Roy Salmond

The Nuance Of Neve Over the last 60 years a handful of individuals elevated my studio production work (and that of my colleagues) in the world of recorded audio... in an extraordinary way. Such was the legendary stature of Rupert Neve, who passed away this past week. Almost a god in the engineering and professional audio community, Rupert invented and produced legendary products, many still used today. A gentle and humble man who seemed bemused by all the attention he received, he just did his thing, enriching the sonics of recorded music. Rupert was passionate about sound and its inherent resonance. He claimed the whole body is an ear, explaining that there are cells in the ear canal similar to cells throughout the human body, perceiving frequencies of sound we cannot hear, yet if absent, the sonic picture of life is incomplete. This may sound strange, yet we’re all familiar with instances where we sense there’s more going on that meets the ear, or in any of our isolated senses. Instances where we hesitate at the obvious, intuiting the mystery beyond our perceptions. Instances where, when focused on the notes, we miss the symphony unfolding before us and in us. Helen Keller, the 20th century author and activist, talked of lying on her back in a canoe on a quiet lake, knowing the moon came out because she sensed the spaciousness of the air around her, and the luminous warmth. I wonder how often I’ve settled for truncated frequencies. I wonder how often I’ve short-changed my senses. I wonder how often I’ve missed the feel of the moon. Rupert Neve listened beyond the ordinary to perceive the extraordinary For those who have ears to hear, let them perceive.

Born To Play I love watching my grandchildren assiduously absorbed in the pleasure of play. My six-year-old grandson singing quietly to himself as he concentra...tes on his Lego. His 2-year-old sister bypassing prefab toys for boxes and boundaries to explore and dissect. Baby Sage rolling around the floor enraptured by her newly discovered mobility. Play engages like nothing else; planting us in the present, acquiring our attention and availing us access to our emotions. Play is the bellwether of wellbeing, a natural instinct that spontaneously erupts when we are safely connected to what and who we value and need. My grandchildren remind me of the deeply satisfying sustenance of stepping into moments that are not about productivity, outcome or results. And not about before or after, for when we’re expressively present to the moment we’re in, time stands still, making all things new. In the world around us The world inside us The world above, below and beside us. Sometimes my life has felt weighed down with ‘reality’. On reflection, I realize I’ve lost the lovely lift of play that prompts my healthy escape. Listening to great music. Reading a good book. Watching the rainfall. Leaning into laughter. Maybe that’s why 12th century German mystic/theologian Meister Eckhart proclaimed, The universe was born out of laughter. The life of laughter lives large in play. Maybe we were born to play, and we need to play so to engage the sacred gift of every day we’re given.

The Beauty Of Boundaries I produce a podcast called family360, and this week’s guest, author and parenting specialist Janet Lansbury, describes a child’s natur...al reflex to test boundaries when seeking clarity from those in charge. While producing this episode, I was cognizant of shifting leadership and priorities at home and abroad and mindful that not only children need to test boundaries when they’re not feeling sure or safe. Our guest described testing boundaries as a way to answer important questions such as: "Am I safe and cared for? Do I have confident leaders? Are they with me or against me? Is it ok to want what I want, to feel what I feel?" These questions are not common to just children they’re common to all of us. We examine relational boundaries until we find our sense of safety. How far can we Go? Wonder? Change? Doubt? Hope? Believe? At whatever stage of life we’re at, when we feel unsure or vulnerable, we will test the limits of ourselves and the limits of others. We find security and comfort in defined boundaries. Every day, we probe the boundaries of our relationships consciously and unconsciously, trying to determine where we belong and to whom. At times this ongoing assessment may feel arduous and annoying. We not always welcome the stress of pushing or being pushed too far. Yet, testing the limits of our boundaries by possibly going too far, we discover how far we can go... In being known to each other, and to ourselves.

Blessing The Unexpected I rose in the morning to go on my 34k walk/run. When I returned home I discovered my glove and glasses had fallen out of my pocket. Ham...pered by the darkness and rain, and near-blind without my glasses, I retraced my steps with my iPhone flashlight peering down at the sidewalks and pathways, hoping to find what I’d lost. About 15 minutes from home I spotted a black shadow on a driveway and rejoiced in finding my glove! My glasses must be close by, so I thought. I scoured every inch of road, sidewalk and grass until frustrated, I gave up, needing to get to work. The next day I decided to do a mid-day walk, hoping the daylight might reveal my glasses whereabouts. To my surprise, I bumped into one of the 67 AM ‘regulars,’ a man I often see on my early morning route and walk schedule. Why he was out in mid-day I don’t know, but I told him my quandary and he excitedly related he’d found some glasses the morning before on the sidewalk, right near where I’d found my glove. I put the glasses on top of the mailbox about 20 feet down from there, he told me. With my heart racing, I ran to the mailbox. There, resting on the mailbox were my glasses! I’d passed that mailbox at least 3 times on my previous day’s search but I was looking down, not looking up. Every search is somewhat a search for what’s lost, a surprise for what’s found. I rose the next morning to go on my 34k walk/run. I placed my hand on a mailbox and blessed the unexpected.

Beginnings and Ends Last week's blog was inspired by insightful Anglican Priest, Dr. Sharon Smith, whose words continue to inform this week's writing. In additi...on to her witty phrase about ‘truth’ (highlighted in last weeks post) she also said this; Our minds can be scary places because we have patterns of thinking that, unless challenged in a safe and loving manner, will continue to think our world into a particular way of being. This past year put new patterns of thought into many of our minds. Thoughts on health and safety Thoughts on caution and risk Thoughts on community and care Conscious or unconscious, they’re with us now, thinking our world into a ‘particular way of being.’ As we head into the New Year, do we hold to the past, or is the New Year open to challenging the makeup of our minds? Leaving 2020 behind and looking to the year ahead if unchecked it’s possible some of these old patterns of thought will think us into a New Year that is less than the happiness our chipper greeting suggests. Possibly scary To make an end is to make a beginning. T.S.Eliot memorably wrote. These first weeks of 2021 could be a good time to ask ourselves, (in a safe and loving manner), what beginnings are we to make after this past year? What do we clear away? What do we keep close to our hearts? What do we envision as new possibilities? As we move into 2021, we can’t change 2020, but how we think our particular patterns of thought, will determine how we think and feel our world into being. To what ends do we make our beginnings?