Listening to the Music …

As a follow-up to our previous post, we thought we’d share an experience we had last Sunday – when folk certainly did stop to listen to the music!

Admittedly we’re not talking about a world-renowned violinist playing to oblivious passers by in a busy city railway station on a workday morning. This time it was an open-air musical performance  by Strand on a beautiful sunny Sunday at our local Caribbean Gardens Market.

So perhaps the question of whether people do stop to listen to the music is more a question of where they are  – and on which day of the week. It’s possibly a very obvious conclusion to reach. Folk who are browsing a suburban market in a relaxed Sunday mood are no doubt far more likely to pause and enjoy the music than those who are racing past a performer in a busy city location on a regular work day.

Strand is a Melbourne-based brother and sister duo, Tom and Antoinette, whose voices harmonise beautifully as they run through a repertoire of of ‘golden oldies’ from the 60s, 70s and 80s, as well as more modern songs. They perform regularly at Caribbean Gardens, and last Sunday they attracted an appreciative audience.

Mind you, some people did bustle past with barely a glance. But (as the New York experiment also found) all the kids wanted to stop and listen. And this time many of the grownups did too. Folk of all ages paused in whatever they were doing at the market to listen and enjoy.

As we ourselves arrived, we saw a group of disabled people who must have been there for an outing with a couple of carers. A middle aged lady from the group had stopped in front of Strand and had burst into tears. Imagine our delight to see her tears turn to smiles when Frank, Strand’s ‘spruiker’ for the day, took her hands and led her into a lively dance.

We saw a young dad, with green spiked hair, nodding and tapping to the music while holding in his arms his wee boy – who was also sporting a spiked, punk hairdo.  A little later three young lads showed off a few oh-so-smooooth dance moves as they made their way past.  And an older couple stopped to do an impromptu rock and roll dance – they were pretty good too! :)

We also chatted for a while to Ron, an invalid pensioner, who told us he was going to stay until Strand closed up for the day. He loved their music and from time to time skipped into a few dance steps in the open area, leaning on his walking stick as he did so.

Below is a small taste of what we stopped to enjoy last Sunday.

In the middle of two hectic weeks, it was a timely reminder for us to stop, listen and take delight in the world and the people around us.

And it was yet another wonderful example of how music is such a universal language  –  connecting people of all ages and backgrounds.

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Strand Music

Call Tom on 0423 144 532 for bookings
or email: tom@strandmusic.com.au