For the first time in many years I had a real holiday, and suddenly I understood all the fuss my friends are on about – it’s a magical experience!
holiday!
The last years have been a whirlwind. On one hand it feels like yesterday that I was 18 and just starting this crazy travelling musician life, on the other hand it feels like a lifetime ago. I’m a different person – and still very much the same. The whirlwind has been exciting, extremely exciting to be honest, but it has also been tiring. The constant life on the road is one thing, but it’s what’s going on inside your head and body that you need to look after. Life as a musician is filled with adrenalin. There is a lot of pressure in different forms, and I have to be honest, I am a bit of an adrenalin junkie. Playing, performing, expressing myself through music – I’m addicted. It’s a lifestyle, and it’s impossible to divide my personality into the musician and the ‘normal’ Tine. We are one. No matter how good I feel about my addiction, it’s still an addiction. So I need to remind myself why I do this, why I play music and why that feels like the only thing I’m supposed to be doing with my life. I need to remember that it’s something I choose to do, not something I have to do. I choose to play because it makes me feel alive. And this is where holiday comes into the picture. It turns out I feel even more alive after a holiday – and who wouldn’t want to feel more alive?
A week on a beach in Greece, no trumpet in sight – a piece of paradise. Just the sound of the waves, the warmth of the sun and the light, warm breeze. When I got back home to Oslo, I felt more alive and rested than I’ve felt in a very long time. So my friends were right, holiday is necessary. I would go as far as to say it’s a duty we have towards our body, it needs rest and recharge. When you all read this you might think this is old news, and it is. We all know it, but I’m a true example of someone who knew it, but didn’t know how it felt. Until now.
diner after our premiere!
Back home I started practising a new piece, a trumpet concerto by Bent Sørensen that’s written for me. I can’t express enough how much of an honour it is when a composer writes especially for you. I’ve been lucky enough to experience it quite a few times now, and I’m very much looking forward to many more in the future. It feels different. From the first moment I started practising my part I could sense the way Bent see and experience my playing, my voice. This is both fascinating and interesting. I’m a huge fan and admirer of Bent’s musical language, and then to feel him communicating with my voice through his music is nothing sort of magical.
Two magical experiences – what more could I wish for?