An adult learns the mandolin, an inspiring article on the Reader's Digest Website; from the August 2008 issue, journalist David Hochman elaborates on his personal journey (after 30 years of shunning any public musical expression) as he uncovers the pleasure of learning the mandolin. This is great affirmation for those of us who picked up the mandolin (or any other instrument) late in life.

"Even more remarkable was how grounding it was to play. Somehow the usual anxieties of life -- money, status, the possibility of a meteorite landing on my head -- didn't matter when every atom of my humanity was focused on mastering the four-fingered D chord. Experts in positive psychology call it flow, the rosy feeling of losing oneself in a challenging activity. One night, while working out the melody of "Over the Rainbow," I was startled to see I'd been picking and grinning nonstop for four hours."

Read entire article: The Mandolin Player

"You are the music while the music lasts,"
T. S. Eliot

Posted by Ted at July 26, 2008 5:59 AM