The evening was a fundraiser for someone that is easy to love. He is a big yet gentleman with a soothing voice that always makes the listener feel better. Rough times had been by his side for the last few months and this evening was a gathering for everyone to tangibly say “we care.”
I had no idea what to expect. Looking back, whatever I expected was a pale dream to what unfolded.
I lasted for the first five hours. A favorite venue opened on an off day and everyone who was part of the jazz and R&B music scene of Singapore dropped in. The diversity of sounds that emerged took me to places I had long forgotten and a few I do not think I had ever considered. With traditional jazz to Latin, old to new, R&B to a fusion blend that worked, the audience was treated to a unique musical journey that could never be planned much less repeated.
Several highlights stood out.
Harmony comes when a group of people give their best without egos controlling who leads, follows, or quietly helps everything come together. The quality of what unfolded was shockingly brilliant. I could hear a psalmist whispering in the background; “how wonderful, how beautiful, when brothers and sisters get along!” (Psalm 133.1)
You never know who can or will contribute. Nowhere in the possibilities I imagined before was a Japanese woman playing a jazz trombone. The spontaneous possibilities of blending English, Spanish, and Portuguese seems obvious now; but it did not before. The idea of exchanging players, leaders, and vocalists seems like it would be difficult, but this group of individuals make it appear effortless.
When one is in the presence of great music created from hearts filled with love, compassion, and caring, everyone who hears is energized and healed from the inside out.
I left, longing for more. Even now the thirst to experience this harmony remains as intense and vibrant as it was the first time. Life reminds me of how many possibilities are around me when I am open.
