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Title: The Beauty of Gesture: The Invisible Keyboard of Piano and T'Ai Chi by Catherine David, Alison Anderson ISBN: 1-55643-219-4 Publisher: North Atlantic Books Pub. Date: August, 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (3 reviews)
Rating: 2
Summary: I Can't Get Through This Book
Comment: I bought it years ago & have tried several times, but I find the writing style nearly impossible to read. At times it reads as if the author is trying too hard to make every sentence convey a deeply profound concept and at other times she jumps erratically to some obscure thought, feeling or concept. Not only did these jumps not move or interest me, I often couldn't even figure out (on either an intellectual or emotional level) what the author was trying to do.
After several attempts at completing the book, and having read only about 50 pages, I could barely bring myself to skim through the rest of the book to try to pick up a few interesting points or stories. I saw nothing to warrant additional attempts on my part.
I bought this book because I love to read about people's experiences in martial arts. I also enjoy poetry (and good writing in general), and Tai Chi is an art that I practiced at one time, so I really thought I would like this book. I love the concept (and even the cover) but this book did not do it for me. Perhaps linguistically and culturally this book works better in French. For those who are looking for a more readable book describing a person's experiences in Tai Chi, I would suggest, "There Are No Secrets" by Lowenthal.
Rating: 5
Summary: 'tis about beauty
Comment: Can we, by practicing a discipline such as Tai-Chi, refine our sense of self, our Being-In-The -World? Catherine David, in this sublime book, investigates the space that is behind the physical movement, behind the conscious mind, at the very core of what constitutes our sense of the Self - that space which gives birth to our sense of beauty and which can be translated through innumerable ways (including the Tai-Chi exercises and piano playing) into wordly manifestations of our uniqueness. In this space imagination and sensation are interlocked, like lovers. Once we realize that Self is just a metaphor and that the mental image can be the impulse to opening of a technical skill , we hold the keys to true freedom. In this society in which the essential is generally considered incidental (which is reflected in the unberable dullness of the contemporary man), Catherine David picks the essence from inconspicuous corners where it has been gathering dust and shows us how she uses it to unlock the gates leading to inner beauty. By doing this she helps us glimpse and perhaps touch that space. This book is a rare treat.
Rating: 5
Summary: Considering "The Beauty of Gesture" In and Out of Sight
Comment: In this remarkable series of 26 linked meditations, subtitled "The Invisible keyboard of Piano and T'ai Chi," the French journalist Catherine David explores the analogies between playing the piano and practicing t'ai chi chu'an. A serious painist and student of martial arts, David draws on a wide familiarity with literary and philisophical texts to evoke the intellectual and spiritual world of her imagination. "A beautiful act is an island of absoluteness in an ocean of chance," she writes, and her essay reminds us that the world vibrates with possibilities, necessities, poetries for those who can focus attention. "Coded meanings brought to light after endless repetitionon" -- that is practice, that is success. It is not a matter simply of what can be seen, for, with Plato, David reminds us that "A sudden light first blinds you." But she steps away from the classical position when she goes on to say that "Then it shows you the world." The world of Catherine David is well worth a leisurely read.
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Title: Beyond Belief : The Secret Gospel of Thomas by Elaine Pagels ISBN: 0375501568 Publisher: Random House Pub. Date: 06 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title:The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition) ASIN: B00009TB5G Publisher: New Line Home Video Pub. Date: 18 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $39.99 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $25.99 |
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