"The Spiritual Journey of a Female Pianist"
Author: [French] Hélène Grimaud
About the Author
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Internationally renowned pianist. Born in Aix-en-Provence, France in 1969, she was admitted to the famous French Conservatory of Music at the age of 13. She won the first prize at the Jacques Rouvier Classical Music Competition at the age of 16. She published her first solo album as a child and held her first solo concert in Paris at the age of 18. Her first piano solo concert was a huge success and became internationally renowned. Her beauty also gave people a sense of infinite lightness and elegance.
Elena’s rich life experience and unique talent make her full of imagination and inspiration, becoming the source of creation. This book is the second autobiography after "Wild Variations".
Introduction
Hélène Grimaud was rebellious by nature. She started playing the piano in order to vent her excess energy, but unexpectedly discovered her talent and became an internationally renowned pianist; a By chance, she met a female wolf in the wild. The wolf unexpectedly lay down and got close to her. From then on, her story with the wolf began... Elena Grimaud, this young and beautiful international talented pianist The Guardian with the Wolf is as charming as she is idiosyncratic; people are almost obsessed with her. Her writing skills are as good as her piano skills. In this beautiful autobiography, she talks about music, life, and spiritual journey...
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The French piano beauty "& "Wolf *** Dance"
Originally published in "The New York Times" on November 5, 2006, author JAMES R. OESTREICH, compiled by Li Wen
Elena Grimaud (Hélène Grimaud), this French female pianist, was born in Aix-en-Provence in 1969. In his early years, he studied piano with Jacqueline Courtin and Pierre Babitzer at the Conservatoire of Aix and the Conservatoire of Marseille respectively. At the age of 13, he was admitted to the famous French Conservatory of Music and studied with Jacques Rouvier. At the age of 16, he won the first prize in the Jacques Rouvier Classical Music Competition. In the same year, he published his first solo album, which included Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2 and Piano Solo No. 2. At the age of 18, she held her first piano solo concert in Paris, which was a huge success and has since become internationally famous. In 2002, he became a contracted musician with the German DG company. It has published Rachmaninoff's "Second Piano Sonata" and Beethoven's "Tempest Sonata", among which Rachmaninoff's "Second Piano Sonata" also won the "Record Association" award. This is a rare honor for young Elena. She currently lives in the United States.
Elena Grimaud was naturally rebellious and started playing the piano to vent her excess energy. However, she unexpectedly discovered her talent and became an internationally renowned pianist. By chance, she encountered a female wolf in the wild. The wolf unexpectedly lay down and got close to her. This began her story with the wolf. She also founded a "Wild Wolf Protection Center" in New York to protect red wolves, Mexican wolves and other wild wolf species, and are open to the public for education. The wolf has become Elena's totem, representing Elena's freedom, eclecticism, and perseverance.
She is bewilderingly beautiful. She is not only a piano genius, but also has endless stories with the wild wolf. She likes to play Brahms' music the most. When playing, she is cold and sad; when she is with the wolf, she is gentle and innocent. Her writing is emotional and casual. Following her first autobiography "Wild Variations", this year she published another essay "The Journey of the Soul of a Female Pianist" which records the journey of the soul. This is the legend of French female pianist Hélène Grimaud.
"Music changed my faith, and the she-wolf liberated my wild nature"
In 1991, when Elena Grimaud was living in Tallahassee, Florida, Late one night she took her friend's dog for a walk that changed her life. She saw a lonely animal figure approaching slowly. Its movement was tense and mysterious that she had never seen before. The dog she was holding became frightened and fled into the bushes. This was her first encounter with a wolf, a female wolf. Grimaud wrote in his first biography, Wild Variations: "He came to my left and sniffed my hand.
I just stretched out my fingers and it hid its head and shoulders under my palm. I felt like I was struck by something, and it spread quickly throughout my body. It filled me with tenderness all at once. A mysterious song came from my heart, like an unknown wild force. "I fell in love with this she-wolf." ” she later wrote.
