Musical Conversation

The back-blips continue.... and this may be the only non-composite of the week!

We went out to see my old music teacher Delyth and her retired composer/conductor husband Steven today. She is lovely. She has known me since I was 6 or 7, had a right old time teaching me piano (I was not one for doing homework, let's put it that way) and managed to get me officially to Grade 5 standard. She taught me more than that though, she taught me to enjoy playing piano. That it wasn't all about grades (although they are generally handy if you want to go further!) but about being musical. And that, it seems, I can do :) She also gave me singing lessons for a while, and was very happy for me when I joined the Halle Choir. (I stayed for a Christmas season, and through to a summer but we moved to Finland for a year the week before a major concert so I missed out on that one.)

Anyway she's been looking forward to seeing Ben as well, and when we got there the box of noisy happiness was already out in the garden waiting for us. Ben took a little while to warm up but very soon after he started drumming away Steven appeared in the doorway. "I have heard the summons... and I have come to respond!" Steven was captivated by Ben, and Ben was loving the musical conversation they got going. What was meant to be only a short visit ended up being an hour and a half, with Ben graduating from drumming and percussion to singing into an old microphone. He was really getting into the swing of it but we had to go home for lunch at some point!

Happiness, for Ben, is a little box of noise and a willing accomplice :)