�You would do that for me Patrick?� he asks as he removes the ice and begins massaging my hand between both of his.
There are moments that are instantly recognizable as milestones in a life. We only have a few grand ones to contend with such as births, graduations, marriages etc� But the rest of life�s milestones are far more subtle yet no less important. Dietrich�s ministrations to my hand were becoming less clinical and more infused with a sense of kindness so palpable that even an inexperienced boy like me could recognize it.
A memory comes back to me that I never realized I would need again. I was about 13 years old and Dietrich was coaching me through a particularly wicked passage of Rachmaninoff�
�No, no Patrick, your phrase is still completely off. You�re just not feeling. You�re still trying to play it��
We have been working on this Concerto for Piano and Cello for weeks on end and I still stumble on this particularly difficult passage every time�
He puts down his bow and takes a seat next to me at the piano while gently scolding me. �This is just not something that can be read off the page and played with technical precision Patrick. This section must be felt in order to be conveyed. You�re completely forgetting what the composer was trying to convey in this passage. It�s the step beyond technique and you�re just not applying it here. Try again.�
Meisinger�s presence next to me is making me unusually nervous and I can�t understand why. For some reason I cannot verbalize, my desire to truly impress him and earn his respect is far stronger right now than ever before and the harder I try to make the phrase work, the worse the result and I�m just this close to working myself into a fit of frustration�
Meisinger gets up and sits behind me on the bench and reaches around me placing his fingers on top of mine. In just a few seconds I can feel a strange heat in my face and neck and realize I�m blushing like a schoolgirl! Why? I�m absolutely mortified but relieved that he is behind me and cannot see�
�Concentrate.� He whispers in my ear.
We begin the phrase again this time with him as my guide. The same notes, the same tempo, the same dynamics are brought forth but this time the result is completely different. It sounds exactly the way it should�
We�ve stopped playing but his position does not change and his hands remain on top of mine.
�I think you understand now.�
It takes me a while but I begin to understand that Dietrich is now placing a fork in the road for me to choose from. I can ignore the subtle signal and pretend that his touch is nothing more than clinical concern leaving the incident to be forgotten forever, or I can recognize what is truly happening and allow him to lead me further. The choice is very delicately being left up to me�
I place my uninjured hand on top of his and meet his gaze.
�I would do that and so much more for you Dietrich. You must certainly know that by now.�
�I thought so Patrick. I just wasn�t sure.�
We are both growing very nervous over what is being articulated but not actually said, the prospect of which is suddenly rather frightening to me and I begin to shiver violently despite the summer heat. Dietrich is suddenly all business and immediately throws his seersucker blazer over me, his straw boater on his head, mine on my own and stands me up.
