Travel series: ''Il giorno é arrivato''

The man at the train station couldn't speak English, but I decided to take the next train anyway. I fell asleep on the train, I awoke, and now here I am. In Italy, for the first time.

In the frenzy and chaos of finishing exams and flying to Europe shortly after, I brought with me much adrenaline and two massive dark circles under my eyes. And now, for the first time in many months, I just am. I have no plane or train to take, no activities to do, no places to visit. 

The sun is shining bright, a chilly wind is blowing, and as I walk on the streets of this millenia-old italian city, I feel like an impostor. Everyone around me is busy: busy talking on the phone, busy going back to work, busy going home. I catch a glimpse of their routine, somewhere between home and the office, work and play.

Meanwhile, I am here passive, contemplative, useless. It feels out of place to not be working, to not have something concrete to do. Back where I come from, everything is planned, organised, work-oriented. But here I am.

I don't want to see any monuments. I don't want to visit. I just want to be, here, and now. 

I walk around. Everything is so beautiful, so full of meaning, a feast for the senses. Every sensation is amplified, every thought is loftier. How foreign it is to be a spectator, to pay attention, to notice, to appreciate. 

Parks everywhere. I pick the one that has the prettiest name, with the most vowels. 

My friend and I lie down on the grass, in full sunbeam. I left my bag about a meter away. I should probably bring it nearer, as my passport is in it and you never know. But the heat and weight of the sun are so numbing that I am paralyzed. 

I wake up and look at my watch. We have been napping for an hour and a half. My heart skips a beat, then I sigh in relief: my bag is still there. Always selfish, the sun has once more taken more from me than it has given: I feel heavy and with little energy. It is an oppressive, yet liberating feeling.

The shade is coming our way. The sun will soon be going down. It is good to be idle, for once. It is good to be an impostor of the ordinary. The day has come. 

Songs About March

How time flies. March 6th, and halfway through the semester.
March is a beautiful month. The snow melts, the sky is blue again and everything seems to be coming back to life. Every day is a bit longer than the day before, suggesting the bliss of summer.

I thought I could share some songs that I love about spring, or March.

Jon Foreman - March (A Prelude to Spring)

Short and sweet. I can't get tired of Jon Foreman's music. It is simple, introspective and evocative.

Elis Regina - Aguas de Março

A Bossa Nova masterpiece. The lyrics don't really mean anything, to be very honest, but the song is very poetic.

Stacey Kent - Les eaux de mars

This is Stacey Kent's interpretation of the French version of the same song. I like Stacey Kent, sometimes. Her version of Les eaux de Mars is a classic.

Vivaldi - Spring (The Four Seasons)

This one is for my dad who has always loved Vivaldi's music. It is nearly impossible to listen to this without wishing you could play the violin.

Sufjan Stevens - Redford (For Yia-Yia and Pappou)

This song is not about March, or spring, but I wanted to include it because it is just breathtaking.

Kings of Convenience: Sheer Simplicity

I love to discover new bands that I love. When I find a gem of a band, I get very, very excited.

Kings of Convenience is one of those bands. It's actually not really a band, but two friends: Erlend Øye and Eirik Glambek Bøe. Yes, they're from Norway.
KOC's music is surprisingly simple, yet their melodies are very elaborate. Their lyrics are both light-hearted and profound, introspective yet slightly naive. In that regard, Kings of Convenience remind me of Sufjan Stevens.

Unlike some other indie bands, KOC have music videos for many of their songs. I included some of my favourites. 

Enjoy! (I suggest you watch all the videos. You'll know right away whether you like them or not, but if you do like them, you'll become addicted!)

I'd Rather Dance With You

Boat Behind

Cayman Islands

Misread

Rue Royale, or Candy for Your Indie Ears

Photo Credit: Berlin Sessions

I stumbled upon Rue Royale's songs while searching for cool new playlists on 8tracks. What really strikes me about their music is how sophisticated and creative their melodies are. Every song of theirs is precious and unique.


