As a child, I loved listening to music. I always found my father's record collection very interesting. Although I could not really appreciate classical music at the time, I was impressed by the country albums and also a live album by Rod McKuen (Later on in life I found this album on CD).
As a young boy of about 7 or 8 years old (early 70's! 😱), my parents gave me a small transistor radio. With only AM band. I quickly found the BBC, especially Radio One, and during the weekend Tony Blackburn morning show was a regular fixture on my little transistor. His request show in which for a 70 year old grandmother a Status Quo song was requested and for a 4 year old grandson a Bach piece... I really enjoyed that very much!
Later my brother and I got a (mono) cassette recorder. It took us a while to figure out how to record something from the radio. But after that we always had our favorite music available and also the (almost) traditional pencil to rewind the tape when it was spooled out of the case again. At some point this recorder was replaced by a stereo radio recorder. Recording without cable hassle or microphone, wonderful!Â
At one point I also bought a portable cassette player (Walkman style, but not Sony) with my savings. Later on this was followed by a portable CD player during the transition to digital music. No more hassle with tapes that got stuck inbetween the heads, but occasionally a skipping CD due to shocks while cycling. Until I switched to MP3 music, bought my first MP3 player and ever since I've been ripping my CD's. A USB format player from Sweex with an incredible storage capacity of 128 MB!!! (unbelievable for that time that is! 😋).
After using a few of these types of players, I later switched to a more extensive player from Cowon, (the D2 - also known as the "I-pod killer", later the M2) and the Android apps on my smartphone. I never felt the need for a streaming service, with my mp3 files locally stored I can listen to music even without internet connection!
In short, there is almost always music at hand in various genres. My musical taste is quite extensive, ranging from Country to (Hard) Rock, from Celtic to Classical (nowadays...), from Synthesizer to Folk, etc...Â
And how about making music myself?
I made some attempts on a keyboard and harmonium, among other things, which didn't really go well either. Partly due to the long working days as a driver at the time. 2 years ago I bought a digital piano and an online course from Cor Bakker. Quite a fun course to follow, but in order to play well and smoothly you need to have a good posture behind the piano. Unfortunately my back couldn't handle that due to damaged vertebrae and I could only sit there for 5 minutes. Tried chair, stool and piano stool. So I've decided to try the recorder again, an alto recorder this time. And the kalimba, a wonderful, relaxed sounding instrument!
I wonder if it will work now and how far I will get...
Anyway, music continues to play an important role in my life!
Grtz,
Frank