My son, Matt, and I visited NYC for two days this week. On the flight out there, we listened to Coltrane’s First Meditations. Each tune represents an emotion or state of being. Listening to Coltrane’s Serenity made me think about how we can all have different ideas about the same thing. To me, Serenity would have a sense of space. Delicate, with few notes. Coltrane’s interpretation seems to be filled with drama, and to my ears, tension. How would you compose Serenity, Love, Compassion, Joy, Consequences? What instruments would you use? What would your music sound like? It’s interesting to think of representing subjective, invisible emotions with something tangible. It seems that must be the core of art.
Spirit, Body, Time, Space
Linear time stretches
Farther than the eye can see
Farther than the spirit can sense
The spirit is outside of time
And feels confined by the line
Of hours and seconds,
Of deadlines –
The resistance
Creates friction within the body
And is eased by body and mind
Acknowledging
The delicate crossing –
Visible, invisible
Tangible, intangible
The click of the clock, the sweep of space
Taking time out of the breakneck race
To expand the mind
To travel in dreams
To float above tedious realities
And to explore the great mysteries
December 2009
Sail with Gilberto
An endless streak of clouds,
Uninterrupted highways in the sky
Smooth, gauzy lines –
Far above the rough bumps
And stubbed toes
Way down here, down below –
Put me on a sailboat with João Gilberto
Unfurl that sail
We’ll catch the glass current that expands
Up there
We really don’t care to where
It’s a peaceful, steady ride
The sun shines in golden rays,
Gleams on our boat and warms our faces
A maiden voyage easing to comfortable places
November, 2009
About
Laura Chalk, jazz vocalist and writer, resides in the Kansas City area. She has been singing in jazz clubs, restaurants and for private parties since 2004. Her band consists of some of the most accomplished jazz musicians on the Kansas City music scene. In 2004, she recorded her debut album, My Favorite Things. In 2009, she wrote her first book of poetry, Traveling in Dreams. Subscribe to Laura’s blog to receive the latest news from Laura in your email inbox!
