The Jazz Lounge

The Classical Pianist

I had often seen the silver haired lady walking along the seafront supported by a wheeled walking frame. She often looked up and smiled as she passed. One day she stopped and asked if she could listen. She sat down and I played.

A few moments after I had stopped playing she announced "I used to be a classical musician". My heart sank as I was convinced that I was about to get a music lesson. But not a bit of it. She introduced herself as Dianna and said that she envied people who could play without the dots (music). I can read but I prefer not to when playing tunes (mainly jazz standards). "I can play anything once I have the music in front of me but I am lost for what to play when it is not there" she said. We then had a very happy chat about the merits of music, playing, and how wonderful the seafront was.

Little did I know that Dianna had been compiling a book of poems called 'Reflections' about her experiences on the Soutsea seafront during lockdown and I was in it.