Continuing with my “keep calm and make art” project, as a way to refill and replenish during these strange and stressful times. Today’s One Bright Thing post features more music, another three-fer.

These short pieces (each about 2 minutes long) are by German composer Felix Mendelssohn, who belongs to the Romantic era in music history (about 1825-1900). Mendelssohn wrote a collection of pieces he called “Songs without Words.” Songwriting was hugely popular during the Romantic era, but here Mendelssohn decides to do without the voice and create the whole “song” feel, melody line with rich accompaniment, using piano alone. In this powerful form of musical storytelling, Mendelssohn leaves the story (the poetry) entirely up to the listener’s imagination.

All three of these pieces are gentle and meditative. Use the listening time to quiet your mind. If you’d like, as you listen, consider what kind of story each piece is telling, or simply experience what each one evokes for you.

If you have any thoughts about the experience, or the stories that came to your mind, that you’d like to share, please post them in the comments. 🙂

Hope you enjoy. Visit back soon for more musical diversions!