Tales from a Time of Covid 19 – Fourth in a series

ALL ABOUT THE ARTS

From M.V., a pianist friend of ours: Let’s hope we are approaching better times! I have had more time to learn and study new repertoire and I have felt less pressured to “produce” something, with time to think and re-consider the ways in which 21st century artists can still be relevant and successful. 

I don’t believe in “keeping busy”. In fact, I dare say that “keeping busy” is often the enemy of productivity and accomplishment. I consider that often, given the decay of Classical Music in general. If the pandemic did anything, it has made me slightly more confident that what we do is, after all, essential in its own way!

The fact is: perhaps because I come from a different culture, or perhaps because I am a unique human being, I truly do not have the need to “stay active” in order not to go mad. I am one kind of person who doesn’t feel at all “guilty” if I spend the entire day in bed, or wandering about the city, or watching a Netflix series.

And from J.B. – a dear friend and artist:  My passion for painting has been the best cure to keep my thoughts away from the horrible time we are going through. Painting has been my escape into another, happier world. When the news becomes too depressing, I escape down to my basement studio.

Rafael de Acha http://www.RafaelMusicNotes.com

Published by ALL ABOUT THE ARTS

Rafael de Acha has enjoyed a distinguished career in the arts as a performer, stage director, producer, and educator. He was born and grew up in Cuba. At the age of 17 he moved to the United States to study Drama at the University of Minnesota, and later Languages at L.A. City College, Music at the Juilliard School of Music, at the University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music, and at the New England Conservatory of Music, from which he received the Master's degree. He has taught courses on the History of Music at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music and at Florida International University, and contributed writings and reviews to Seen and Heard International (www.seenandheard-international.com ) and to this blog. He co-founded the award-winning New Theatre in Coral Gables, Florida, where he produced and staged twenty seasons of classical and contemporary theater, including fifty world premieres of plays that went on to have international and national productions on and off Broadway, including Ana in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz (Pulitzer Prize for Drama 2002 and Tony Nomination 2003.) In 2006 he was presented with a citation from The Dade County Cultural Affairs Council for “trailblazing contributions to the arts in South Florida.”