Rue Royale's motto is ''it's all about the journey, not the destination.''
Indeed, many of their songs seem to line up with the idea that it's all about the process and not the end goal.

And Rue Royale is not only about the music; their lyrics are deep, genuine, and relateable. Some of their songs are in fact profound reflections about being a human, the meaning of existence, and one's spiritual journey.

Even in the Darkness

oh I will follow you

even in the darkness know you're true

oh I will follow you

walking in the light you call me to

cause i 

i love your name it is like honey on my mouth

oh i 

i love your ways they are so beautiful to me

These Long Roads

'cause you know when you walk so long

in your head it feels oh so wrong

we're not alone, no

we're not alone

at the end

at the end of these long roads

Blame

give me just a clue

just a glimpse into

what it is you'd like to say

Singing In The Rain, or ''How Great Thou Art''

Cliffs at Pourville, Rain, Claude Monet, 1896

About an hour ago, I was calmly sitting outside reading when a storm suddenly broke. I heard thunder and saw lightning as it started pouring rain. It was a big storm.

As I was watching the thunderstorm from the garage, I was very impressed by all the strength and power of the natural elements on display. I automatically started thinking about God.

All I could do was to watch, to appreciate, to admire. At that moment, I was just so aware of my powerlessness as a human being. We humans are not even close to understanding all the complexity of how the universe works. The fallibility of our knowledge in that area is made obvious by the fact that we cannot even predict the weather very well based on observation.

As I was observing the storm, I couldn't help but praise the Creator for his strength, beauty and magnificence. That was a great reminder that he is in power, and I am not. I am so small, helpless and flawed. Strangely, in his greatness, God cares about me. He who created the earth, the stars and the sun wants to be in touch with humans, whom he made in his image.


I was then reminded of an old hymn, How Great Thou Art. When I was younger, I was not very fond of old hymns because I thought the melodies were not catchy enough and there were way too many stanzas. Now that I'm older, however, I am learning to appreciate the hymns more and more and see them as hidden treasures. 


Here are the verses that came to my mind as I was watching the storm:

O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder

Consider all the works thy hands have made

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder

Thy power throughout the universe displayed

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee

How great thou art, How great thou art

In that moment, these words came alive to me like never before. It seemed that the hymn perfectly translated my thoughts into words.

When the storm was over, I did some research about How Great Thou Art, and found that it was originally a Swedish poem written by Carl Gustav Boberg in the 19th century. Here is how the song came to be:

Carl Boberg and some friends were returning home to Mönsterœs from Kronoböck, where they had participated in an afternoon service. Nature was at its peak that radiant afternoon. Presently a thundercloud appeared on the horizon, and soon sharp lightning flashed across the sky. Strong winds swept over the meadows and billowing fields of grain. The thunder pealed in loud claps. Then rain came in cool fresh showers. In a little while the storm was over, and a rainbow appeared.

 When Boberg arrived home, he opened the window and saw the bay of Mšnsterœslike a mirror before him… From the woods on the other side of the bay, he heard the song of a thrush…the church bells were tolling in the quiet evening. It was this series of sights, sounds, and experiences that inspired the writing of the song. (Retreived here)

I think it's very interesting how this song was written after a storm, which perhaps explains why I thought of it during a storm. It's fascinating to think that we can have similar thoughts about God in similar situations.


It's sunny outside, now.

Enclosed Fields with Rising Sun, Van Gogh, 1889

Introducing ''The Welcome Wagon''

Photo from Asthmatic Kitty's website

The picture above shows Vito Aiuto and his wife Monique, also known as ''The Welcome Wagon.'' I have previously written about Vito Aiuto and Sufjan Stevens in a post called Vito's Ordination Song - A Masterpiece by Sufjan Stevens.

I love The Welcome Wagon's music. Although I'm not big on labels when it comes to music, I would say it's some kind of (christian) indie folk. I enjoy their heartfelt and unconventionnal lyrics, as well as their diverse and original melodies. They use a wide array of instruments in in their songs, and sometimes have a choir singing with them.

