Losing Yourself in the Music

Gustav Mahler, one of the most famous classical musicians of all time, once said, “if a composer could say what he had to say in words, he would not bother trying to say it in music”. To this day, this quote rings true: songs are oftentimes more inspiring than stories, anthems more moving than speeches. In my life, music has proved to be an outlet of my feelings, emotions, and all-around mood, allowing me to express myself in a form that is unoffensive and artistic. Music allows for an intricacy and depth that cannot be matched by words, evoking deep, raw emotions from anger and grief to the highs of happiness and ecstasy.
Personally, music has affected me in many ways, some unseen, others extremely visible. One readily visible consequence was the calming effect playing and practicing music had on me, a fact that my mom can and has testified to, on multiple occasions. Apparently, before beginning piano lessons, I had been a major pain to my parents and those around me. A family friend even once recommended I get checked for ADHD: she described my level of activity as “the most curious kid you could imagine, with sugar and caffeine for blood.” Ironically, this gift of energy had also come with a curse: I wasn’t well liked, and people tended to shun me because I was too energetic, talkative, or just generally too annoying. After beginning piano lessons, however, I turned into a markedly calmer and more reserved child, still curious but without the continuous, around the clock hyperactivity. I began to make more friends, and music was what allowed me to unlock my social side. The more important effect that music has had on me, however, is the emotional escape that music has provided for me.
Practice sessions aside, playing and listening to music ranks as one of my favorite ways to vent, to relax, or just simply to pass time. When the fingers touch the keys, and the notes float off the piano like little golden motes of dust, magic happens. Emotions flow like a stream between me and the music: feelings of anger and frustration can be channeled into a complex A-minor chord or scale run, happiness and excitement into a vivid, lively G-major sequence. Ribbons of sound stream from fingertips, an effortless expression of mood and feeling. Nothing matters anymore but yourself and your emotions, whether that emotion is sadness after a break up or ecstasy after a big game victory. This is music’s greatest gift to me, and it has become an essential part of my identity, a reprieve from the hubbub of life, and, for me, as valuable a treasure as any.