or suddenly swept away. Anyone reading this won't require a second to produce examples from recent history.
And when the obstacles mount or the losses accumulate, are we swept under, or do we react with resilience, inventiveness, perhaps defiance, and assume an unexpected place in history?
Over 40 years ago a young pianist named Leon Fleisher saw the life he'd built virtually destroyed outright: focal dystonia cost him the use of his right hand, and with it his career in the concert hall -- this after studying with the great Artur Schnabel, this after a debut at age 16 with the New York Philharmonic.
About two years ago Leon Fleisher gave an address at the National Press Club, speaking with remarkable candor of his life and career, taking questions from the audience, filling in the gaps for anyone who had missed the genuine drama of his life. What he had to say caused me to marvel that he had had the strength to continue.
The story doesn't end with Fleisher's disabled right hand, or even with understandable anger and despair. Years followed in which Fleisher mastered a left-handed repertoire, became a music educator and conductor, and sought answers when a diagnosis, let alone a treatment, for his mysterious ailment eluded him.
Today Fleisher has not only returned to both the recording studio and the two-handed repertoire; he's rewarded listeners with two well-received CDs, Two Hands and The Journey.
Raising awareness as well as money, he has been frank about the diagnosis and treatment of dystonia (Botox, believe it or not). And how many pianists do you know who have made the National Institutes of Health website and been honored by the American Academy of Neurology?
So how does the new CD sound? There's both intimacy and energy, briskness and melancholy in this performance. We are talking about a man in his 70s who has nearly two centuries' worth of musical geniuses informing his training (Remember, Schnabel actually knew Brahms!), and yet he kept me on my toes -- Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, even Stravinsky!
It is fitting that the latest disc is called The Journey, as it captures the myriad emotions of loss, anxiety, delight, and acceptance within baroque, classical, romantic, and 20th century compositions. I understand he drew this repertoire both from his past, previously planned recordings, and his current wish list. The Chopin Berceuse and the Beethoven Bagatelle in particular are not to be missed.
The bonus interview CD contains a familiar voice: that of Bob Edwards, formerly of Morning Edition on National Public Radio, now of XM Radio. His soothing tones saw us through countless daily rituals, drudgery, frustration, and sorrow, even those moments when we thought our hearts would break -- possibly just the voice to interview Fleisher, no?
As for the interview itself, expect news and insights, along with a healthy dollop of Fleisher's wry humor.
May you find the answers on your journey, or at least begin to ask the right questions.
Perhaps there are some people who plot out their lives methodically and hit every goal, every stopping point along the way: a secure childhood, formation of real interests and reputation during high school, academic success in college and perhaps graduate school, career, marriage and family, then a retirement filled with the pleasures of travel and grandchildren, though not necessarily in that order.Then there's what the rest of us experience as real life: a series of stops and starts, disappointments, undeclared war with our failing bodies, and occasionally the intervention of historic and cataclysmic events. You didn't plan on being drafted, or receiving that diagnosis at age 35, or seeing all that you have built systematically or suddenly swept away. Anyone reading this won't require a second to produce examples from recent history.
And when the obstacles mount or the losses accumulate, are we swept under, or do we react with resilience, inventiveness, perhaps defiance, and assume an unexpected place in history?
Over 40 years ago a young pianist named Leon Fleisher saw the life he'd built virtually destroyed outright: focal dystonia cost him the use of his right hand, and with it his career in the concert hall -- this after studying with the great Artur Schnabel, this after a debut at age 16 with the New York Philharmonic.
About two years ago Leon Fleisher gave an address at the National Press Club, speaking with remarkable candor of his life and career, taking questions from the audience, filling in the gaps for anyone who had missed the genuine drama of his life. What he had to say caused me to marvel that he had had the strength to continue.
The story doesn't end with Fleisher's disabled right hand, or even with understandable anger and despair. Years followed in which Fleisher mastered a left-handed repertoire, became a music educator and conductor, and sought answers when a diagnosis, let alone a treatment, for his mysterious ailment eluded him.
Today Fleisher has not only returned to both the recording studio and the two-handed repertoire; he's rewarded listeners with two well-received CDs, Two Hands and The Journey.
Raising awareness as well as money, he has been frank about the diagnosis and treatment of dystonia (Botox, believe it or not). And how many pianists do you know who have made the National Institutes of Health website and been honored by the American Academy of Neurology?
So how does the new CD sound? There's both intimacy and energy, briskness and melancholy in this performance. We are talking about a man in his 70s who has nearly two centuries' worth of musical geniuses informing his training (Remember, Schnabel actually knew Brahms!), and yet he kept me on my toes -- Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, even Stravinsky!
It is fitting that the latest disc is called The Journey, as it captures the myriad emotions of loss, anxiety, delight, and acceptance within baroque, classical, romantic, and 20th century compositions. I understand he drew this repertoire both from his past, previously planned recordings, and his current wish list. The Chopin Berceuse and the Beethoven Bagatelle in particular are not to be missed.
The bonus interview CD contains a familiar voice: that of Bob Edwards, formerly of Morning Edition on National Public Radio, now of XM Radio. His soothing tones saw us through countless daily rituals, drudgery, frustration, and sorrow, even those moments when we thought our hearts would break -- possibly just the voice to interview Fleisher, no?
As for the interview itself, expect news and insights, along with a healthy dollop of Fleisher's wry humor.
May you find the answers on your journey, or at least begin to ask the right questions.
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