'Music is the wine that fills up the cup of silence.' I just found this quote by Robert Fripp. He has also put it vice versa: 'Music is the cup that holds the wine of silence". I don't know which one I prefer; both are true. Anyway, silence, well-timed silence, is a essential part of music. Silence between the notes is as important as the notes themselves. According to Carl Jung:"Music is the application of sounds to the canvas of silence." That's why musicians and conductors are so frustrated where a cough from the audience kills a silent moment. It is like spilling Indian ink on a blank part of a drawing.

Also for pop musicians silence counts like Van Morrison who is singing 'Hymns to the silence'. He is a master in varying loud parts en quiet parts in his music. I once heard him in concert playing a very quiet part of the song A town called paradise whispering "Can you hear the silence?" Yes we could hear, feel the silence, though the sound of music was still there. For Van Morrison the silence is inspired by being in nature 'Oh this must be what paradise is like, so quiet in here, so peaceful in here', a nature created by God ('you can see everything is made in God')

Yesterday an Argentian model was posing at Sheila's place. As usual she puts on music from the country of the models origin. So this time it was tango. The cd is called Mi Buenos Aires Querido by Daniel Barenboim and friends. This exquisite collection of tangos is the best I have ever heard. Barenboim is a famous classical pianist who returns to the city of his youth. He is forming a trio with two local tango heroes: Rudolfo Mederos (bandoneon) and Hector Console (bass). The tangos are filled with sentiment and nostalgia. And they are played in such a gentle and subtle way. At this cd silence speaks. What strikes me is how the musicians interact how they listen to each other. The piano asks a question and the bandoneon replies. It is a musical conversation. My favourite track is Invierno porteno from Astor Piazzola's Four Seasons.

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