The Worldwide Language

I have always felt that music is the language that bridges all of humanity. Even people who are entirely deaf are not devoid of music, with vibrations from songs being felt throughout the whole body. From his presentation in class, I felt the same understanding in the musician Daniel Kelly. He knows the power of music to bring together communities, but also sees how music can give voice to those usually overlooked. His work with Blind Visionaries and his Rakonto pieces reflect this, and show that beauty lies everywhere.
He was a very interesting guest and I quite enjoyed talking with him. It is very admirable to me that he is both following his dream of music while also acting as a sort of community organizer. Also, it was very interesting to hear about his work turning Shakespeare into music. I have always had the fear that I will become trapped into a job that becomes boring to me. Through grasping at literature and attempting to understand it through his passion for music, he has shown me how to keep things fun and different.
However the most captivating thing in the presentation was definitely his work with Blind Visionaries. It was very cool to see how people who are visually impaired can masterfully produce visual art. Even being blind, these photographers were still able to capture such raw and complex emotions in photographs that they never were able to fully see. Also, even though most of the photos had a more melancholy feel (in my interpretation) based on their monochromatic color scheme and depictions of somber looking faces, these photographs inspired a sense of joy and hope inside of me that anything is possible. If all the odds are stacked against you, that doesn’t mean you can’t achieve what you want, it just means you have to work a little harder than most.
Also, it was awesome to both hear the music Daniel Kelly composed for the photos produced by Blind Visionaries and ask him about the creative process. I would have no idea where to start when taking musical inspiration from photos. However, hearing Daniel Kelly explain how he focused on the mood of each photo and tried to express that through the music showed me how to take inspiration from other sources and yet still create your own unique piece. Daniel Kelly, thank you so much for presenting to our class!