Most of the time I’m fairly opinionated and
try and try avoid sitting on the fence. Exceptions
to this include: the theist/atheist debate where I adopt the position of being an
agnostic, the monarchy argument where I am happy to have Queen Elizabeth II as my
head of state, but intend to man the republican barricades on the accession of
King Charles III, and I can’t decide whether or not it is a good thing to take
an ipod on my month long stroll through the Spanish countryside.
Listening to beautiful pieces of classical or
ambient music that can lead to feeling calm and relaxed and can ultimately help
to induce sleep. One of the symptoms of
my condition is that I find it difficult to get to sleep. I’ve slept in dormitories with a large number
of middle aged men and it isn’t always a good experience when you are trying to
get to sleep. There is wide range of music from artists as diverse as Brian Eno,
Mozart, and Nouvelle Vague to be soothing and pacifying and this is often the
prelude to deep sleep.
Whilst out walking there have been times
when I have been out walking and faced the prospect of having to climb a very
steep hill and I will select a She Bangs
the Drum by The Stone Roses that will induce a rush of adrenalin, which will
greatly assist me in getting to the top of that hill.
Furthermore, I believe that listening to
music can help to enhance the understanding and appreciation of a particular
landscape. For instance whenever I am in
Spain, I love listening to
Miles Davis’s Sketches of Spain. I prefer listening to it on a warm
summers day atop a hill in Andalusia, rather when IM marching around Sheffield city centre.
Finally I love having the opportunity to
share music that I like with people and conversely there have been many occasions
when out on a walk, people have introduced me to new piece of music
However
I frequently use public transport and one
thing that annoys me is when my travelling companions listen to music on an
ipod through cheap earphones that can be from the other end of the tram. I’m sure Dizzee Rascal didn’t record Stand up Tall to be played through cheap
earphones and listened to by everyone on the upper deck of the 82 bus.
If you are constantly listening to music
through earplugs, you can become detached from what is going on around you. For me one of joys of walk is hearing the
birds sing, the noise of the wind, and the sound of silence. Furthermore you become detached from the
people around you. It is more difficult
to engage with a stranger who is walking in the opposite direction when they
are focussed on the music they are listening to.
When I walked along the Camino in 2005, I remember
a woman singing Amazing Grace just
before we sat down for dinner at Itero del Castillo. It was one of the most beautiful and
uplifting moments of the whole walk.
I will take an ipod with me, but will
listen to it sparingly
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