How I Deal with Pre-Holiday Antsiness
that becomes heightened before holidays and other times when I am feeling antsy
Do you, as I do, get antsy before the holidays?
As we approach Easter and Passover, I become antsy. These feelings surface the week before every holiday. Aside from exercise, including taking walks, one of the best way for me to let go of frustrations of the moment is to listen to my favorite music, described in this post. Do you deal with the heebie-jeebies by listening to music, too?
Neoclassical Music of Hania Rani
In her first piano concerto, “NonFiction,” Hania Rani investigates the constant coexistence of harmony and disorder creating a sonic metaphor for the survival of the human spirit when faced by the violence and uses the emotional value of sound to make these somehow distant conflicts more relatable to us on a human level. She is primarily a pianist and composer and her voice us used to add texture. Source: AI
I must admit, I’m sentimental and love the music Rani composed for Love (view YouTube video at beginning of this post).
Whether lively or soothing, romantic or angry, Rini’s music energizes me, rather than puts me to sleep. Following are a couple examples:
As described on her website, Rani has an endless determination to “be better” and see “the beauty in things.”
La Rodine Opera with Angela Gheorghiu
An opera I can listen to again and again is La Rondine with Angela Gheorghiu, soprano, and Roberto Alagna, tenor (though the male in the video below looks more like Jonas Kaufman than Roberto Alagna). An opera composed by Giacomo Puccini, La Rondine is about a kept woman who defies convention to chase a dream of romantic love with an earnest, if naïve, young man. She is the swallow, or “rondine,” of the title, a bird who flies toward the sun. Source
The most uplifting section of the opera for me is this highlight: 3. Bevo al tuo fresco sorisso (min 7:53). In this scene, Gheorghiu’s voice reaches a high note with unequaled passion.
Opera, Film Music with Renee Fleming
Renee Fleming is my all-over favorite female soprano singer. Beyond opera, Fleming has sung and recorded lieder, chansons, jazz, musical theatre, and indie rock. She also speaks about the impact of music on health and neuroscience and has recorded songs for major films, including the song “You’ll Never Know” in The Shape of Water and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Source: Wikipedia. I especially like Fleming’s role in The Merry Widow opera, singing Love Unspoken, Love Unbroken (1:58:55).
Pop, Country & Folk Rock Music
K.D. Lang, mezzo-soprano, with Jane Siberry, singing “Calling All Angels,” followed by Leonard Cohen, singing “Hallelujah,” in baratone, inspire my preference for musicians who sing in a variety of musical pitches, mostly low and slow.. K.d. lang's heritage includes English, Irish, Scottish, German, Russian-Jewish, Icelandic, and Sioux ancestry. Her/their father was a drugstore owner. Cohen’ mother was the daughter of a Talmudic scholar and his father was a clothing store owner. Both Lang and Cohen were born in Canada. Source: AI.
Heritage
It’s interesting that all three of my favorite female musicians have roots in Eastern Europe – Hania Rani is from Poland, Angela Gheorghiu’s roots are Romanian, and Renee Fleming’s ancestral roots are Czech. Rani’s parents are a doctor and an architect; Gheorghiu’s father worked on the railways (later became a monk after her sister died), her mother was a seamstress; and Fleming’s parents were both music teachers.
Moving Beyond Disabilities and Roots
My favorite male singers are Andrea Bocelli, and Josh Groban. Groban is a baratone and “tenor in training,” Bocelli is a tenor. Bocelli’s ancestral roots are from Italy. His father sold farm equipment and produced wine. His sight impairment was due to congenital glaucoma. His mother’s decision to overrule the doctor’s advice and give birth to him, despite the doctor’s advice, inspired him to oppose abortion. Groban’s parents are a businessman and school teacher. His ancestral roots are from Poland and Ukraine, English, German, Norwegian, Episcopalian and Jewish. Following is a video of them singing together.
Joe Hisaishi is a Japanese composer, musical director, conductor and pianist, known for over 100 film scores and solo albums dating back to 1981. Hisaishi's music has been known to explore and incorporate different genres, including minimalist, experimental electronic, Western classical, and Japanese classical. Source: Wikipedia. Click here for a playlist of his music. He collaborates with renowned Japanese film director Hayao Miyazaki.
Conclusion
When I’m feeling down and out, I like romantic, soothing, uplifting music, such as the examples in this post. My father had an ear for music, teaching himself piano when he was mid-forties. He also liked romantic, soothing music.
Most of my favorite musicians grew up with music in their home, school and/or community. When they were children, most played music or sang or participated in theater. In other words, they were exposed to classical music and the arts from their early years.
Can we do the same for our children or grandchildren, provide them with an appreciation of a wide variety of music and other arts? Whether or not they choose to become musicians or artists, they can enjoy music and the arts throughout their lives. Music can lift up our spirits when we are feeling antsy.
Something To Think About
Do you become antsy before holidays?
Can music help?
If so, what is your favorite kind of music and which musicians inspire you?
How has your ancestral heritage and/or early years influenced your work/life?
Can music inspire you other times than holidays?