The Great Creator lives within each of us. All of us contain a divine, expressive spark,
a creative candle intended to light our path and that of others. We are shiny, not
tarnished; large, not small; beautiful, not damaged– although we may be ignorant of
our grace, power, and dignity. The human being, by definition, is a creative being.
Practicing our creativity is healing. The more we ground it and regularly access it, the
better off we are. The "healthier" we are. Creative change begins in the heart. When
we start within ourselves and move outward, expressing what we love and what we
value, life gets better, we feel better, and the world gets healthier too.
In the concert hall, each motionless listener is part of the performance. The concentration of the player charges the electric tension in the auditorium and returns to the playLIer magnified. I like the fact that "LISTEN" is an anagram of "SILENT". Silence is not something that is there before the music begins and after it stops. It is the essence of the music itself, the vital ingredient that makes it possible for the music to exist at all. It's wonderful when the audience is part of this productive silence.
~ Alfred Brendel in "The New Yorker" 4/1/96 thanks to B. Stockard
