IN THE SOUTH

Edward Elgar

Just returned from another sublime symphony — I have thought this often but never written it down.. going to a performance is a religious experience for me. Even as I worship, I fully admit that I don’t understand or appreciate the depth and breadth of the ritual which I am privileged to observe. All I know is that I need no further proof that there is more to existence than that which I can sense. There is a realm of transcendent beauty that I can barely appreciate but knowing it exists comforts and sustains me. “In the south” was the finale of tonight's program, performed by a massive orchestra, and explained to us as a tone poem- Elgar’s tribute to Italian culture and history. Whatever it was, I knew I was in the presence of a tangible, living miracle.