Grimaud believed that wolves had been regarded as the embodiment of evil for hundreds of years. But she didn’t see it that way. To her, wolves maintained the balance of the species and were a strange, mysterious thing. Fascinating animals with a lot to teach humans, she felt it was her responsibility to change people's misconceptions about wolves. In 1999, she opened Wild Wolf in South Salem with photographer Henry Fair. Conservation center. This 29-acre site is now home to 17 wild wolves. Four of them are open to the public as "ambassadors" and the other 13 are isolated from humans so that they can eventually be reunited. Back to nature. “In the first two years we had 500 visitors a year, now we have 20,000 people visiting every year. "
Her work on wolf protection has caused some criticism in the classical music world. Some people feel that she "lives in her own imagination of wild wolves." "The time she spent on wolf protection also affected her progress in her piano career. She herself admitted that it was only in the past three years that she really focused on music. Before that, the wolf protection center spent too much of her time and Energy. Now she continues to tour around the world, playing with the world's top symphony orchestras and musicians. However, in late 2005, she suffered a new setback, which led to chronic fatigue syndrome. To the heart. Her first autobiography, "Wild Variations", was first published in France and quickly became a bestseller. It is composed of various chapters. Grimaud saw herself as a lonely outsider in her family, the world of music and even society. Full of struggles. For example, when considering where to build a wolf conservation center, she wrote: "It would be better to be somewhere else. I always hope it is somewhere else." "
What role did classical music and The Wolf play in her life? For Grimaud, both saved her. "Music changed my beliefs," she writes : “It saved me. When talking about the female wolf she met for the first time, she also said: "It also saved me." "The purpose of founding the Wild Wolf Protection Center, in her view, was to liberate her from the shackles of using the piano as a tool, "I became wild. ”
Grimaud was born in Provence, France in 1969. He started playing the piano at the age of 6 and showed amazing talent. At the age of 13, he entered the Paris Conservatoire and became the youngest student at the time. Another hobby that started in childhood. It was raising small animals. Before the piano filled her life, she even dreamed of being a veterinarian, living in a zoo, and later she wanted to be a biologist. “I used to be interested in primates. "The encounter with the female wolf Alava made her involved in the world of wild wolves. She began to study animal behavior, audited university courses, attended conferences and visited animal experts.
In addition, she is fluent in French , Russian, English, and has extensive exposure to French, Russian, and American literature, history, and philosophy. Her passion for music has never faded, and she starts her day with Bach. However, this does not prevent her from immersing herself in it. In Romantic literature.
She also likes Chopin’s music, calling him “my composer.” She appreciates how Chopin frees the pianist’s left hand and “creates dexterous music. "But the one closest to her heart is Brahms. Most of the music she recorded in the early days was performed by composers such as Brahms who are not young, not French, and have no feminine flavor at all, which is consistent with her appearance. The impression left on people is very different. "I like his fierce music," she wrote in "Wild Variations": "His pain and darkness, the emotional sadness, and the despair in his relationship with the world. . "Brahms' intense and daunting "Concerto No. 1" was her favorite work. She said that it was difficult for her to recover from the pathos for several hours after the performance. "Brahms put his grief into words. The expression is so perfect, the pain is enough to make you suffocate." Mr. Salon, who once worked with Mr. Grimaud, said: "She is half rational and half passionate. She is a rare person. She always has clear ideas and plans before performing, but she often lets the music flow naturally during concerts.
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“If love cannot be shared, I hope I am the one with the deepest affection.”
Successful people either receive extra favor from God or have the blessing of practicing in the previous life. Lena Grimaud is such a lucky person. No one can exist more comfortably than her. She has a harmonious marriage, a growing reputation in the piano industry she is familiar with, and the most commendable thing is that there is also a group of wild people. The remaining wolves are waiting for her to play with them after communicating with Chopin and Rachmaninov.
However, it is rare for people to come when they have everything that ordinary people would envy. Looking back from a distance. After music becomes the keynote of life, where will those other loves be? Music, loneliness, love, and those wolves... At what point do we betray our vows? What is this oath? After being entangled with these mutually inclusive and contradictory issues, running away becomes the main concern of the protagonist, and this seemingly desperate trip becomes a search for the key to heaven.
This is destined to be a game with the soul. Since the programmed life can no longer give Elena inspiration and freedom, can a journey of self-exile bring new breath? Like a beautiful fable, the beginning of the story is In the end, the farmer's dream of treasure begins and ends under the flower and fruit tree. The dream begins and ends here. The only thing that needs to be exiled is the tired soul. The best medicine is to raise your head and take a deep breath.
Expand. Every wrinkle of the soul, anyone's life will be more exciting than Rousseau's "Confessions," let alone this internationally renowned female pianist. "The Journey of the Soul of a Female Pianist" is a character's spiritual diary. The overlapping and echoing of various characters are like going to SPA again and again in the ancient forest, whether it is Audrey met at the beginning of the journey, or the unknown professor, the stranger in the cafe... it is not a magical experience. The inspiration is like having invisible wings. The people in each section of the station seem to have the dreamy color of angels. They appear in front of you when they should appear. The book cleverly divides the inspired characters into different chapters. The professor who appeared was like a Santa Claus carrying gifts. After guiding Elena to reflect on freedom and understand music, he completed his mission and quietly retreated. Tris, her appearance is more like Beatrice in Dante's works, which makes people daydream about beauty, and in the book, she also comes to this place close to the sky in search of innocence. Lena's perfection in music coincides with her.
