Of a Parkway, some Art and the Symphony

Yesterday I ended up going home to pick up a few things and to do my laundry. On my way home tonight I had a very nice drive. As I was heading north on I-215, I was faced with the decision of taking the same old, scary drive up I-15 or try the new Legacy Parkway. In a last minute decision I turned on my signal and went left towards the unknown. Since it was dark I don't know exactly what the view of the drive entails, but I know that it was one of the most relaxing drives I've had in a VERY long time. The 55mph speed limit was being enforced (I saw a couple of police vehicles scanning the area), so it was a rather slow drive, but I have no complaints. It was so nice to not have to deal with I-15 and all of its wonderful nightmares. I know that there was a lot of fuss and protest to the new parkway, but I have to admit...it was greatly needed. I enjoyed my drive for once! Yay! :)

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go visit the "Monet to Picaso" art exhibit at the U. It was an interesting experience for me. Art is not something I'm terribly interested in. I don't draw well and I just don't get modern art. But, there is an artist whose work I admire on display there. My mom and I waited in the long line, got our audio tour guides and proceeded to educate ourselves on the art of the impressionistic, post-impressionistic, realistic, surrealistic and cubist eras of art. I was dissappointed that there were so few dispalys of Monet. My mom has a distinct love of his paintings and I think it has rubbed off on me. The sculptures done by Rodin were quite fascinating. I don't enjoy the nude vision of things, but there was a lot of emotion in the sculptures. I actually really liked them. Then at the end of the exhibit (or close to the end) was the display of "La Vie" by Picaso. I had no idea how many different styles he had. Some of his paintings are rather wonderful. "La Vie" was really different. Again, even through the nudity, the emotion was there and I felt something for the characters in the scene. I will admit though, that I ended up walking past most of the abstract paintings. Like I said before...I just don't get it. It was a good experience, but I was not feeling well, so it was a happy sight for me to see the trays to put down our audio tour guides on.

The best thing that happened this week, though, was on Thursday night. The Utah Symphony came to Weber to play some works by Beethoven. I LOVE Beethoven's music, so I was very excited to go when I first read about it. The first half of the concert was the 4th Piano Concerto by Beethoven. They had special guest, Gharrick Ohlsson, play the concerto. I had never heard this piece before. When he sat down to play the music there was this sense of awe about him. As he brought up his hands to play the first notes, I felt as giddy as a girl in love. His hands literally floated across the keyboard as he performed insane scales and so on to create the beautiful masterpiece. I felt an emotion I have never felt before as I sat there watching and listening to this performace. I don't know how to describe it. It was almost a state of ecstasy...but I'm not sure if that's the right word. Anyways. After the intermission the Utah Chorus came out and they perfomed the famous 9th Symphony. This was the piece that I was truly excited to hear. I had never heard it in its entirety before and wanted to hear it live. I fear that all my musical emotion had been exhausted by the time the first notes of the symphony were played. I had a hard time paying attention and feeling the music. But, when it got to the famous last movement, the "Ode to Joy" segment, I realized what an amazing thing it was. It being the symphony. Beethoven composed such a brilliant piece and never heard a single note. Most already know, but just in case you don't know...he was deaf when he composed it. I would give anything (almost anything) to have been a fly on the wall while he composed any and all of his masterpieces. I don't even know how to explain my feelings of awe and amazement when I think of the beauty of his music. Music, that was composed by feeling vibrations in the floor rather than hearing it played. He wasn't deaf for his entire life, but enough said....he is a genius and I know that he was blessed with a gift that he was able to share with and bless the lives of others (like me) centuries later. Wow!