Playing your music: Part II

He was born with hands made for the piano, with fingers long and lean and a reach superior to most pianists. The problem was, however, they were also black. In the time of segregation, the chance of a black pianist making it was almost out of the question.

He tried to play any piano he saw, but it wasn’t until his talents were recognized by whites that such opportunities became plentiful. He became one of the great pianists of his day, and, even in the deep south, audiences came to hear him play. With his starched white shirt, black tie, and flapping tails, he sat and played his role with as much artistry as he did the piano. Beneath his wide smile was a smoldering rage. He was performing, playing all the music the audience wanted to hear, but it wasn’t the music he was meant to play. Classical music was his love, particularly Chopin. “No one plays Chopin the way I do,” he confessed to his driver, and when he finally played it in a spontaneous moment, it was unlike anything people had heard.

As I sat and watched the film, I couldn’t understand why he didn’t play his music, why he let the audience dictate what he played? It was such a sad story, and it wrenched my heart to watch someone not be who they were created to be, but I have come to see what a familiar story it is. The other versions may not include pianos or race, but they all speak of people playing to an audience and not using their God-given talents to bring into the world what they alone could bring. 

Eventually, I came to see moments in my own life where I have done the same and wonder if you have as well? Have you plaid to the audience? Have you denied the music within you? The good news is that our stories aren’t over. Maybe we will find the courage to play the music that is uniquely ours to play, the kind no one can play like we could.

Extra Credit: Go see The Green Book at a theater near you.