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永久的旋律(纪念清华两个同学) Unchained Melody
(2005-12-31 11:14:30)| 分类： 英文原创 |
还有1个小时就到2006年了，无意读到自己10年前在美国Microsoft office写的一篇老文章，颇为感慨，时间飞逝，一晃10年了，真的该珍惜每一个宝贵的瞬间。
That was a Saturday in December, 1990. Jiang Tao, a girl, and I went to the auditorium to prepare for the big show of Tsinghua Art Group. It was just some routines on the stage, and we finished them ahead of time. There were only three of us in that big theater.
"Will you be nervous when you play around with that toy?" Jiang Tao pointed to the xylophone I was going to play that Saturday night.
"Well, this is my first time playing xylophone here." I had only played dulcimer before on that stage.
"Let's practice how to keep our cool when we are nervous.", Jiang Tao pushed the piano to the middle of the stage.
The girl, only a sophomore(class 89) from my department, was usually very quiet. All of a sudden, she sat down and started rendering her hands on the keyboard swiftly. A string of beautiful notes ran through her fingers. That was "Unchained Melody", an old American folk song, so tenderly and melancholy played by her, that Jiang Tao and I were deeply struck. We didn't say a word when the melody was rolling through every corner of the theater.
And we had never known she could play piano.
"Music is about feelings, not notes. If you play for the audience, you will never keep your composure. Play for yourself, express your feelings through your instruments, then your nervousness, hesitation, uncertainty, and any other bad moods will go away eventually". She followed her performance with those philosophical words firmly.
At that particular moment, I loved her. I almost jumped forward to hug her. Had I done that, perhaps it wouldn't have been an exceptional behavior, considering how romantic and impressive her performance was.
It was the most beautiful moment in my life.
I played extremely well that Saturday night. When my solo came on, my whole heart was soaked with that piece of music. I almost forgot where I was, whom I played for, just pure music. After that, Jiang Tao gave me a big hi-fi, while that girl was standing steps away with a nice smile.
Jiang Tao, one of the best guitarists in Tsinghua, won the top prize in guitar competition the week after the show.
A year and a half later, when I got the news that the girl jumped off from a building near Beijing University, the first thing that hit upon me was "Unchained Melody". I hardly knew the girl, yet this piece accompanied me for a long time. Nobody knew why the only child of her parents left them only with her diary, which kept all her secrets.
Then came the movie "Ghost", from which the old song "Unchained Melody" became popular again in the States. I watched the movie several times, each time just to savor the melody, pray for the ghost of the girl to live peacefully in the heaven.
Jiang Tao never gave up hopes when cancer tortured him. He showed incredible courage when such a devastating misfortune fell upon him. He listened to a lot of music, even got a computer before his death.
I wonder if "Unchained Melody" was among the music.
Jiang Tao also left the world, with so many unfinished wishes. The girl and Jiang Tao would never know that "Unchained Melody" served as a bridge through which the ghost of the boy could still love the girl in that movie.
Someday, in my dream, like the movie, I would watch them play "Unchained Melody" , with their piano and guitar, to tell me again why nervousness, hesitation, uncertainty, and other bad moods can be conquered. Just love the music and play it.
Suddenly, I realized it is not only music.
Just love the life and play it.
-----To the memories of the girl and Jiang Tao
"Will you be nervous when you play around with that toy?" Jiang Tao pointed to the xylophone I was going to play that Saturday night.
"Well, this is my first time playing xylophone here." I had only played dulcimer before on that stage.
"Let's practice how to keep our cool when we are nervous.", Jiang Tao pushed the piano to the middle of the stage.
The girl, only a sophomore(class 89) from my department, was usually very quiet. All of a sudden, she sat down and started rendering her hands on the keyboard swiftly. A string of beautiful notes ran through her fingers. That was "Unchained Melody", an old American folk song, so tenderly and melancholy played by her, that Jiang Tao and I were deeply struck. We didn't say a word when the melody was rolling through every corner of the theater.
And we had never known she could play piano.
"Music is about feelings, not notes. If you play for the audience, you will never keep your composure. Play for yourself, express your feelings through your instruments, then your nervousness, hesitation, uncertainty, and any other bad moods will go away eventually". She followed her performance with those philosophical words firmly.
At that particular moment, I loved her. I almost jumped forward to hug her. Had I done that, perhaps it wouldn't have been an exceptional behavior, considering how romantic and impressive her performance was.
It was the most beautiful moment in my life.
I played extremely well that Saturday night. When my solo came on, my whole heart was soaked with that piece of music. I almost forgot where I was, whom I played for, just pure music. After that, Jiang Tao gave me a big hi-fi, while that girl was standing steps away with a nice smile.
Jiang Tao, one of the best guitarists in Tsinghua, won the top prize in guitar competition the week after the show.
A year and a half later, when I got the news that the girl jumped off from a building near Beijing University, the first thing that hit upon me was "Unchained Melody". I hardly knew the girl, yet this piece accompanied me for a long time. Nobody knew why the only child of her parents left them only with her diary, which kept all her secrets.
Then came the movie "Ghost", from which the old song "Unchained Melody" became popular again in the States. I watched the movie several times, each time just to savor the melody, pray for the ghost of the girl to live peacefully in the heaven.
Jiang Tao never gave up hopes when cancer tortured him. He showed incredible courage when such a devastating misfortune fell upon him. He listened to a lot of music, even got a computer before his death.
I wonder if "Unchained Melody" was among the music.
Jiang Tao also left the world, with so many unfinished wishes. The girl and Jiang Tao would never know that "Unchained Melody" served as a bridge through which the ghost of the boy could still love the girl in that movie.
Someday, in my dream, like the movie, I would watch them play "Unchained Melody" , with their piano and guitar, to tell me again why nervousness, hesitation, uncertainty, and other bad moods can be conquered. Just love the music and play it.
Suddenly, I realized it is not only music.
Just love the life and play it.
-----To the memories of the girl and Jiang Tao
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