Post details: The Passion According to St Matthew
The Passion According to St Matthew
Acoustic instruments possess an inalienable charm. The charm of Old Times. Kind of like mechanical typewriters or wooden furniture. Unlike their electronic brethren, they produce their sound from scratch by resonating wood, or strings, or air-columns. Kind of like your grandma would if she were a musical instrument.
Playing them is like walking on grass, as opposed to AstroTurf. And listening to them is like sipping coffee from little porcelain cups as opposed to disposable paper containers. They may not have dazzling distortion characteristics or complicated low pass filters, but they do channel certain passion for life. For things that grow and breathe.
That is what I was thinking as I sat in a pew of St Matthew's Cathedral and watched sound waves caper in its spacious aisle like ribbons of red wine. The church was nicely bedecked for the Advent season, but nearly empty, except for a handful of people underneath an old organ, and a sinner who joined the audience after he spoke with his God at some length. Obviously, some concerts get advertised better than others. Hadn't I know one of the performers personally, I wouldn't know about this one either.
When I stepped onto the street, I saw many people walking by with their iPods and quietly munching on their musical hamburgers. Little did they know that just a few stair steps above them a gourmet food was served for free - 100% organic.
