The musician began to suspect that composition was a form of cowardice. To plan a piece in advance was to erect a wall. Improvisation, by contrast, required faith so he […]

He began with a suspicion that something was wrong with language. Just slippery. Words promised clarity but delivered only negotiations. He would say love and someone heard obligation. He would […]

Zbignew Tribeca, music critic for the Tribune knew immediately Stanley Kowalski, the bassist, was a genius. The sort of conclusion some critics reach before breakfast and never revisit afterward. It […]

She loved music. That was the cruel part. She still did. Certain songs could stop her mid-step. Certain harmonies made her heart ache. But she no longer believed she had […]

He woke just after five. Somewhere outside, a sound so small could have been imagined. Not wind, not a bird. A tone hovering, as if someone had tested a note […]

He kept time. He knew the modes. He never startled a room or left a silence where a flourish was expected. When he sang, his fellow Romans nodded. When he […]

He learned early that music, like travel, required light baggage. You carried only what you could afford to lose. He was a singer in Rome, sang with the economy of […]

Lena was performing a fragile ballad. This was Ruggie’s Cafe in August. Two minutes in and the espresso machine erupted like a subway train deciding also needed to see the […]

I went to the hospital to say goodbye to Jeff Burke. It was after nine pm. His daughter gave me the password and the nurse directed me to his room. […]

The rehearsal room at the community arts centre smelled of winter boots and varnish. Fluorescent lights hummed. Joe, nineteen and on fire, attacked a run of notes like enemies on […]