Hardy Mertens

Adagio

Adagio was written in 1999 as a large piece in one movement. Friendship and collaboration between the two artists, lead to the music of 'Adagio' and a poem by the same name, written by Sara Smerdon, who wrote the following introduction. Contemplation is the way to knowledge. By triggering motion of thought through our personal curiosity, we allow our own wisdom to deliver new formulated truths. It is in this way we are capable of increasing, by our individual activation, the knowledge which we stand for. Art, in all its media, is one strong and necessary profession which allows both the creator and participator an opportunity to delve into such open and developing thought. 'Adagio' is a reflection of such contemplation. Both the music and the poem were born at a time of rapid personal growth for both artists. They form just one result of two people willing to trust, to push the limits of thought and to allow dramatic change to occur in one's perspectives. They stand as an offering from a deep engagement between two individuals able to express their contemplation. A scribed memoir, reminding us always of our intense will to burst into new levels of understanding, nestled within a dignified balance and serene confidence of the grounded knowledge achieved so far. It delivers nothing new, only an awareness of what purely is, has been, and might be. Looking within what naturally exists within ourselves, and drawing upon the strength of our cultural foundations, (including, in this case, the formal structure of music), as well as our basic human values, we are not attempting any new form of belief, but realizing, and returning to the basics, and harnessing this as our strengths. By looking to the past to inform the future, our present steps become deep rooted, holding values common to us all. Expressed in a language that bends our normal structure, our basic thoughts to distortion, 'Adagio' leans, in essence, toward the sacred, meaning that it was consecrated by love and reverence, and therefore speaks with an attitude developed by a feeling of profound respect, awe, and affection. A sacred dedication to our noble foundations, the beauty of our existence.