Edit - I watched the film and immediately responded above. I have just read the whole thread and am astonished I have used the exact same words as @james_n. Many other similar responses too.
Fascinating that this short piece has moved us all in the same way.
I forwarded a copy of this film to 5 of my closest friends, people I have known for more than 40 years. They all know of my love of music and audio and they share it to varying degrees. Their responses have all been complimentry of the topic, the subject and the quality of the short film.
One of them is a retired judge in a small community southwest of Portland who has been a close friend for 43 years. He forwarded the video on to a professional musician/teacher friend of his and the response he received is copied below.
" A few years ago, I had a young adult cello student who was deaf. She had lost her hearing when she was in college, by which time she could already play the cello pretty well. She would bring a hollow wooden platform to her lessons - it was kind of like a piano sound board. She put her chair and her cello endpin on the platform and played barefoot. She could “hear” the cello through her feet. She played as well in tune as any of my other students. It made me aware of how much I actually use the vibrations through my skin in addition to through my ears. When I’m playing in an orchestra and can’t hear my sound, I can always tell if I’m playing in tune because of the vibrations through my skin. I never realized it until I had this deaf student."
Amazing. Thanks again Chris for sharing with all of us.
Jeff this is amazing… thank you for sharing! A school teacher in Seattle played my film for her young students and then gave them all balloons so they could feel the music. A teachable moment for sure.
I’m already thinking about a follow up film to document the impact of Bob’s story. It has touched a community far beyond the audiophile of the world.
What a great lesson in viewing another person enjoying the magic of music without giving in and missing out, many thanks to all involved in this eye opening film.
I (hopefully) shared this with my spinal cord injury support group. This is inspiring in so many ways and also a great tribute to Art Dudley and to people’s ability to adapt and overcome adversity, which the people in my support group also manage on a daily basis.
Your film is so profound and inspiring on so many levels. What serendipity that you encountered Bob in Eric’s shop, listening to Art Dudley’s speakers. What a wonderful person is Bob. How amazing, it seems to me - a typical audiophile - that Bob and others hear with their hands on a balloon. How fitting that Art’s speakers are now in Bob’s home - thanks to John and Eric. How inspiring is Bob’s description of what music means to him, in words that ring true I am sure for all of us. How well you have captured these themes, intertwined in this short film. Well done! Thank you to all involved.
The film is great and inspirational! And it’s amazing to realize how adaptable and functional our brains are. Our audiophiles should appreciate the essence of good music while Hi-Fi equipment is just a tool to achieve our goal after all.
Hi Chris,
thank you so much for the absolutely fantastic film. After reading the teaser in Jason Serinus Gryphon review. I was quite curious about this project of yours. I imagined some kind of road movie with the Flamencos traveling from coast to coast.
Now this is so much more, that I can’t find words describing my impression well enough- very much like every time I read some of Art Dudleys writing.
Very good narration by John DeVore, too.
Watched this with my wife and 9 year old son yesterday…I’ve known Bob for a couple years since frequenting and now working at Gig Harbor Audio. Amazing guy. After the video, my son said, “Dad, you look like you’re going to cry.” Hard to hold em back after the boy says something like that.