In uncertain times, likely to weigh down, I always experience slow 'serious' music in a minor key as a benign, understanding ally. The same holds for certain landscapes and landscape-images that match both music and my mental state. To not resist being absorbed by the gravity of a situation - or mood - very often comes with benefits. Darkness reveals traces of light, which we can choose to be guided by.
Eleven years old, me and my classmates had gathered for a regular music lesson. Rather unexpected the teacher started to talk about classical music, how it can be a comfort for people in difficult times. He gave some short examples on the grand piano. Beethoven was among them, the other ones I don't remember. The teacher was a rather young and sporty guy, full of good-natured jokes, with a discernible dose of self-irony. An unusal property in those days. Needless to say that he was popular with us. But still, I always wondered what had given him the courage - and trust - to talk to us pre-teens about music as a source of solace in the face of misery and suffering. There may have been a slight hint in his voice that he himself might have undergone a crisis. But then, it could also have been a general empathic ability. At any rate, one look around convinced me that I wasn't the only one in class to be touched by his words, his manner and the examples. I have always remembered this lesson and I'll never forget Günter Dubber, the outstanding music teacher.
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