I discovered their band while searching for Sufjan-related music on the internet. Indeed, their first album, Welcome to the Welcome Wagon, was produced by Sufjan Stevens and his record label, Asthmatic Kitty. Here are some songs I love from that album, as well as some lyrics.

But For You Who Fear My Name
You shall be my very own / on the day that I / cause you to be my special home. / I shall spare you as a man / has compassion on his son / who does the best he can.

Up On A Mountain
Up in the heavens our Lord prays for you / He sent his spirit to carry us through / So it's true that you're not alone. / Do you know He came all the way down?

I Am A Stranger
Tis' seldom I can never see my- / Self as I would wish to be, what / I desire I can't attain, from / what I hate I can't refrain

I think what I really enjoy about The Welcome Wagon is how beautifully honest they are about faith, doubt and emotions. Sometimes life is easy, and sometimes it's hard. But whatever happens, we know that God will carry us through.

I must say I am very, very excited about The Welcome Wagon's latest album, Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices, which was released only a few days ago! I am already in love with I Know That My Redeemer Lives. You can listen to this song here.

I hope you'll enjoy listening to The Welcome Wagon as much as I do! When I first started listening to them, I didn't really like their music, but it grew on me. I love their music now!

Five (Relatively Unknown) Songs I Love

Metronomy - ''Everything Goes My Way''
Metronomy is an English band I've known for a few years. A month ago, I had the privilege to see them live in Edmonton (they were opening for Coldplay), and I just loved their performance! This song has something exotic to it, but I don't know what exactly. I love how the video is so innocent and beautiful.

Sufjan Stevens - ''Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing''
Oh, Sufjan. Sufjan Stevens is one of my favourite artists. I love his early albums (his Christmas album is just  wonderful!). This song is an old spiritual hymn: Sufjan didn't actually write it. His interpretation of it is exquisite (love the banjo!!). The music is remarkable, but I think the reason I appreciate this song so much is that the lyrics often reflect the way I feel about God.

Philipp Poisel - ''Durch die Nacht''
Philipp Poisel is a young musician from Germany. I was introduced to his music by one of my German friends last summer. We were driving a convertible, it was raining, and this song was playing. The moment was perfect! Listen to the guitar. It's so delicate and emotional!

Josh Garrels - ''Rise''

Ok, this song is very strange and unique. It is very heavy and solemn, and I think it was meant to be that way. You can get Josh Garrels' latest album, Love & War & The Sea In Between for free here (I know!! It's so cool that he's letting people download it for free!!). Many of Garrels' songs are spiritually-oriented. ''Rise'' is an apocalyptic, almost prophetic song. It's about the Christian journey, persecution, perseverance, and restoration. The chorus makes me shiver. This song is a masterpiece.

Two Door Cinema Club - ''Something Good Can Work''
This is probably one of my favourite songs. Ever. I love it so much, especially the chorus. It make me happy. Two Door Cinema Club is a band from Northern Ireland. Their debut album, Tourist History, is very, very good. I also really like ''What You Know.'' 

Bossa Nova Love

Astrud Gilberto, ''a rainha da bossa nova''

Last week was warm, beautiful and sunny, and so I played my Bossa Nova playlist. As soon as the music was on, I was nostalgic of/looking forward to the summer. Let me tell you a little bit about Bossa Nova, and why I like this music genre so much!


Bossa Nova is a subgenre of Brazilian Jazz that emerged and was most popular in the fifties and the sixties. It's kind of a mix of Brazilian Jazz and Samba.


Most people would agree that Stan Getz, Antonio Carlos Jobim (a.k.a. Tom Jobim), João Gilberto and his (ex-) wife Astrud Gilberto were some of the most influential Bossa Nova figures.


The album Getz/Gilberto features all of the artists mentioned above, and is widely considered as incarnating the ''finest hour'' of Bossa Nova. Oh, and this album won the 1965 Grammy for Best Album of the Year. Everyone was nuts about it in the U.S. and South America.

