HELEN 5/1: I am beginning this musical journey under different circumstances. I am using a Yamaha keyboard, set up in my father’s dining room in Missouri. The conditions are determined by his being hospitalized in April, and discharged to the house with caregivers and hospice.
As I was running around my house packing last Sunday, you can be sure the Shostakovich Preludes and Fugues made their way into a music bag, and even though in a way it feels like just one more thing I have to do, I am grateful to have a thread of musical creation to express.
Others of our crew are experiencing very different lives right now, and I’m curious to see what effect this little discipline will have on those changes.
My notes from today’s P&F: I know this one well, so there are not many surprises. I had not previously noticed that the fugue is utterly diatonic. Probably the only fugue never to leave the key signature. As it’s in C, this is a great blessing for starting the journey.
KATIE 5/1: I am so sorry to hear about your father.
CELIA 5/2: I’m glad you are able to be there with him but so sorry you are going through such a difficult time. I have not had a chance to play through the first few preludes and fugues yet because we have had company all weekend and the baby is not really on any particular schedule yet, but I did just listen to the first two preludes and fugues and found them both beautiful! I’m looking forward to trying to catch up with playing tomorrow.