Toccata and Fugue

Whether it’s listening to it or playing it, music has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. And I’m just so aware of how important making time now for uplifting music and essential renewal actually is.

I had my first piano lesson at the age of seven, I later learned to play the clarinet. And, like most children in the UK, I played the recorder at school. Indeed, I still have my three recorders (sopranino, descant, and alto). It’s hard to believe that I have been playing the piano for over 50 years!

My first love, though, remains the piano. I was fortunate. We had a piano at home, a very old upright, which I played until I left home at the age of nineteen. When I lived in Spain, I eventually bought a piano, which I only sold when I moved from Jaén to Alicante. Realistically, it was far too expensive to take it with me.

Since my return to the UK, I’ve had a digital piano (an exceptional Technics). I then had a full-size MIDI keyboard which I was able to play through the amazing GarageBand. Now, I have a Yamaha Arius. I’m very out of practice, I have a bit of arthritis in both hands, and it is so good to once more have a piano in the house. And with the wonders of digital technology and headphones, I can lose myself in a world of music without disturbing anyone else.

The best part is having something completely different to do. In my work I talk a lot about renewal, having something which takes you out of yourself, me time. Mine is the piano.