The appearance of wolves has always been more like a metaphor. Like music, the "Wild Wolf Conservation Center" she founded in New York has always occupied an important place in her heart. Position. The wolf is almost a stand-in for her rebellious character, and her fate is reasonable. Since Elena's naturally rebellious character was thrown away in the pursuit of art, she no longer has the joy of relaxation, with freshness, wildness, and favor. , the wolf made her space full of tension and vitality, and in a sense became Elena's original god or mascot.
Based on the author’s reputation in music, China’s Li Yundi or Lang Lang may be comparable to Elena, but Chinese artists are used to finding inspiration in the occasions of drinking and drinking, and for turning to the origin of music , plateaus, and fields are obviously not of interest. Obviously, we have different paths, so we borrow the words of the professor who hitched a ride in the book, "We are the music sung by our own destiny."
Weinstein Hugh· Auden's words, "If love cannot be shared, may I be the one with the deepest affection." In a sense, Elena and the reader have become one.
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Book Review 1: Ethereal Vacation, Soul Exploration
Elena Grimaud, who once had an encounter with the she-wolf Alava, recorded her debut at the age of 16 Zhang's piano records, his first piano solo concert at the age of 18, and his autobiography "Wild Variations", which was released around the world, revealed his beautiful and smooth writing and delicate thoughts. Today, she still looks after an entire wildlife sanctuary and lets wolves be real wolves.
This is her second autobiography, but it is not the kind of autobiography that the world usually sees that is piled up with great achievements, trivial matters, letters and dates. It is a purely spiritual journey, questioning art. and the essence of life.
Because of this core, there is a story composed of encounters, interspersed with many fable-like short stories, and a main vein with a sense of mission running through the beginning and end. All this belongs to her, and it definitely belongs to everyone.
"Every encounter is a sure win." The female pianist was exhausted from the busy performance and recording process, so she took a break and hesitated among the three choices of Africa, Europe or the American forest. The little story about the waitress at the fast food restaurant helped her decide to go to Europe. Then, in the Italian countryside, I met a literature professor who looked like a respected teacher. The question the professor left for her was, if you have performed music well, "How about you experience it better?" The next day, she received a small package from the professor. Continuing the topic of the encounter the day before, he asked her to accept a delicate music box, or to give it to a German named Hans. At this point, the originally aimless vacation not only had a theme, but also a designated route.
Along the way, she met Beatrice in the garden of the Assisi convent. She took care of the convent garden and was taken care of by the garden. She asked, "Why can't people create new ones anymore?" Musical instrument?" I met a pessimistic young man again in a cafe, questioning what kind of freedom and love can exist in the midst of pain and loss? Then I listened to the collector in a small Swiss town telling the story of the music box. The old man didn't mind the end of the world, and talked angrily about various progressive tense extinctions... These exchanges exposed the unhappy nature of human beings. Her unique wisdom of pros and cons, and her process of listening, understanding, and arguing with each other, are exactly the way to find answers for herself.
Just like a confused person who pursues the hints of the Divine Comedy and seeks for vitality at the crossroads of destiny, he cherishes the guidance of every stranger and noble person. Finally she met Hans, a blind pianist who was blinded by a car accident. "I realized that I had been blind long before the car accident. I was eager to be self-satisfied. In addition to work, praise, and the pursuit of absolute perfection, I almost Can't see anything except self-absorption. "Isn't this the situation of female pianists at this time? When the lights came on, she discovered that the blind musician Hans looked very much like a brother. This is the second "resemblance" since the professor. A ghostly and mysterious atmosphere permeates the air. It is blurred by coincidence or an encounter carefully designed by words, and gradually becomes calmer.
Having been immersed in the rhythmic and vital poetry of classical music for many years, Elena's writing also has a classic texture that seems to be from another world. As she wrote, "The artist agrees to decompose himself into art." Words and music are only part of art, and art is never isolated from nature. In her life, wolves and music are the most important elements, but it is not enough to be the medium of music or the object of wolf's favor. A busy schedule can also create emptiness in a person, even a genius. It can even be said that this is a fact that is most easily ignored by contemporary artists after they are busy innovating. They are far away from the essence and attached to their skills. Elena, who has experienced a spiritual journey, said with unique wildness and confidence: "The piano and I gave birth to the same body. We, the piano and I, became a mythical beast together, some kind of brand new horse, some kind of auspiciousness." Eternal Scorpio. "Experience music and you should become the continuation of musical life. This is the answer she wants.
