In the documentary “Touch the Sound” we see Evelyn Glennie’s impressing art: the world of a deaf percussionist. She creates intriguing landscapes of sound, improvising together with other musicians – without ever hearing anything.

SHE FEELS THE SOUNDS IN HER BODY.

She is not only able to perceive volume, tempo and rhythm, but can also discern quite divergent qualities of sounds.
It is amazing to see that she uses all kinds of fancy instruments she created herself or just objects and materials at hand – and she apparently clearly feels and deeply enjoys the diversity.

The documentary conveys Evelyn’s inspiring love of sound – not only in music, but in life generally:
the sea, metropolitan traffic, a remote farm – they all express themselves in what we can hear and she can feel.
No question whose perception is more intense.

Apart from the pure joy that her way of connecting to the world and to herself instills in me, I can track some insights about our lives in general.

- Our ability to experience the world by feeling is infinite.
- It is feeling that gives our sensory perception depth and meaning.
- Our body is key to feeling and connecting.

And Evelyn shows us: FEELING CAN BE DEVELOPED. It is a matter of dedicated loving exercise.

This resonates deeply with me. This is what I have learnt in art. This is what you can find in our Heart Intelligence days: ongoing playful practice to feel yourself, to feel others, to feel life.


PS Have a look at the documentary on YOUTUBE.
(At 9:21 starts the recording of a project with Fred Frith: improvising rhythms in the echoing space of an abandoned factory.)



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