My evenings these days are musically filled but they remain calm and quiet. there is so much pressure around me and I am not sure if this phase will end at any point in my life. I struggle to find time to relax and build on the few things which glamour has not not stolen from the world . For instance I miss talking to people having a genuine conversation that has nothing to do with work. just to talk about the weather would do..In the dusty streets of where I come from. I long and yearn to hear that ice cream bell , noises and voices. my world is a bit silent at the moment because I feel drowned. As I realize this I am working on lifting this shadow up to reclaim the very things that bring life to my being…and it all started with Music.
I feel that listening to Music is an art. Music offers a liberating space for reflection and I always put skill, time , commitment and passion in selecting the kind of music I listen to. Growing up, music was just teenage thing , a craze rather, where we would listen to Music according to the trends of the top radio hit list or whatever song my cool cousin brother was listening to. adding to that it was also because I needed people to sign in my ”auto book” so it had to be cool and well arranged with enough lyrics of songs to get the cool peers want to sign in it. When the Autobook era ended, we got saved and forgot about music and somehow my musical identity got lost. A decade and a half later , I find myself tracing back to my early music journey , just to find out what to listen to and live with now as I get older by the day. It has been challenging a process because now they are trillions of musicians who ”excel in one hit wonders”. I just can’t keep up with the music ,the dances , the lyrics ,and their dressing. I have also done myself a favor in that regard-I acknowledge that I am getting old fast.
So as a way of toning down, I have religious late night episodes of listening to music ..Beautiful as it comes , not really choosing what to listen to but carefully winding into genres, I never would have given an ear in my early years. Opera is one such genre. A friend introduced me to Andrea Bocelli and I have grown to really appreciate what humility and passion can contribute to song. I felt that I needed to pen a bit on this guy because his music is not only the exceptional thing about him. I actually find his background more interesting than his music.
The Blind Man who lights the world with Music
His life story in summary would have been a sad one , Born partially blind , he became totally blind after a soccer accident at 12 and went on to get a Phd in law before he decided to change his career to music . The visually impaired, Tuscany-born, vocalist has emerged as one of the most exciting voices in contemporary opera. I refer to this story in my moments of seeking true and genuine inspiration. In his state he must have seen something within himself to get to where he is. the fight did not begin with him, it started with his mother who refused to abort him against the advice of the doctors who had predicted that he would be disabled. I respect her she fought for her foetus now barely recognised as humans. But who would have known?
So tonight i just want to celebrate Andrea , to honour him for the 70 million records he has sold, and for him just brightening up my musical life.
After my interaction with his music and his life story, I have the same dreams for the visually impaired in our lifetime. I hope they see within themselves and become. Helen Keller did. If anything it’s a prayer. 
nyashasengayi 