Playing the cello

This post is a bit on the side from what I normally blog about – it is not about technology; but about music – and about disconnecting from the hectic work life.

I started playing the cello when I was 7 years old. It is my cello you see on the picture, and my grandfather playing on the same cello on the photo on the image. I guess my mother started saying I would play the cello even before I was born – and so I do. At some point of the cello was my most important activity. It was my way to disconnect from the world – When I was ready for a concert, playing some symphony – life was all about that moment. It is in the parts of the music where I really need to concentrate that my mind drops everything else; that is why I love music. That is why I love to play it myself.

Last night I played a concert with my orchestra downtown in Oslo. We played well, and I enjoyed it. We are a group of amateurs, mixed up with former professionals, who have this as our number one hobby. And even when I am not playing – I consider myself a cellist. That isn’t something you will be, or trying to be – that is a feeling. We call it cellist-by-night.

I’ll include a YouTube video of the Symphony we played last night. Enjoy it (this isn’t from last night – but the same symphony with a great maestro). This isn’t my favorite Symphony (maybe I’ll write a blog post about that later) but it worked as music to relax.