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Book Review 2: The Sound of Whisk
"It has been too long since I have tasted the taste of a beautiful escape."
Me I think everyone has had a lost moment when their soul is polluted. With obscure sorrow, we long to burst the bubble of time, break away from the routine, and rush towards a gorgeous adventure.
"The Spiritual Journey of the Female Pianist" is a spiritual diary about escape and return.
This is the second autobiography published by the famous French pianist Hélène Grimaud after "Wild Variations". In this biography, traditional elements such as letterheads and diaries have disappeared. Elena describes her mysterious encounters with several strangers in plain words. The casual conversations are decorated with exquisite fables, which are light but philosophical. taste. The meaning of travel gradually unfolds in the enigmatic exchanges. As the author said: "I believe that there must be answers hidden in my journey and encounters."
Music and wild wolves have always been Elena The most important symbol of life.
Elena started playing piano at the age of 6 just to vent her excess energy, but she showed amazing talent.
She has studied with many famous piano masters such as Jacqueline Courtin and Pierre Babizet. She became the youngest student at the Paris Conservatoire at the age of 13 and won the first prize in the Jacques Rouvier Classical Music Competition at the age of 16. . Her first piano recital at the age of 18 made her famous in one fell swoop, and she has become world-famous ever since. Rachmaninov's "Second Piano Sonata" performed by her also won the "Recording Association" Award.
In addition to her impressive music resume, Elena's life trajectory has also been branded with the legendary label of "Dancing with the Wolf". By chance, she met the female wolf Alawa, but unexpectedly gained her trust and closeness. "I want to return the essence of wolves to their essence and let them return to their nature - freedom." In 1999, she founded the "Wild Wolf Conservation Center" with photographer Henry Fair to protect red wolves, Mexican wolves and other wild animals. wolf species and educate the public. "I miss the old days very much, when animals were sacred and could talk, and man had not forgotten that he was always just a living thing. If he wanted to do better, he had to try to understand." This is Elena's response to the original Wild simplicity but sincere awe.
The surging reputation comes with a stylized rhythm. "My schedule is in the hands of my agent, record company and press specialist." The maverick Elena cannot bear this kind of life. It is always out of tune with the body: sometimes it lags behind, hanging on the skirt of memories; sometimes it rushes ahead, busy with plans, busy with terrible assumptions about the future, and the heavy calculation makes it suffocating. "In order to breathe, she ran away. Go traveling and wait to be turned on. "The Europe that lay before me was like the squares children drew on the ground while playing house-building games. Chance had thrown out his pie, and I jumped on one foot in the footsteps left by Franz Liszt. , feet fell on Schumann's mark."
The strange professor who hitched a ride, the painful young man in the cafe, Beatrice from the Assisi Monastery... they walked one after another. Entering Elena's world, wise exchanges gradually clear away the fog of the soul.
My favorite is this exchange:
“Have you found the key to heaven?”
“We all have it: it came from two people The moment of encounter, in the same generous impulse,
The moment of encounter exudes the breath of love in Elena's writing, "I hope to regain the child's innocence, this innocence." Evil does not understand death, but prefers the moment and its completeness - the music of time, which is silence. "Every encounter is a light-hearted moment, with both the passionate release of love energy and the beauty of silence, which makes people sigh. : "The important thing is that we have met before. It creates moments and the precious time we just mentioned."
Moments accumulate and love precipitates. As the book says - "Love is Forgetting that is constantly recalled; forgetting is a memory that is supposed to last forever. It leaves a mark - a sweet and short-lived memory that often travels through our hearts and immerses us in emotions of completeness and joy. ”
At the end of the journey, Elena met the blind musician Hans. "I realized that I had been blind long before the car accident. I was eager to be self-satisfied. In addition to work, praise, and the pursuit of absolute perfection, I can’t see anything but narcissism. I am always doing acceleration exercises. This exercise does not take me forward, but takes away everything, including myself.”
Hans’ confession. Let Elena become resilient and unveil the nature of art and life: “The reality of music—even the reality of life—is not to simulate happiness, but to heuristically peel back the layers of life’s tragedy. Joy. , happiness is just the result of compromise with life and pain, this is the discordant note played by death."
Everything in the world has cracks, so light can penetrate.
The last conversation took place in the dark, opening the way for the female pianist to return. "Only silence is enough to express respect for the profound meaning of the story. Just like in music, the last few notes of a sonata The silence after that is the same."
This is the chord of light played by a blind man, which wipes away the dust in each of our hearts. Late at night, Westan Hugh Auden's words on the title page flashed again - "If love cannot be shared, I hope I am the one with the deepest love."