Class

Yesterday I scribbled a note to myself during the day about needing to really listen to something sweet in the evening, as soon as I had a spare moment. When the time came I suddenly felt the need to track down something new, something to clean my ears out with. The name Ligeti sprung to mind, partly because everything I've heard from the great composer has hit me powerfully, even at his most experimental (which gets pretty out there, believe me), and partly because when I'd been listening to a CD of the brilliant Pierre-Laurent Aimard playing Bach's Art of the Fugue over the weekend I'd noticed a reference to him (Monsieur Aimard, that is) being something of a Ligeti specialist which I'd found intriguing.

I duly went on a YouTube search for both names and to my delight immediately came up with a link to the pianist lecturing on a piano piece by Ligeti with the funky title The Devil's Staircase (which is even funkier in the French, of course: L'escalier du diable.) It's a brilliant little talk about the etude, full of illuminating detail, and fired me up for listening to the actual number itself which has now become a firm favourite. (Played five times since.)

I'm now happily trying to figure out what makes this music so sweet to these ears when I'm aware that not all would react that way. I suppose I'm just lucky in that regard, and luckier still to live in a time when stuff this classy is so readily available.