-Birthday greetings, Mr. Crumb / from under the fingertips of Martha Argerich-

Listening to Chopin this morning

I’ll slow the pace of what I’m doing on occasion,

call them interludes, as when hearing
something in the music unnoticed before.

At other times I’ll pause whatever the occupation

in anticipation of something known.

Take the closing of the Largo

of Piano Sonata No.3 in B minor, those two

spatially distant chords dissipating in the way

exhaled smoke dances into the atmosphere,

the sostenuto pedal fully engaged.

I'll move-on to the task at hand in a moment,

but listening to Chopin this morning
regardless of heightened concentration,
it's as the sage "Mr. Natural" once confessed:

"I’m just passin’ thru".

8/30