The Girl from Ipanema (1965 Grammy for Record of the Year) is on that album. Listen to Astrud's gentle voice as well as the piano and saxophone solos. A masterpiece!

Garota de Ipanema (The Girl from Ipanema)  

Oh yes, and I forgot to talk about how profoundly Portuguese-speaking Bossa Nova is. And when you listen to it enough you realize that it couldn't be English, nor any other language for that matter. Portuguese excels in conveying emotions and moods while keeping an aura of mystery around the song.
The poetry in Corcovado, fifth track on the Getz / Gilberto album, is mind-blowing. 

Corcovado (Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars)

Um cantinho um violão

Esse amor, uma canção

Prá fazer feliz a quem se ama

Muita calma prá pensar

E ter tempo prá sonhar

Da janela vê-se o Corcovado

O Redentor que lindo!

Quero a vida sempre assim

Com você perto de mim

Até o apagar da velha chama

E eu que era triste

Descrente desse mundo

Ao encontrar você eu conheci

O que é felicidade

Meu amor

It feels like it would be criminal to translate this, so I'll leave it to your imagination. You can probably guess the meaning of some of the words... And decide what you think it means!

Bossa Nova is not only beautiful music; in my mind, it is associated with beautiful memories. 

Warm summer evenings in the backyard. A soft wind, a sunset. It is dark but not quite. The air is warm but the grass is cold. Sipping a glass of wine with friends. Closing our eyes and delighting in the beauty of our favourite jazz songs. Talking about the past, the present, the future. Hoping that someday we'll be all together in Brazil, on the beaches of Ipanema, at night, closing our eyes, and listening to the same songs.

Vito's Ordination Song - A Masterpiece by Sufjan Stevens

I wanted to post about Vito's Ordination Song, which I have been listening to recently. The song is slow, but it is very deep and significant. Take time to listen to it. I included the song and the lyrics below, as well as my reflection on the song.

Vito's Ordination Song - Sufjan Stevens

I always knew you

In yout mother's arms

I have called your name

I have an idea

Placed in your mind

To be a better man

I've made a crown for you

Put it in your room

And when the bridegroom comes

There will be noise

There will be glad

And a perfect bed

And when you write a poem

I know the words

I know the sounds

Before ou write it down

When you wear your clothes

I wear them too

I wear your shoes

And your jacket too

I always knew you

In your mother's arms

I have called you son

I've made amends

Between father and son

Or if you haven't one

Rest in my arms

Sleep in my bed

There is a design

To what I did and said.

Thomas Vito Aiuto is a friend of Sufjan Stevens', and is a reverend at Resurrection Presbyterian Church in New York. So it seems reasonable to assume that the song has to do with Vito's ordination, and can have religious undertones.

Sufjan's song reminds me of Psalm 139, which illustrates how God knows and loves us.

The psalm and the song are so beautiful and comforting. The first part of the song can be interpreted as God talking to us as a father, who has known and loved us from the beginning.     

My favourite part of the song is when Sufjan sings ''And when you write a poem / I know the words / I know the sounds /Before you write it down.'' 

I can relate these lines because I have been writing poetry since I was very young. 

Poetry is unlike any other literary genre.  Dennis Gabor, who received the 1971 Nobel Prize in Physics, once said : ''Poetry is plucking at the heartstrings, and making music with them.'' 

Poetry seems to be the purest literary expression of human emotions. It is  fragile and vulnerable because it uncovers the hidden thoughts and reflections of the human heart and mind. 

This poetry of ours--our hidden emotions, pains and ideals-- is known of God, and cherished by him. Thinking that I am so intimately known is intimidating, but it is also very thrilling and fascinating. Very humbling, but also comforting and appeasing.

The last paragraph gives a wonderful picture of God's fatherly love: 

I've made amends

Between father and son

And if you haven't one

Rest in my arms

Sleep in my bed

There is a design

To what I did and said

God offers us rest and peace.

''Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.''